Chiang Mai
- Covid-19 News
20,000 expected to apply for unemployment in Chiang Mai
With thousands of businesses shuttered and public spaces closed to fight the spread of the Covid-19 coroavirus, Chiang Mai’s social security office expects some 20,000 laid-off workers to register for unemployment benefits. “People started registering on Tuesday and we’re getting at least 1,000 a day on average. And they’re not just Chiang Mai people, but also from other provinces.” Registration…
- Thailand Weather Updates
Hot with showers in the North, cloudy in the South
Thailand’s Meteorological Department said today is a “hot to a very hot day for the North and the Northeast” as a thermal low covers upper Thailand. A combination of southerly and southeasterly winds prevails over the Northeast, the East, the Central and the lower North regions. Thundershowers with gusty winds are forecast in some areas of the upper country (hey,…
- Thailand Weather Updates
Hot days for the North, possible thundershowers in the South
Thailand’s Meteorological Department says today that a low pressure system covers upper Thailand and will make for hot, dry days in the north of Thailand. Chiang Mai, Bangkok and Phuket five day forecasts below. “A westerly trough covers the upper Northeast, while southerly and southeasterly winds blow humidity from the South China Sea into the Northeast, the East, the Central…
- Covid-19 News
Chiang Mai orders lights out and fences up
Chiang Mai provincial governor Charoenrit Sanguansat yesterday announced 2 new confirmed cases of Covid-19 and 374 suspected cases in the region. “We will keep most public places closed throughout this month.” The governor has ordered fences up and lights out at all walking streets, entertainment venues, spas, karaoke bars, massage parlous, gaming centres, fitness clubs, cinemas and theatres. Even the…
- Crime News
Grab driver turns himself in over missing wallet: cash still missing
A Grab taxi driver has turned himself in to police in Chiang Mai police after a Dutch tourist lost 500 euros at an exchange booth in the city. The 27 year old Duct national, identified as “Edwin T.” reported to police after dropping his wallet at a booth at in the city’s Saphan Lek on Monday. CCTV showed a Grab…
- Crime News
Kitten killer arrested in Chiang Mai
The internet is abuzz with outrage and indignation as netizens and animal lovers express their outrage over a man in arrested in northern Thailand for adopting kittens, then killing them. Officers in Chiang Mai arrested the man, identified as Waitaya Kadpab, on animal cruelty charges for adopting and killing up to 12 kittens. Authorities told Thai media that several people…
- Chiang Mai News
Judge commits suicide
A judge is dead after shooting himself in the heart in his home in Chiang Mai province. He had previously attempted suicide in his courtroom after being pressured to change a verdict. In October last year, Kanakorn Pianchana, then a judge in the provincial court of Thailand’s southern Yala province, publicly claimed he had been approached by someone who “forced”…
- Tourism News
Chiang Mai to see passenger numbers fall by 40% in wake of virus fears
The numbers at Chiang Mai’s international airport will fall 40% to 3.5 million in the first six months of this year if the outbreak of Covid-19 coronavirus drags on until the middle of the year. Chiang Mai airport deputy director Thananrat Prasertsri said late last week that flights to the airport during the period January 1 to February 25 dropped…
- Environment News
Smoke from plantation fires continues to choke central and northern Thailand
Smoke from fires, mostly deliberately lit, continue to choke sections of central and northern Thailand today. Light winds are not blowing away the smog and haze produced by the smoke, particularly in the north where Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai have readings today from ‘unhealthy’ too ‘very unhealthy’ – in a range from 170 up to 240 (particles of PM2.5…
- Crime News
Rogue policeman turned burglar recaptured in Chiang Mai
A former policeman who escaped a Chiang Mai hospital after being arrested for burglary has been re-arrested. The ex-cop, identified only as “Pawaret,” was assaulted by homeowners after he attempted to burglarise a home last weekend, which led to rescue workers taking him to hospital. He subsequently escaped the in the early hours of the morning. His escape caused panic…
- Tourism News
Once bustling, Chiang Mai tourist areas are now deserted
Thai news agency MCOT has become the latest media outlet to bemoan the devastating effect of the coronavirus (Covid-19) on Thai tourism, after their reporters went to the once thriving area of Nimmanhaemin. Online blurbs about the area still describe it as having “buzzing dining and nightlife, hip cafes, fashion boutiques and a weekend craft market.” But a month after…
- Songkran News
Top 10 dos and don’ts for the 2020 Songkran festival
Heading to Thailand for the 2020 Songkran festival? Want to know the dates, where to go and the dos and don’ts for this amazing water festival in Thailand? Songkran is a single name given to a series of concurrent events – an astrological ‘new year’, a Buddhist festival, the ‘change’ from dry season to wet season and a humongous water…
- Environment News
Fires continue devouring Thailand’s North
Despite prohibitions on agricultural burning, wildfires continued ravaging forests across Thailand yesterday, especially in the North. Satellite images charting the progress of large fires yesterday morning showed the number of hotspots in the north had risen from 823 on Friday to 1,334. A total of 3,238 forest fires were recorded nationwide. Mae Hong Son province had the highest number of…
- Crime News
Man claims he was attacked and robbed by “foreigners”
A student in Chiang Mai says he was mugged by “foreigners from Europe.” Twenty-four year old Theerapat Saen-in posted his alleged ordeal on Thai social media earlier this week. According to his post he was taking photographs at a view point on Doi Suthep when he was approached by “farangs.” He says they bashed him on the head with a…
- Tourism News
“Tourist arrivals to plunge 50% in first half of 2020” – Thai Tourism Minister
Thailand’s Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn has painted a gloomy outlook for Thailand’s previously-robust tourism industry. He says he expects tourist arrivals to plunge by 50% in the first half of 2020 because of the coronavirus outbreak. His predictions are born out by sluggish arrival numbers at the country’s main airports, hotel forward bookings and ‘landing slots’ cancelled by international…
- Tourism News
Chiang Mai a “ghost town” as tourists stay away in droves
The coronavirus outbreak has turned Chiang Mai into a ghost town. The city’s Thansettakij newspaper today reported the results of its survey on tourist attractions since February 8, Makha Puja Day and the start of a three day holiday. It showed a massive decline in tourists, especially from China. “Chiang Mai used to be very popular among Chinese tourists, but…
- Chiang Mai News
44th Chiang Mai Flower Festival in full bloom
The Chiang Mai Flower Festival kicked off at the city’s Suan Buak Had park yesterday. Mayor Tassanai Buranupakorn officially opened the festival which he hopes will bring much-needed tourists to the city. Tassanai said Suan Buak Had was Chiang Mai’s first public park and has always been the location of the annual Flower Festival, now in its 44th year. This…
- Environment News
Thai government scraps Mekong blasting project
The government has officially abandoned a controversial plan to blast rapids on the Mekong river in Chiang Mai province. The Chinese-led dredging and blasting plan, initiated in 2001, met with fierce opposition from locals and environmental groups, and the Cabinet agreed to scrap it at a weekly meeting on Tuesday. The plan was to enable ships to carry goods from…
- Chiang Mai News
73 year old Swede found dead in Chiang Mai condotel
Chiang Mai health authorities have reported the death of a 73 year old Swedish man in the northern province. He was found dead in a his condotel in Chang Phueak district on Monday. The body was discovered by staff, who immediately called police and health officials over fears of the Novel Coronavirus. The body was identified as that of Gunnar…
- Chiang Mai News
Army officer wounded in Chiang Mai firefight with drug runners
A firefight with drug smugglers in Chiang Mai province’s Chiang Dao district has left an army officer wounded and in hospital. A patrol was dispatched to a border village in Chiang Dao on Sunday, after a tip-off. The informant said drugs would be brought across the border through the Nong Kalang pass. Early yesterday a group was spotted coming from…
- Phuket News
Phuket, Bangkok and Chiang Mai hard hit over ‘palpable’ tourism drop
The 2019-nCoV coronavirus, the official name for the Wuhan or Novel Corononavirus, is resulting in dozens of high-season flights to Thai southern beach resorts being cancelled. The virus is already deemed an international public health emergency by the World Health Organisation. “While Patong survived and thrived after SARS, the tsunami and a few army coups, this virus is stripping our…
- Chiang Mai News
Chinese tourist in Chiang Mai dead after whiskey binge
Police in Chiang Mai Province were notified Wednesday of a Chinese tourist who had passed away from unknown causes at a resort in Mae Rim. Fearing the spread of the Wuhan Coronavirus which has gripped Asia, officials went to retrieve the body wearing precautionary medical protective suits. Dr Chatuchai Maneerat of the Chiang Mai Provincial Public Health Office reported later…
- Road deaths
South Korean cycling prospect killed in Chiang Mai crash
A cyclist from the Korea Cycling Federation has died after being struck by a pickup truck during a training exercise in Chiang Mai. 18 year old Eom Se-beom was pronounced dead in an ambulance on his way to a hospital. It’s believed the truck crossed the centre line and crashed into Eom as he headed down a slope. Eom was…
- Chiang Mai News
Chinese tourist found dead in Chiang Mai, body sent for autopsy
A Chinese woman on holiday at an unnamed resort in Mae Rim, just north of Chiang Mai city, was found dead in her room yesterday morning. The cause was not apparent and authorities, fearing the spread of Wuhan Coronavirus, took all possible precautions in removing her body and belongings, according to the local police. According to her four fellow travellers…
- Hot News
Solar eclipse today across Thailand. Here’s how to watch it.
CAUTION: Looking at the sun directly and without proper equipment is dangerous and can cause blindness. Read more, along with some guidelines for viewing the solar eclipse, HERE. How it will look in your area below… The skies will darken across Thailand around midday today. The further south you are, the darker it will get as the moon moves over…
- Thai Life
Top 10 scams in Thailand
PHOTO: Thai Travel News Any hot tourist spot around the world is going to attract the ‘wrong sort of’ people, sometimes greedy locals, who will be specialists at extracting dollars from tourists’ pockets. In Thailand the main difference is that they will usually do it with a smile. There are indeed scams awaiting tourists who come to Thailand and you…
- Northern Thailand News
Driver of gas tanker falls asleep, ploughs into building in Chiang Rai
A driver of a gas tanker carrying nearly 50,000 litres of fuel had a lucky escape after he managed to plough the vehicle into a three-storey building in Chiang Rai province. The story, reported by Thai news outlet 77kaoded and shared by ThaiVisa, says the man fell asleep at the wheel of the tanker before crashing into Mekong View Plaza,…
- News
Unconscious 4 year old rescued from locked car
Pattaya police got a report that a child was stuck in a car in front of a shopping mall. When they rushed to the scene a volunteer rescue team, they found a crowd surrounding a car, trying to wake up a sleeping four year old boy. The boy’s mother was there and was in fact the one to call for…
- Things To Do
Top 10 places to visit around Chiang Mai, on a motorbike
by Ryan Astaphan from Panumart Tattoo One of the joys of visiting Chiang Mai is travelling around on a scooter or motorbike (as long as you have a license) as you explore the countryside. By doing so you’ll get to take in the natural wonders and local culture that northern Thailand has to offer. The main roads are mostly excellent. But do…
- Chiang Mai News
39 year old being sought by police over gruesome Chiang Mai millionaire murder
PHOTO: Missing millionaire 58 year old Wannee Jiracharoenying found in a refrigerator – The Times The Provincial Court in southern Chiang Mai province has issued an arrest warrant for a key suspect in the murder of 58 year old Wannee Jiracharoenying. Thai police have broken the case of the murder of the estate developer Wannee, whose body was found stuffed into…
