News

Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond.

  • Sponsored

    Top 10 reasons for expats to get a comprehensive health insurance in Thailand

    Moving to Thailand offers a prospect full of excitement and adventure, but in the same vein, if any injuries were to occur (and god forbid it does), the local healthcare system can be confusing at first glance for many expats...

  • Thanathorn says other MPs now in the firing line, including from Phalang Pracharat | Thaiger

    Thanathorn says other MPs now in the firing line, including from Phalang Pracharat

    PHOTO: Future Forward’s Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit emerges defiant after spending six hours with the EC yesterday – The Nation by Kas Chanwanpen The political tactics of going after Future Forward leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit and other party members for alleged shareholdings in media companies, could come back to haunt the pro-junta camp after a similar allegation was made against one of its…

  • Netflix and ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ production team announce cave rescue project | Thaiger

    Netflix and ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ production team announce cave rescue project

    PHOTO: Yahoo.com Netflix, the most popular TV streaming service in Thailand, are teaming up with the producers of the hit film “Crazy Rich Asians” for a production about the rescue of the MuPa (Wild Boar) football team from Chiang Rai’s Tham Luang caves last July. The 12 young men and their coach were trapped in a flooded cave after going…

  • 25 year old arrested over theft of gold jewellery valued over 2 million baht in Pattaya | Thaiger

    25 year old arrested over theft of gold jewellery valued over 2 million baht in Pattaya

    PHOTOS: The Nation An employee of a hotel in Pattaya has been arrested over the alleged robbery of a gold shop in Pattaya. He netted 1.65 kilograms of gold jewellery with a value of 2.18 million baht at the weekend. 35 year old Sornchai Nilsonthi is accused of robbing the Suppatra Yaowaraj gold shop at the Big C shopping mall…

  • Indian man cut up after walking into glass door | Thaiger

    Indian man cut up after walking into glass door

    PHOTOS: Pattaya Update News An Indian tourist has walked into a glass door at his Pattaya accommodation earlier today, ending up with lots of cuts. Pattaya Update News reports that Sawang Boriboon Foundation rescue arrived at the property in Soi 6 on Pratumnak Hill at 4 am. There they found 28 year old Vishesh Goyal and broken glass scattered inside and outside…

  • Fake drugs, Bangkok raid | Thaiger

    Fake drugs, Bangkok raid

    The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning people about the use of unlicensed or fake treatments that could lead to serious or even fatal side effects. This follows the seizure of 2 million unlicensed pills worth 5 million baht from a Bangkok medication manufacturer. A police source says the confiscated medicines likely comprised corticosteroids, erectile dysfunction-treating medicine and sleeping…

  • 49 passengers on Bangkok-Phuket bus as it skids off road in Surat Thani | Thaiger

    49 passengers on Bangkok-Phuket bus as it skids off road in Surat Thani

    PHOTOS: Newshawk Phuket An express bus which was traveling from Bangkok to Phuket has skidded off the road in Surat Thani. 49 passengers escaped injury following the wayward bus careering off the main road into roadside gravel and bushes. Newshawk Phuket reports that, at 7.47am this morning, a bus travelling from Bangkok heading to Phuket skidded off the road in…

  • 12 women rescued from human trafficking ring at Malaysia border | Thaiger

    12 women rescued from human trafficking ring at Malaysia border

    Officials have raided a karaoke bar in Narathiwat’s Sungai Kolok district, on the Malaysian border, rescuing 12 Lao women from prostitution. The raid against the Relax Pub in the border town was carried out at 8.30pm last night by officials from the Provincial Administration Department and DSI (Department of Special Investigation), as well as staff of an international non-governmental organisation.…

  • Baby dugong rescued in Krabi, taken back to its Trang home – VIDEO | Thaiger

    Baby dugong rescued in Krabi, taken back to its Trang home – VIDEO

    PHOTOS/VIDEO: DMCR A baby dugong, found on a Krabi beach, has been taken back to its home. The Department of Marine and Coastal Resources is reporting that yesterday the dugong was taken back to its home in Trang. “The dugong is aged around two to three years old. It is 120 centimetres long. No wounds were found on the dugong.…

  • Phuket Airport passenger arrivals dip | Thaiger

    Phuket Airport passenger arrivals dip

    by Bill Barnett, c9Hotelworks.com To date, 2019 is shaping up to be a slightly volatile year for tourism to the island. Passenger arrivals at Phuket International Airport rose 1% year-on-year in January, but took a step backwards in February with a substantial 6% decline. While we are still early in the year, overall visitor arrivals to Thailand on a country-wide…

  • New Japanese Emperor to ascend throne at 5pm today | Thaiger

    New Japanese Emperor to ascend throne at 5pm today

    Thailand’s not the only country with special royal occasions this week. For the first time in more than 200 years, Japan’s emperor will abdicate today. His son will ascend the Chrysanthemum Throne which ushers in a new era for the world’s oldest monarchy. The historic abdication has resulted in an unprecedented 10 day holiday for Japan marked as special days to celebrate…

  • Three men shot dead in Nakorn Pathom | Thaiger

    Three men shot dead in Nakorn Pathom

    PHOTO: Daily News Three men are dead following a party in Nakorn Pathom, west of Bangkok. Police suspect it may have been over a disagreement between local gangs. Police arrive at the bloody scene outside a rented house, one of 24 terrace houses in Tha Talat. There were shell casings and five bullets at the scene of the shooting. Daily News…

  • Drunk man arrested after collecting parking fees in Phuket Town | Thaiger

    Drunk man arrested after collecting parking fees in Phuket Town

    PHOTOS: The Phuket City Police Police have arrested an intoxicated man who was collecting parking fees around a department store in Phuket Town. The Phuket City Police arrested the man, Adisak Rueathong, who had been collecting parking fees around Robinson Ocean Department Store in Talad Yai, Phuket Town. The arrest follows police receiving complaints last week that there was a…

  • Kata Rocks launches new partnership with Singapore Yacht Show | Thaiger

    Kata Rocks launches new partnership with Singapore Yacht Show

    The Singapore Yacht Show 2019, was held between April 11 to 14 2019 for its 9th year, at the prestigious ONE°15 Marina Sentosa Cove. This year, the Kata Rocks Superyacht Rendezvous (KRSR) launched a marketing partnership with the SYS2019 giving the KRSR team a great opportunity to meet a full range of people. From existing partners to new ones, by…

  • EC dogged by new controversy after poll re-run in Nakhon Pathom | Thaiger

    EC dogged by new controversy after poll re-run in Nakhon Pathom

    Five times they counted and five times they got different results. The re-run of the election and the counting of votes in Nakhon Pathom, west of Bangkok, couldn’t have gone worse for the Election Commission, coming under fire from all directions over irregularities, forced recounts and hundreds of small errors in the counting process. The credibility has come under renewed…

  • Thai Cabinet extends waiver of Visa On Arrival fees | Thaiger

    Thai Cabinet extends waiver of Visa On Arrival fees

    Thailand’s Cabinet has extended the waiver of the fees for ‘visa on arrival’ for some foreign tourists to Thailand. The waiver of the 2,000 baht VOA fee will be extended to at least October 31. The fee had previously been waived until January 14 this year in a bid to boost tourism. It was then extended until April 30 and has…

  • Chon Buri marine officials take action against Sattahip tour guide – VIDEO | Thaiger

    Chon Buri marine officials take action against Sattahip tour guide – VIDEO

    PHOTOS/VIDEO: Go-Eco Phuket The Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) officials have made an official report to Sattahip Police in Chon Buri after a video clip of a man, acting as a tour guide pulling up a sea flower where an Anemone Fish was hiding inside for tourists, became viral in social media yesterday. The video clip was posted…

  • How the bike-share start-ups fell over | Thaiger

    How the bike-share start-ups fell over

    They were awful to ride and were the result of an even more toxic start-up culture in China. A few years ago the bike-sharing craze hit the tourist island of Phuket. It arrived amongst much flourish and ceremony. A year later the bike-sharing company bailed out. It was the same in many targeted tourist zones around the world. At the…

  • Coral off Phuket suffering from bleaching | Thaiger

    Coral off Phuket suffering from bleaching

    by Thai PBS Corals have started to bleach off the coast of Phuket. The problem is due to the warming of the sea, according to reports from the Phuket-based operations centre of the 2nd National Marine Park. Marine scientists at the centre conducted a survey of coral reefs off Nai Yang beach in the Sirinat national park last Thursday and…

  • Australian Navy and Phuket Consulate join in ‘Big Cleaning Day’ | Thaiger

    Australian Navy and Phuket Consulate join in ‘Big Cleaning Day’

    Officers from the Royal Australian Navy and representatives from the local Australian Consulate joined with Rassada Municipality officials and staff for the ‘Big Cleaning Day’. This morning in Rassada, led by Rassada Mayor Phudit Raksarat, officials launched the activity together with officers and crew from the Australian Navy’s HMAS Canberra and HMAS Newcastle, and delegates from the Australian Consulate General…

  • IndiGo pulls non-stop flights between Phuket and Bengaluru | Thaiger

    IndiGo pulls non-stop flights between Phuket and Bengaluru

    ‘Commercial non-viability’ is the official reason given for the pulling of the twice-weekly non-stop flights between Bengaluru, India and Phuket by IndiGo Airline. The airline’s six weekly non-stop flights between Delhi and Phuket will continue. “Phuket is a key market for IndiGo and we see great potential in the growth of tourism between India and Phuket. We will explore various…

  • Boonrod heads to new home in Khon Kaen | Thaiger

    Boonrod heads to new home in Khon Kaen

    PHOTO: Vitisak Payalaw, Boonrod and Siraphan Ngampromwong of Watchdog Thailand at the Smile Dog House in Hat Yai – Facebook.com Thailand’s pooch-of-the-moment ‘Boonrod’ (meaning ‘survivor’ in Thai) has a new home in Khon Kaen. Definitely Thailand’s most travelled dog, Boonrod was fished out of the water earlier this month when he was spotted swimming aimlessly 220 kilometres off the Songkhla…

  • Australian navy ship HMAS Canberra visits Phuket for maritime exercises | Thaiger

    Australian navy ship HMAS Canberra visits Phuket for maritime exercises

    The Australian Navy ship and navy officers have arrived at Patong beach to join the annual maritime enforcement exercises for ‘Indo-Pacific Endeavour 2019’ today. The Australian Navy’s HMAS Canberra, which is carrying helicopters, and HMAS Newcastle arrived in Patong on Saturday to join the ‘Indo-Pacific Endeavour 2019’ . Air Commodore Rick Owen says, “We visited here to continue the good…

  • US Court gives go ahead for Musk to face defamation charges over cave spat | Thaiger

    US Court gives go ahead for Musk to face defamation charges over cave spat

    PHOTO: Vernon Unsworth v Elon Musk. by ThaiVisa American tech entrepreneur, investor, and engineer, Elon Musk, is likely to face a lawsuit in the US over defamation after he described a British cave diver as a “pedo guy” on Twitter last year. Musk also described Vernon Unsworth, who was one of the divers who first discovered the Mu Pa football team…

  • Man arrested with Cat 1 drugs and guns in Phuket | Thaiger

    Man arrested with Cat 1 drugs and guns in Phuket

    Officers have arrested a drug suspect in Cherng Talay, Phuket. The man was found with 20,666 methamphetamine pills, 339 grams of crystal methamphetamine (a third of a kilogram) and two guns. Phuket Administrative Officers and the Cherng Talay Police arrested 38 year old Komsan Prateep ‘Hug’ Na Thalang at an apartment in Cherng Talay. Police seized the methamphetamine pills and…

  • Cycling enthusiasts launch Ranong as a southern tourism alternative | Thaiger

    Cycling enthusiasts launch Ranong as a southern tourism alternative

    by Prasert Thepsri The Government has been keen to start boosting tourism outside the country’s hot-spots – the so-called ‘2nd tier tourist zones. So the neighbouring provinces of Phuket are now actively promoting their attractions to draw tourists heading to the southern island as a side-trip. Yesterday, hundreds of cycling enthusiasts joined a 38 kilometre bicycle ride which aimed to…

  • Strong growth from key markets compensate for slight dip in Chinese tourists | Thaiger

    Strong growth from key markets compensate for slight dip in Chinese tourists

    by Thanchanok Phobut | Senior Coordinator, Thailand CBRE, international property consultants, believe that the Thai tourism market is still as resilient as ever. Earlier this year, the Ministry of Tourism and Sports announced they are expecting more than 40 million tourists to visit Thailand this year, up from the record-breaking 38.3 million last year. According to the latest figures, the…

  • Buyback Option at VIP KATA Condominium by Phuket9 | Thaiger

    Buyback Option at VIP KATA Condominium by Phuket9

    Phuket9 Company announces a buy-back option for VIP KATA Condominium Project with a rental return of 56% over 8 years. The first two buildings of VIP KATA Condominium were launched in July 2018. After one month in August 2018, Phuket9 commenced construction of the second phase – 2 more buildings including 209 apartments, 2 common swimming pools, rooftop gardens, restaurants and a kids club.…

  • Maha Sarakham districts have no water at all, Phuket gets first decent rain for the year | Thaiger

    Maha Sarakham districts have no water at all, Phuket gets first decent rain for the year

    Tap water has run completely dry in six villages in a Maha Sarakham district, right in the middle of Thailand’s north-east Isaan region, in what’s been described as the worst drought in 40 years. Tap-water sources dried up early this year for 689 households in Phayakkhaphum Phisai district and now all other surface and underground water sources have been exhausted…

  • Bangkok home prices among the cheapest in the Key Global Cities report | Thaiger

    Bangkok home prices among the cheapest in the Key Global Cities report

    Hong Kong maintains its position as the world’s most expensive residential city, while Bangkok ranks at #33 out of 35 global cities surveyed. In the fifth annual Global Living Report, CBRE profiles the property markets across 35 key global cities. The results highlight that investments in urban areas such as transport infrastructure, connectivity, retail, cultural centres and housing are key…

  • McDonald’s in Beijing serves chicken wings, with feathers attached | Thaiger

    McDonald’s in Beijing serves chicken wings, with feathers attached

    by The Star – Asia News Network Put down whatever you’re eating. OK, here we go… A woman in Beijing, China got an unpleasant surprise when the chicken wings she ordered from McDonald’s arrived with the feathers still attached. Zhou didn’t notice the unwanted additions until after she had fed the wings to her young daughter, according to Guancha.cn. “A chicken…