Thailand News
Thailand news, politics, business, crime, and lifestyle—get breaking updates from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond. Stay informed on Thai society, economy, tourism, and expat life with The Thaiger.
-
Sponsored Do foreigners get free healthcare in Thailand?
Thailand’s healthcare system is well-regarded across Southeast Asia, with options ranging from public hospitals to world-class private facilities. But when it comes to foreign residents or tourists, healthcare access isn’t as straightforward. So, do foreigners get free healthcare in Thailand?...
-
Butt pic boys face jail sentence over ‘offensive’ Instagram posts
A couple of Americans who author the Instagram page “Travelling Butts” have been arrested at Don Mueang International Airport for having taken photos showing their backsides with the respected Temple of the Dawn in the background. Police have so far only identified the two as Joseph and Travis, as their identities have yet to be confirmed with the Bangkok Yai…
-
THAIGER TODAY Wednesday, November 29
Prayut’s not-so-good trip to Songkhla | Thai tourists getting assistance from Bali Consulate with Mt Agung gurgling | Super Moon on the way | Phuket FC says a sad farewell | Chao Praya boat captain has a bad day. And today & tomorrow’s weather.
-
THAIGER TODAY Tuesday, November 28
Patong venue operators urge authorities to extend opening hours | Bali airport still closed | Surin Beach vendors want a ‘management’ plan | Phuket’s King’s Cup announces dates | Gulf coast of Southern Thailand flooding.
-
Elephant kills mahout at Chiang Mai Zoo
A 32 year old male elephant fatally attacked its keeper at Chiang Mai Zoo yesterday morning, acting zoo director Wutthichai Moungman later confirmed. Senior mahout Somsak Riang-ngern died instantly. The attack at the elephant camp on the hill outside the display zone took place at 8am when the five-tonne Plai Ekkasit, which has apparently been in rut since Sunday, suddenly…
-
Bali evacuates 100,000 and tourists stranded as island goes to red alert over volcano
If you were about to rush over to Bali for a bit of pre-Christmas island hopping, forget it. The airport in Denpasar is closed, people are being evacuated as a precaution and many travellers, already on the island, are stranded. Authorities on the Indonesian tourist island of Bali have raised the volcano alert to the highest level as Mount Agung…
-
THAIGER TODAY Monday, November 27
Military cadet family want answers | Thai Airways open new Vienna route | Floods in south while Petchaburi clears | Shocking road death statistics | Miss Universe Thailand into final five.
-
Miss Universe Thailand gets into the Top Five. Miss South Africa wins.
Thai beauty queen Maria Poonlertlarp, who was selected as one of the final five contestants in the 66th Miss Universe 2017, smiled bravely through her disappointment as she watched Miss South Africa’s Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters crowned Miss Universe this morning (Bangkok time) at the Axis, Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas in the world’s biggest beauty pageant. Colombia’s Laura Gonzalez was first…
-
NGO taking the government to court over food pesticides
More than 60 per cent of five popular vegetables sold in local markets contain excessive levels of harmful chemical residue, according to a testing by the Thailand Pesticide Alert Network (Thai-PAN), a non-governmental organisation working on food safety. About 64 per cent of khana (Chinese kale), tua fak yao (long beans), prik daeng (red chili), bai kaprao (basil leaves) and…
-
Van fatality in Saraburi – one dead and eight injured
PHOTO: Thai PBS A school teacher has been killed and eight others injured in yet another fatal passenger van crash. This time on Phahonyothin Road, Nong Khae in Saraburi late last night (November 24). Police say the fatal crash happened just before midnight. The van , believed to be from the Chaiyaphum province, was returning 10 Chaiyaphum teachers after a…
-
Ten in, nine out, eight reassigned – Thai Cabinet reshuffle
His Majesty the King has endorsed the new Thai Cabinet after a reshuffle that saw 10 new faces, nine removed and eight members given new assignments. Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha removed… General Tanasak Patimapragorn and Admiral Narong Pipatnasai as his deputies, as well Minister attached to Prime Minister’s Office Omsin Chivapruek, Deputy Defence Minister General Udomdej Sitabutr, Tourism and Sport…
-
Two officers transferred over death of 18 year old cadet
The family blames injuries from punishment at school. The Army vows to conduct a transparent investigation Two senior military officers have been transferred out of the Thai Armed Forces Academies Preparatory School (AFAPS) in the wake of a scandal surrounding the death of a teenage cadet. Supreme Commander General Thanchaiyan Srisuwan yesterday ordered the transfers of Colonel Chatchai Duangrat and…
-
Another van tragedy – 14 die after crash in Sing Buri
Thirteen Burmese workers and a Thai driver were killed when a chartered van burst into flames after it crashed into the rear of a truck in Sing Buri early yesterday. The bus was taking the workers from Tak back to Mahachai, police said. The victims’ bodies were taken to Bangkok’s Police General Hospital for identification. So far, only Thai driver…
-
Phang Nga mother in court as suspected accomplice in Erawan Shrine bombing
Wanna Suansan, accused of facilitating the 2015 Erawan Shrine bombing, appeared in Bangkok Military Court on Thursday morning to apply for her first 12-day detention period. She is one of 17 suspects in the bomb attack that killed 20 people and wounded 163 others. Wanna, 29, was taken into police custody at Suvarnabhumi International Airport on Wednesday evening as she…
-
THAIGER TODAY Tuesday, November 21
Stabbings in Thalang and Phuket Town | US 7th Fleet Admiral and Thai PM attend Sail Past in Pattaya | 20 escape from Songkhla detention | ‘Spotlight Phuket’ dumps the dirt on Patong corruption | MRT Blue Line in BKK ditches passenger seats.
-
THAIGER TODAY Monday, November 20
50th anniversary for ASEAN Navies in Pattaya | Police – get a haircut! | Laguna Phuket Triathlon | Two entertainment venues closed for five years | Boat Lagoon Weekend returns next month.
-
The rich get richer, the poor get poorer
The poor are getting poorer, while the rich are getting richer due to the government’s policy approach to welfare and social enterprise, according to academics who presented at a seminar on civil state policy held at Thammasat University yesterday. Official statistics show a trend in which the rich tend to get more benefit from the government’s policies than the poor,…
-
THAIGER TODAY Friday, November 17
Featuring a local Kathu school and their marching band. Political arties can start getting ready for registration | Whale sharks found of Koh Kong | Baht reaches nearly 33 Baht/US dollar | Toon going solo to catch up with his running schedule | DSI gives marching orders to Layan beach-encroachers.
-
Taking a drone to Myanmar? Declare it at Customs, or else.
Using the many new ‘toy’ drones – many under 40,000 baht and capable of being flown by anyone and shooting 4K video – is becoming public enemy #1 for some of Asia’s less tolerant governments. In Thailand you now need to register your drone and get a license if you’re going to use it commercially. If you’re caught without the…
-
One-third of Thai families live with some form of domestic violence and verbal abuse
PHOTO: scmp.com Hurtful words are among the root causes of domestic violence, with a survey revealing that some form of abuse exists in one in every three families in Thailand. Social Development and Human Security Minister Pol General Adul Saengsingkaew said yesterday that people hated hearing unkind words from family members. The most-harmful words and phrases cited in the survey…
-
THAIGER TODAY Thursday, November 16
Meet Francesc Rovira, Michelin Star Chef | 3 dead and 48 injured in a bus crash | Toon OK after health scare | Building at Ao Sane will stay | four to be arrested for using drone during Royal Funeral.
-
His Majesty grants flowers, energy drinks, traditional Thai sweets to ‘Toon’
His Majesty the King on Wednesday granted flowers, energy drinks and Thai traditional sweets from His Majesty’s kitchen to provide moral support to charity running hero Artiwara “Toon” Kongmalai. The King sent AM Phakdee Saengchuto, his assistant principal private secretary, to deliver the gifts to Toon in a ceremony held in front of His Majesty’s picture. The ceremony was held…
-
THAIGER TODAY Wednesday, November 15
Another drowning off Karon Beach | Illegal migrant numbers in Phuket rising | Condos are not a ‘bubble’, sales high | Governor pushes forward on dog pound | ASEAN skirts around Suu Kyi | One dead and another seven taken to hospital following crash on By Pass road this morning.
-
Aung San Suu Kyi – battered but not bruised over Rhakine crisis
ASEAN is expressing ‘solidarity’ with the elected defacto civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi in her efforts to “promote humanitarian assistance to ease tensions and conflict in Rakhine state.” Leaders at APEC are officially supporting the civilian leader rather than issuing a sterner rebuke over her country’s handling of the Rohingya crisis. Meanwhile Myanmar’s army has acquitted itself after an…
-
THAIGER TODAY Tuesday, November 14
HRH Princess Sirindhorn opens conference in Phuket | Thailand’s annual road toll increases | Checks on Patong Beach smoking ban | APEC doesn’t sanction Myanmar over Rohingya | Removal of ‘red flags’ on Thai airlines | HM The King sends a gift to ‘Toon’.
-
Deputy abbot facing arrest over sex with underage boys
Police have obtained an arrest warrant for a deputy abbot in the northern Nan province who was implicated in a leaked chat log allegedly recording him arranging to buy sex from underage boys. Pol Colonel Prayoon Chamnarn, Muang Nan police chief, said he had received a warrant for the arrest of Phra Samu-udon Chinwangso, deputy abbot of Phayaswat Temple. Prayoon…
-
Olympic legend sends goodwill message to ‘Toon’
One of the world’s great long-distance athletes has added his praise for rockstar Artiwara “Toon” Kongmalai’s epic 2,191-kilometre run for charity. Britain’s Mo Farah, who has twice won Olympic gold medals at both the 5,000 and 10,000 metres, has posted a photo of himself holding a running shoe on his Facebook page “Mo Farah” and Instagram “gomofarah”, saying: “Keep running…
-
THAIGER TODAY Monday, November 13
Some retailers ‘not playing fair’ | HRH Princess Sirindhorn in Phuket | APEC kicks off in Vietnam | 200 year old Siamese cannons found | Another fatal bus crash in Bangkok | Rubber planters call off BKK protest.
-
Government crackdown uncovers 100,000 illegal immigrants
The 95 arrested in Phuket last week for overstaying their visas could be just the tip of a 100,000 person iceberg, according to the country’s Deputy PM Prawit Wongsuwan. 62 Indians, 11 Pakistanis, 6 Egyptians and 16 foreigners from other nationalities were rounded up last Friday by immigration police whilst 15 Phuket-based police are being being asked to ‘please explain’ why…
-
THAIGER TODAY Friday, November 10
Suspicious object found at Phuket Airport | Phuket Gateway V2.0 launches soon | Police investigate Ayutthaya fatal crash | Huge hauls of drugs and illegal animal products overnight | Ponzi scheme seminar held in Phuket Town. And our bike helmet challenge!
-
UPDATE: Four Japanese and a Thai guide killed as passenger van rams truck
Five people were killed and one injured when a minivan rammed into the rear of a running truck in Ayutthaya’s Bang Pa-in district on Wednesday. Earlier we reported on The Thaiger and Phuket Gazette that six had been killed. The van was reportedly carrying four Japanese and a Thai guide in addition to the driver. The van caught fire soon…
Don't forget to check out some other things to do in Thailand - get help starting a business or finding a job in Thailand, buy Thailand property, rent a yacht or book a medical procedure worldwide.