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Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond.
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Sponsored Is private health insurance in Thailand worth it? Real costs vs risks explained
Thailand has a strong healthcare system with both public and private options. Public hospitals offer affordable care, but many people, including expats, choose private health insurance for faster service, modern facilities, and more treatment choices. To decide if private health...
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Thai nightlife midnight closing time under pressure this week
The current ‘official’ closing time for nightlife venues, in 31 provinces around Thailand (yellow and blue zones), is midnight. That all kicked in at the start of this month. But, hey, it’s Thailand and there’s also been plenty of venues, particularly in the tourist zones, where the midnight close time has been stretched a bit. But some netizens have noticed…
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How can parents keep kids busy during Bangkok summer holidays
Summer holidays for Bangkok international schools are nearly here. For working parents who are trying to balance work, and family, and will be spending at least some of the summer in the city, the question is how to keep their children busy and engaged? One of the best online resources for expat parents looking for activities is BKK Kids. With…
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Nightlife closing times, revised mask requirements and more land border re-openings
Thailand’s Covid taskforce are meeting this week to consider three proposals made from around various Ministries and industry stakeholders. It’s going to be a pivotal week for the CCSA. Announcements are expected by this Friday. One of them is to remove the requirement to wear face masks in public, although it is widely considered that, even if this concession is…
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UN to take high ground on Thailand’s decision to delist cannabis
The United Nations is likely to take the high ground following Thailand’s controversial decision to delist cannabis, says an adviser to the UN’s International Narcotics Control Board. Thai-born Viroj Sumyai, who served as president of the UN’s INCB from 2017 to 2018, says Thailand will have to answer to the UN, and added that if it decides the bill violates…
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2 monks questioned about temple fund embezzlement scheme
Two senior monks have been released without charge after answering questions in connection to a temple fund embezzlement and money-laundering scheme. The monks, one from Lop Buri province in central Thailand, and the other from Nonthaburi province, deny any wrongdoing. Pol Maj Gen Charoonkiat Pankaew, commander of the police Anti-Corruption Division and police investigators, yesterday met with the abbot of…
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Huge Bangkok bar raided as police arrest underage and customers for drug possession
Despite the ‘official’ closing time for nightlife venues around Bangkok being extended to midnight, from 11pm, on June 1, many venues have continued to push their luck with authorities for the last few months. This venue since February. Yesterday morning Pathumwan district police raided a bar in Bangkok’s Rong Muang area after receiving a tip off that the venue had been…
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Thais favour dropping masks & extending nightlife curfew
Nearly half of all Thai people agree that the country should drop the outdoor mask rules mandate. New tourist visa waivers being proposed to CCSA for next week’s meeting. Concerns over the recreational use of cannabis have been raised following the plant’s decriminalisation. All this and more on todays Weekend Update.
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Thai special envoy to Myanmar warns not to ‘cancel’ Burmese military
Thailand’s new special envoy has spoken out as an apologist for the Myanmar military by urging the international community not to “get stuck in cancel rhetoric” when dealing with the Burmese Junta that seized power 16 months ago. She spoke in support of ‘moving on’ from the past and towards a different style of engagement with the military leaders. Pornpimol…
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Amateur crime sleuths warned they could be prosecuted for breaking PDPA
Amateur crime sleuths have been warned they could be prosecuted under the Personal Data Protection Act despite their good intentions. Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn, head of the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society, urged the nation’s unofficial detectives against posting video clips or pictures of others on social media, regardless of their good intentions, as it may violate the PDPA. A new…
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Meta downgrades commitment to Facebook News service, tech giants don’t want to pay for News
Meta, aka Facebook, are looking to review commitments to pay publishers for their news articles. The payments, said to be 100s of million US$ a year to mostly larger news publishers, have shown little return to the Facebook platform or gained them many extra users. Some of the larger publishers, both in the US and elsewhere, are going to have…
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Motorists urged to avoid 9 major routes in Bangkok
Motorists in Bangkok have been advised to avoid using 9 routes around the city’s Democracy Monument, and Victory Monument, today because of political protests. Deputy Metropolitan Police chief Pol Maj-General Jirasan Kaewsaeng-Ake revealed pro-democracy protesters have announced on social media that they will start gathering at Democracy Monument at 2pm and will march towards Victory Monument at around 3.30pm. “We…
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Gunman with a grudge murders 3 members of a Thai village fund committee
Three members of a village fund committee were murdered yesterday by a man allegedly holding a grudge in Loei, northeast Thailand, near the Laos border. The gunman, Pitakchai Chairaksuk, was arrested for shooting and killing three members of a village fund committee during a meeting in Muang district. The 62 year old man was caught at the provincial prosecution office after…
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Famous Thai cyclist killed in road accident in Thailand
Famous Thai cyclist Nirantra Phramthong was killed yesterday in a road accident in the northeastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima. The 53 year old was struck by a 10-wheel truck at 8.10am at the construction site of an elevated road junction on the special highway linking Bang Pa In with Nakhon Ratchasima and died instantly. The 41 year old truck driver,…
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What $300,000 buys you for a condo in Bangkok, Pattaya, Chiang Mai and Phuket
The typical home price in the United States is around $300,000. But have you ever wondered what kind of condo that amount of money can get you in Thailand? Let’s take a virtual tour of some condos around Thailand within the $300,000 price range! 1. Rhythm Sathorn – Narathiwas, Bangkok Price for sale: $284,000 (฿9,800,000) Take a Virtual Tour Situated…
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Survey reveals Thais want to drop outdoor mask rules and extend nightlife to 2am
A National Institute of Development Administration survey revealed nearly half of all Thai people agree that the country should drop the outdoor mask rules mandate, and nearly 50% of those polled agreed to extend nightlife hours from 12am to 2am. PM Prayut Chan-o-cha on Tuesday informed Thai media that he thought many Thai people were still scared of catching the…
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Former Thai pop star reveals his new business – collecting the faces of dead people
A former famous Thai pop star may not be making hit records anymore but he’s fine with that now he has a new line of business – collecting the faces of dead people. Jakkapong “Jill” Karnsomphot, one half of the 90s pop combo, Jack-Jill, with his twin brother Jakkaphan “Jack” Karnsomphot, collect the dried facial skins of dead people who…
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Soldier murders teacher, dumps her body in pond in central Thailand
Yesterday, police found the body of a 40 year old teacher who had been missing for 15 days. Ning’s body was found tied down with bricks at the bottom of a pond at a soldier’s house in Phetchaburi province, central Thailand. “Teacher Ning”, and her gray Toyota Reva 4X4, went missing on May 26. Police from Kaeng Krachan Police Station…
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Central Pattana’s 10 billion baht investment in 37 new hotels
Central Pattana is launching 37 hotels in 27 provinces in Thailand with 4,000 rooms, valued at a total of 10 billion baht, under the Centara Hotels and Resorts brand. The kingdom’s largest retail property development and investment company aims to hire about 3,900 people across the country in the process. The company will focus primarily on second-tier locations, as it…
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Nightlife operators blame officials for unfinished work on Pattaya Walking Street
Business operators on Pattaya Walking Street have blamed the authorities for causing a public nuisance and spoiling the city’s reputation because of an unfinished road renovation project. The Pattaya Walking Street Business Association insist the road needs to be completed faster than the current schedule, and more street lights installed, if it is to save face with the public. In…
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Suvarnabhumi increases check-in counters in preparation for high season tourists
Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport is increasing the number of check-in counters in preparation for an upcoming surge of tourists. But the ‘surge’ is still a few months away. The nation’s capital city is expecting around 70,000 travellers to arrive per day, and for it to increase to 100,000 people per day during the high season. Suvarnabhumi Airport General Manager, Kittipong Kittikachon,…
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Thai and Laotian officials discuss border trafficking
Thai and Laotian officials met in Bangkok today to discuss trafficking along their countries’ borders, among other subjects. Last week, the 2 countries signed a Memorandum of Understanding agreeing to work together on a wide range of issues, among them drug and human trafficking. Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister General Prawit Wongsuwan, and Laotian Deputy Prime Minister Chansamone Chanyalath, also discussed…
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China-Laos-Thailand railway already ‘exceeded expectations’
Former Thai Deputy PM Pinit Jarusombat believes the extension of the China-Laos Railway into Thailand “has exceeded expectations” and will eventually provide the kingdom with a number of investment and business opportunities. The China-Laos Railway, which opened only six months ago, connects Kunming in China with the Laotian capital Vientiane and stretches out around 1,035 kilometres. The route has delivered more…
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Phuket officials hold job fair, wanting to solve unemployment problems
A job fair in Phuket yesterday featured over 30 employers receiving applications from hopeful searchers. Phuket’s Vice Governor Pichet, who facilitated the event’s opening, noted that “there is a lot of interest in applying for a job”. The fair advertised 1,000 vacancies. It was held at the Central Festival Phuket, in the middle of the island. Pichet added that the…
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Pink pineapple is illegal in Thailand, smugglers face jail time
A type of genetically-modified pink pineapple is being illegally sold in Thailand, according to a warning issued by Thailand’s Ministry of Agriculture yesterday. The ministry urges the public to keep a vigilant eye out for unusual fruit and report anyone involved in the illicit pink pineapple trade. Costa Rican company Fresh Del Monte has been cultivating ‘Pinkglow’ pineapples, which are…
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Landmark Thai booze bill passes 1st reading
Smashing the hold of corporate Thai brewery conglomerates in the booze business moved one step closer last night after the Move Forward Party’s Progressive Liquor Bill sailed through its first reading in the Lower House. The landmark bill, originally rejected by the cabinet in February, seeks to break the monopoly of corporate brewers and provide business opportunities for small-scale brewers…
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Thailand’s Cabinet votes in favour of revolutionary alcohol brewing act
Yesterday, Thailand’s Cabinet voted in favour of an act which will allow Thais to brew and sell their own alcohol. The law it still in its first stages, but if it goes ahead it will be revolutionary for Thailand’s alcohol industry. The “Progressive Liquor Act” aims to amend Section 153 of the Excise Tax Act which requires alcohol producers to…
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Former police inspector in North Thailand scammed, loses retirement funds
A scam gang, pretending to be police, have tricked a former police inspector in North Thailand into handing over all of his retirement money, totalling 1.8 million baht. The former inspector, who lives in Lampang province, said the scammers called him on June 1, claiming to be from the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission. The scammers told the former inspector…
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Thailand’s tourist entry charge delayed until Q4
Tourist tax, tourist surcharge, call it what you want. The Tourism and Sports Ministry yesterday said that they need more time before the 300 baht tourism “fee” is introduced. The tourism fee was penciled in for discussion at this week’s cabinet meeting but the ministry withdrew the proposal. Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, Tourism and Sports Minister, says fee collection for tourists arriving…
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More than 100,000 people register to grow cannabis at home in Thailand
Today is cannabis decriminalisation day, and the people of Thailand have wasted no time in registering to grow their own cannabis plants at home. Thailand’s FDA revealed that, so far, more than 100,000 budding cannabis growers have registered via the ‘Plook Ganja’ website and mobile application. To legally grow cannabis or hemp at home, Thai people do not need to…
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Employment at Thailand’s venues slowly picks up following nightlife reopening
Aspiring bartenders can dream again, because now that Thailand’s nightlife is ‘officially’ back on, venues are slowly employing again. The country’s pubs, bars, karaoke bars, massage parlors and other venues are picking up the pieces after having to lay off employees during the Covid-19 pandemic. This news comes after Thailand stopped requiring such venues to call themselves ‘restaurants’ on June…
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