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.
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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?...
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Series of earthquakes strike 500km away from Thailand’s Andaman coast
A series of continuous 4.0 – 4.9 magnitude earthquakes struck the Andaman and Nicobar islands for a period of 3 days, 506 kilometres away from Thailand’s Andaman coast. More than 40 tremors occurred, beginning July 4 at 6:00am and continuing until this morning, July 6. The epicentre of the tremors was only 10 kilometres deep, making the chance of a…
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Thai health authorities insist latest Covid-19 wave is controllable
The Thai Department of Disease Control under the Ministry of Public Health insists that the latest Covid-19 wave in Thailand will be “small and controllable”, and should be called a “mini wave” not a new wave. The Rural Doctor Society Facebook page shared an urgent and secret document about a new wave of Covid to the public on Monday. The…
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Thai man escapes with life after love triangle shootout
A Thai man escaped with his life after an argument with his girlfriend turned into a scene from a gangster movie. Teerapan Mulma got into a row with his girlfriend at a party on Sunday, July 3 at Pattaya Waterworks Authority in Pattaya, which spiraled into a shootout. The 34 year old was enjoying drinks with his girlfriend and a…
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Travelling to Thailand? Here are the latest vaccine guidelines.
So you’re vaccinated. But are you? Or perhaps you’re unvaccinated or under-vaccinated. What does all this mean for you if you’re travelling to Thailand? The following info was updated by the Thai Government and published on June 28, 2022. Here’s a list of approved Covid-19 vaccines in Thailand… 1. CoronaVac (Sinovac) – 2 doses needed / 2nd dose after 2-4…
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Insurance companies in uproar over Covid scam by clients
In a bizarre twist of fate, insurance companies are crying wolf after being scammed out of 500 million baht from a Covid-19 insurance scheme. Evidence has emerged that thousands of people who bought the “Found, Paid, Done” Covid-19 insurance scheme submitted fake documents for compensation totalling an estimated 500 million baht. The president of the Thai General Insurance Association, Anon…
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Thai netizens go into meltdown over farmer using bathroom cleaner as fertilizer
Pictures of a Thai farmer using bathroom cleaner as a fertilizer in his rice fields have sent netizens into meltdown. Scientist, Parkpoom Dethhussadin, known as Mor Lap Panda, posted a screenshot of a Facebook post from an unidentified farmer spraying his crops with bathroom cleaner. The unidentified farmer captioned the post with, “It’s effective and cost-saving. I tried it with…
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Thai police arrest ‘Mr. Underpants:’ The serial thief in the white briefs
Today, the Royal Thai Police finally arrested a serial mobile phone thief known as “Mr. Underpants.” Mr. Underpants broke into 9 BANANA mobile phone shops in locations all over Thailand, stealing thousands of mobile phones in total. Every time, he wore only his pants. Mr. Underpants broke into BANANA branches in Yala, Hat Yai, Patthalung, Nakhon Nayok, Nakhon Si Thammarat,…
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Suitcases packed as Thais get ready for domestic travel
The number of locals planning their vacations is predicted to spike for the first time since the pandemic broke out over 2 years ago. The President of the Tourism Council of Thailand, Chamnan Srisawat, predicts there will be a high number of Thai nationals travelling domestically in the third quarter of 2022 thanks to the easing of restrictions and regulations…
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Popular Thai lottery ticket app to get 2 million more tickets
With the high demand for the government’s legal lottery tickets sold online, the Government Lottery Office will likely add 2 million more tickets to its digital distribution system, Pao Tang, for the draw on August 1. The director-general of the Revenue Department, Lawaron Saengsanit, says that people are buying more tickets. “The latest sales were faster than expected and reflect…
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Ukrainian woman caught smuggling 116 live tortoises from Tanzania into Thailand
Police arrested a Ukrainian woman at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport yesterday after airport security found 116 live tortoises in her luggage. The woman smuggled the protected wildlife on an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Dar es Salaam in Tanzania to Bangkok, transiting in Addis Ababa in Ethiopia along the way. Yesterday at 2:40pm, Chief of the Wildlife Checkpoint at Suvarnabhumi Airport Sathon…
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Battle of the Beetles: Man gets rich selling rhinoceros beetles in southern Thailand
Beetle fighting season is almost upon us, and one man from southern Thailand says his rhinoceros beetles are heading straight to the top of the beetle battle championships. Every rainy season in Thailand, male rhinoceros beetles go head to head on a wooden pole. A female beetle is placed underneath, whose scent stimulates the males to fight until one backs…
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Thai public health ministry warns medical workers of new Covid-19 wave in a secret document
The Permanent Secretary of the Thai Public Health Ministry, Kiattiphum Wongarajit, has launched an urgent report to warn the provincial public health officers of the “new wave” of Covid-19 in Thailand. The official Facebook page of the Rural Doctor Society reported on their “urgent and secret document” to the public yesterday. The page said… “The warning sign to get ready…
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Thai energy chief suggests senators shed suits to save energy
The Deputy PM and Energy Minister, Supattanapong Punmeechaow, has urged the nation’s senators to be energy-saving role models for Thailand. The 62 year old MP has suggested every senator should avoid wearing suits to reduce the use of air-conditioning in Parliament. During today’s senate meeting at the Parliament House senators, Sakon Satjayanit and Suradet Jirathiticharoen raised questions about solutions to…
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Student’s body ripped in half in freak motorbike accident in central Thailand
A 20 year old engineering student died in a motorbike accident at around 8am this morning in Pathum Thani province, central Thailand. Police found the man’s body completely ripped into two pieces after he crashed into a power pole. Witnesses said they saw the man waiting at a red light on the Rangsit – Nakhon Nayok road outside Nattawan village.…
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Drinking alcohol increases risk of threadworms, says Thai university
Regular alcohol consumption increases the risk of developing threadworm infections, according to new research conducted by the Parasitic Disease Research Centre at Suranaree University of Technology in Bangkok. The university recommends alcohol drinkers test themselves for threadworms at least once or twice a year to prevent severe infections. Threadworms – Strongyloides stercoralis – are tiny parasitic worms that infect the…
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Man killed and 2 injured in Bangkok canal tragedy
The captain of a canal boat was killed yesterday afternoon after his vessel collided with another boat on a canal in the Bang Bo district near Bangkok. The 32 year old man, Prasit Nadam, was navigating his long-tail boat when it collided with another similar vessel at 4.30pm in Khlong Kalaya canal at Moo 2 village in tambon Bang Bo.…
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AirAsia Thailand resumes Bangkok – Hong Kong flights, pilots new China route
In August, Thai AirAsia will resume direct flights between Bangkok and Hong Kong. The airline will also pilot a special flight to Guangzhou in China this month, on July 13. Thai AirAsia is a joint venture between Thailand’s Asia Aviation and budget Malaysian airline AirAsia. The airline will operate weekly flights between Bangkok’s Don Muang International Airport and Hong Kong…
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Thai Vietjet celebrates July’s double day with ‘7.7 Awesome!’
Press Release Celebrating July’s double day with a great promotion, Thai Vietjet today launches ‘7.7 Awesome’, offering special fares starting from THB 477 (inclusive of taxes and fees) for travel on the airline’s entire domestic flight network. The special fares are available for booking from July 4 – 9, 2022, with the travel period from August 1 – December 31…
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Family of trampled woman calls for UK ban on elephant parks ads
More than 20 years after a British woman was trampled to death at Nong Nooch Village Elephant Show in Thailand, her family is frustrated that elephant shows and rides are still being advertised and promoted in the UK. Andrea Taylor was just 20 years old in 2000 when an elephant charged into the crowd, killing her and injuring her sister…
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Pickup truck explosion kills 2 in Bangkok
On Saturday morning, a pickup truck crashed into the barrier in the middle of a 4 lane road in Bangkok and exploded. Witnesses saw 2 men escape the vehicle, but both men got caught in the flames and died at the scene. At 6:30am on Saturday, fire engines from Thanon Chan Fire Station were called to put out a fire…
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Unvaccinated tourist turned away at check-in desk en route to Thailand
An unvaccinated tourist en route to Thailand was turned away at the check-in desk at Manchester Airport in England on Saturday after an airline didn’t get the memo about Thailand’s updated entry restrictions. If you are unvaccinated and plan to travel to Thailand, The Thaiger has advice about how to avoid this happening to you. Thailand Pass was scrapped on…
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Thai health delegate says we must do more to protect kids from sex crimes
A spokesman for the Thai Department of Health says schools must do more to protect children from sexual crimes after the alleged rape of an 11 year old girl by her 12 year old classmate caused outrage in the Wichian Buri district of Phetchabun province on Tuesday, June 21. Police launched an investigation into why the female director of the…
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Cyber police bust illegal gambling ring in Pattaya valued at 100 million baht
Cyber police busted an illegal online gambling ring in Pattaya and arrested 11 suspects in connection with the illicit activity that pulled in over 100 million baht in revenue. Director of the Cybercrime Suppression Center Region 2, Surachit Chingnawan, yesterday announced the arrest of the 11 suspects accused of operating the illegal online gambling website in the Chon Buri area.…
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Thailand tourism: 9.3 million arrivals predicted, south busy
In its latest estimates, the Ministry of Tourism and Sports predicts that the second half of 2022 will bring more than 7 million travellers to Thailand. The first 6 months nearly hit the 2 million tourist mark, with 1.987 million visitors arriving from abroad from the beginning of January until June 28. Tourism generated around 114 billion baht so far…
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Warning to Thai travellers: Don’t take cannabis to other countries
With the decriminalisation of cannabis on June 9, many in Thailand have gone buckwild with the newfound freedom to grow, sell, and partake of the popular plant. The government is taking steps to rein in the free-for-all and bring some regulations and restrictions to its usage, and now they’re warning people to keep in mind that legalisation in Thailand does…
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Thai PM Prayut ‘positive’ about expected tourist influx
Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha says he is confident about the country’s expected tourist influx this year, according to a government spokesperson. Thailand’s CCSA scrapped the Thailand Pass on Friday, July 1. Now, the Tourism and Sports Ministry expects a total of about 9.3 million foreign visitors to arrive in the ‘Land of Smiles’ this year. The compulsory US$10,000 insurance was…
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Coalition calls for cannabis regulation, ban for youth
If like many, you doubted the legalisation of cannabis without regulation in Thailand as too good to be true, the backlash that has already begun will be no surprise. PM Prayut Chan-o-Cha has already curbed cannabis patents to prevent foreign market domination and banned its use on military sites, while vendors selling joints were shut down on Khaosan Road after…
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Travel to Surat Thani, it’s where the fun begins | Jay and Natty’s Adventures
The Thaiger‘s Natty and Jay recently went on a long weekend trip to Thailand’s southern province of Surat Thani, and they’re dying to show our viewers their adventures. People typically see Surat Thani as a passing point to somewhere exciting like Koh Samui, Koh Tao, and Koh Phangan. But The Thaiger’s top news presenters want people to know about Surat…
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Appeals Court sentences former Deputy Minister Banyin to death
Following a twisted tale of alleged greed and corruption, former Deputy Minister of Commerce Banyin Tangpakorn has been sentenced to death by the Appeals Court. The ruling increased the earlier life imprisonment sentence for the murder of a judge’s brother in an apparent attempt to sway another court ruling in the deputy minister’s favour. The story sounds like it was…
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Price of made-to-order food surge in Thailand
Price inflation continues to rear its head in Thailand and across the globe. The latest item to get more expensive is made-to-order food. The average price per dish of made-to-order food bumped up by about 3.7 baht or 6.7% in May, according to a year-on-year comparison by the food delivery app Line Man Wongnai. The report said that dishes with…
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