Northern Thailand News

Northern Thailand news, Chiang Mai news, business, tourism, and culture—stay updated with breaking stories, local events, and travel insights from Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Pai, and beyond. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Northern Thailand news source.

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    Why retirees in Thailand are choosing long-term health insurance over quick fixes

    Retirees in Thailand are increasingly seeing the importance of health insurance in protecting their well-being during retirement. With insurance requirements for retirement visas and rising healthcare costs, many are moving away from short-term plans and choosing long-term coverage. Long-term health...

  • 25 arrests as police shut down online gambling sites | Thaiger

    25 arrests as police shut down online gambling sites

    25 Thai nationals have been arrested after investigators uncovered 6 online gambling websites run by a gang with funds running into millions of baht. The Pattaya News reports that arrests have taken place in the northern city of Chiang Rai and in Nonthaburi, just north of central Bangkok. It’s understood officers have been tracking the websites for several months. The…

  • Wife who wanted a divorce allegedly killed by husband in murder-suicide | Thaiger

    Wife who wanted a divorce allegedly killed by husband in murder-suicide

    A woman in the north-eastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima has allegedly been shot dead by her husband because she wanted a divorce. It’s alleged the man then turned the gun on himself, dying from a gunshot wound to the head. Police officers called to a property in the sub-district of Thephalai found the bodies of 46 year old Mongkhol Aksorn,…

  • Teenagers allegedly fired guns into the air, stray bullet kills 16 year old girl | Thaiger

    Teenagers allegedly fired guns into the air, stray bullet kills 16 year old girl

    A 19 year old man faces charges of intent to murder for allegedly shooting and killing a teenage girl. The man told police he shot the gun in the sky and did not intend to harm anyone. The stray bullet went through the girl’s heart and also injured her friend. 16 year old Nutthicha Thanthaisong was riding home on a…

  • 8 Roi-et volunteers killed, 33 injured in bus crash at Nakhon Ratchasima | Thaiger

    8 Roi-et volunteers killed, 33 injured in bus crash at Nakhon Ratchasima

    7 people have been killed and another 33 injured when a tour bus collided into the back of an 18 wheeler trailer truck in Nakhon Ratchasima early yesterday, on the way to Pattaya. The double decker was travelling on the Nakhon Ratchasima-Kabin Buri road in the Chaimongkhol subdistrict just before 4am Saturday morning when the incident happened. The truck and…

  • PM to tackle Northern Thailand’s seasonal haze… again | Thaiger

    PM to tackle Northern Thailand’s seasonal haze… again

    The Thai prime minister says he’s working on a plan to tackle Northern Thailand’s seasonal haze problem by cutting back manmade bushfires known to largely contribute to the air pollution. The issue has been broadly covered in Thai and foreign media for years, and been followed up with ministerial visits, promises, and little else. PM Prayut Chan-o-cha spoke with governors…

  • Border police find 160 kilograms of marijuana hidden in fertiliser sacks | Thaiger

    Border police find 160 kilograms of marijuana hidden in fertiliser sacks

    Border police found 160 kilograms of compressed marijuana near an Isaan roadside. Police say they believe the marijuana was trafficked across the Mekong River. No suspects were found and no arrests were made, at this stage. Police suspect the marijuana was smuggled in on long tail boats from Laos to the Isaan province of Nakhon Phanom during the tropical storm…

  • Veterinarian arrested for giving beauty treatments | Thaiger

    Veterinarian arrested for giving beauty treatments

    Dogs with breast augmentation? Cats with face lifts? After customers reported some suspicious behaviour, a veterinarian in Sisaket province, in northeastern Thailand, has been arrested for giving cosmetic beauty treatments at a veterinary clinic in Phitsanulok, Central Thailand. The veterinarian, known as B, was allegedly giving botox and filler injections to customers despite not being licensed to do so. The…

  • Heavy rain across the country this weekend – local forecasts | Thaiger

    Heavy rain across the country this weekend – local forecasts

    Heavy rain is expected across much of Thailand over the next few days, mostly as a result of the intensity of a tropical storm crossing into Vietnam today, ‘Noul’, from the South China Sea. The low pressure cell will help intensify the effects of the south west monsoon too. But the remnants of the storm won’t “slam” into Northern Thailand…

  • Isaan man’s body found in burnt truck, police investigate possible murder | Thaiger

    Isaan man’s body found in burnt truck, police investigate possible murder

    A man’s body was found burned in a truck that had been set on fire in the Isaan province Nakhon Ratchasima (Korat). The man’s employer described the case as “strange” and police are investigating for evidence of a possible homicide. Medical examiners from the Institute of Forensic Medicine autopsied the body and identified the man as 59 year old Saman…

  • Dengue fever rises up to 6,024 in 4 Isaan provinces | Thaiger

    Dengue fever rises up to 6,024 in 4 Isaan provinces

    Dengue fever is spreading in Northeast Thailand with more than 6,000 cases and 4 deaths in the past 8 months. The cases were reported in the Isaan provinces Khon Kaen, Kalasin, Mahasarakham and Roi Et, according to the Office of Disease Prevention. The mosquito spread disease is also known as “bone break fever” because common symptoms include pain in muscles,…

  • Khon Kaen footballers negative for Covid-19, will test a third time | Thaiger

    Khon Kaen footballers negative for Covid-19, will test a third time

    51 football players and staff of the Khon Kaen United team all came out negative in a second Covid-19 test, according to the province’s governor. The 51 team members and staff were classified as “at risk” for the catching the virus after a Uzbek football player from the team Buriram United tested positive for Covid-19. The Khon Kaen players and…

  • “Uzbek footballer is the only player infected” – Public Health Ministry | Thaiger

    “Uzbek footballer is the only player infected” – Public Health Ministry

    Sports officials insist all Thai League football matches would still be held despite the Uzbek Buriram United player testing positive for Covid-19 last Thursday. The President of Buriram United Football Club, Newin Chidchob, confirmed that there was only one Buriram United player infected with Covid-19. “He was asymptomatic and now under the care of physicians at a local hospital in…

  • Hunt for wild tiger sighted at maize plantation in northern Thailand | Thaiger

    Hunt for wild tiger sighted at maize plantation in northern Thailand

    A drone has been deployed in the hunt for a wild tiger believed to have wandered outside its natural habitat at the Huey Kha Kheng wildlife sanctuary. The sanctuary, in the northern province of Uthai Thani, has brought in forest rangers in an attempt to track down the tiger, whose footprints were spotted in a nearby maize plantation. PHOTO: Thai…

  • ‘Snake’ cave closed after visitors, looking for lottery numbers, graffiti the rocks | Thaiger

    ‘Snake’ cave closed after visitors, looking for lottery numbers, graffiti the rocks

    A cave known for its rocks resembling snakeskin is closed after some visitors vandalised the cave by rubbing the rock formations, hoping to find lucky lottery numbers. Other people wrote insulting graffiti on the rocks. The Environment Minister Varawut Silpa-archa ordered the immediate closure of the Phu Langka National Park’s Naga Cave until officials can come up with a plan…

  • Family say car crash monk is battling mental health issues | Thaiger

    Family say car crash monk is battling mental health issues

    Relatives of the monk behind a car crash that killed 1 person in the north-eastern province of Roi Et say he has been suffering with mental health problems. The monk crashed his car into a power pole at the weekend, killing his male passenger, 82 year old Noi Chuenchom, and causing serious injury to a 36 year old female passenger,…

  • Ubon Ratchathani teacher charged with sexual abuse | Thaiger

    Ubon Ratchathani teacher charged with sexual abuse

    An Isaan teacher is facing sexual harassment and abuse charges after he allegedly paid young students in exchange for sexual acts. The practice is being frequently reported in Thai media these days as the taboo of reporting these cases is slowly raised. The Ubon Ratchathani teacher allegedly sexually abused 5 boys, ages 11 to 12, on numerous occasions, paying them…

  • 12 workers injured as tunnel collapses in north-eastern Thailand | Thaiger

    12 workers injured as tunnel collapses in north-eastern Thailand

    A tunnel under construction in the north-eastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima has collapsed, injuring 12 workers. The tunnel is an underpass running below the Map Kabao-Jira Junction dual railway track. The underpass was bring constructed by the Italian-Thai company. According to the Bangkok Post, the scaffolding being used gave way due to concrete being poured unevenly, creating too heavy a…

  • Man arrested for allegedly trafficking 112 million baht worth of drugs | Thaiger

    Man arrested for allegedly trafficking 112 million baht worth of drugs

    Police arrested a 50 year old man for allegedly carrying 112 million baht worth of illegal drugs. Police searched his pickup truck at a Sakon Nakhon checkpoint in Northeast Thailand and found 75 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine, methamphetamine pills and marijuana. The methamphetamine was separated into 1-kilogram packs. They also found 2,000 methamphetamine pill, known as speed, police say. The…

  • Woman allegedly kills elderly stylist over bad haircut | Thaiger

    Woman allegedly kills elderly stylist over bad haircut

    A young woman was arrested yesterday after she allegedly killed an elderly hairstylist for giving her a bad haircut. Araya Sra-On is facing charges of intentional murder as well as robbery for allegedly stealing jewellery off the woman’s body after she’d allegedly murdered her. Police say Araya has admitted to killing 74 year old Banyat Kanthong at her shop in Phitsanulok,…

  • 1,500 year old human bones and pottery found in Isaan province | Thaiger

    1,500 year old human bones and pottery found in Isaan province

    An Isaan woman found what experts say are 1,500 year old human bones and pottery. Fine Arts Department officials say they believe the bones and pottery were buried together during a funeral hundreds of years ago. A Surin local, 60 year old Muay Maichai, says she was walking through an area she frequents when she saw part of a jar sticking…

  • Young Buriram brothers steal over 30 motorbikes after parents split up | Thaiger

    Young Buriram brothers steal over 30 motorbikes after parents split up

    Two brothers, aged 12 and 14 have been nabbed after stealing over 30 motorbikes. The pair, seemingly unable to figure out where the petrol tank was, would look for a new motorbike to steal after the old one ran out of petrol. They told police that their crimes were for survival after their parents separated. They hadn’t been to school…

  • Concerns over Covid surge in Myanmar prompt increased security at Tak border | Thaiger

    Concerns over Covid surge in Myanmar prompt increased security at Tak border

    The northern province of Tak has stepped up security along the Myanmar border amid concerns about Covid-19 numbers in the neighbouring country. The move comes as 2 schools in the western province of Prachuap Khiri Khan have had to temporarily close due to a number of students reporting a fever and the revelation that they had crossed the Thai-Myanmar border…

  • Kalasin drowning victim’s body recovered | Thaiger

    Kalasin drowning victim’s body recovered

    Police In Isaan’s Kalasin province announced today that the body of an elderly woman, who fell into Lam Pao stream in the capital’s central district and was believed drowned, was found. On Friday, 76 year old Chan Phonpradit, and her 42 year old daughter Malaithip, went fishing on the bank of the Lam Pao stream near a low dam at…

  • Nakhon Phanom school director in hot water over alleged toilet spycam | Thaiger

    Nakhon Phanom school director in hot water over alleged toilet spycam

    The director of a school in the northeastern Nakhon Phanom province has been “moved to an inactive post” pending the results of an investigation into a video that shows him placing a camera in the toilet of a pub. The head of the primary school, in Ban Phaeng district, has been assigned to the District 2 provincial education office until…

  • Public concerned with costs of MRT’s Isaan project | Thaiger

    Public concerned with costs of MRT’s Isaan project

    Money is a main concern for businesses and investors involved in a project by the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand to construct an electric light rail train line in the Isaan province Nakhon Ratchasima. Some say MRT should reconsider the type of train planned for the project and go for a more cost efficient option. Province’s proposed MRT Green…

  • Northern Thailand pigs on lockdown after virus outbreak | Thaiger

    Northern Thailand pigs on lockdown after virus outbreak

    While humans are still trying to get a handle on the coronavirus, pigs in Northern Thailand are facing their own virus outbreak. The Department of Livestock Development have opened an investigation after the death of 5 pigs. Some pig farmers may need to kill off their pigs to prevent the virus from spreading. The pigs died from porcine reproductive and…

  • Family of slain teen ask CSD for help in seeking justice | Thaiger

    Family of slain teen ask CSD for help in seeking justice

    The murder of an 18 year old man in the northeastern province of Maha Sarakham has been solved, yet no legal action has been taken. Now, the man’s family are calling on the Crime Suppression Division to step in and see that justice is done. They say the investigation into the case, launched in January of last year, has been…

  • Phayao gunmen kills 3, then himself | Thaiger

    Phayao gunmen kills 3, then himself

    4 people including a 5 year old girl are dead, after a man went on a shooting spree last night in the Chiang Kham district of the upper northeastern province of Phayao. Another man was wounded before the gunman took his own life. Police say the fatal rampage began about 8:10pm at a house in Ban Nong Ha, in tambon…

  • Floods wash up the North, Northeast prepares as Mekong rises | Thaiger

    Floods wash up the North, Northeast prepares as Mekong rises

    Heavy rains and flooding in Northern Thailand damaged homes and killed 1 resident. 2 people are reported missing. The Nation Thailand did not report the details of the death, but says the “flood crisis” affected 10 provinces and more than 7,000 homes in the area. Flood victims are being rescued and brought to higher ground by the Department of Disaster…

  • Teenager allegedly stole 2 million baht from high schoolers | Thaiger

    Teenager allegedly stole 2 million baht from high schoolers

    A teenage girl allegedly stole a total of 2 million baht from her younger peers in the Isaan province Khon Kaen. Around 10 students, all 14 to 16 years old, filed police reports with help from their parents. Thai media reports the 17 year old girl’s name as Wawa. She allegedly ran a savings reward scheme at the local high…