Tourism News
Thailand tourism news, travel updates, visa policies, and destination highlights—stay informed on hospitality trends, cultural experiences, and major infrastructure projects. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted source for Thailand travel news.
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Sponsored Planning to extend your Thai visa? Why health insurance is more important than ever
If you plan to stay longer in Thailand, having health insurance is now more important than ever. Thai immigration often asks for proof of medical coverage when you apply to extend your visa. This applies to many types of visas,...
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Thailand getting high on cannabis boost to tourist economy
Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha recently reported the government is expecting about 10 million tourists to hit the kingdom before the end of the year and it reports are true, most of them plan on getting high. The Thai government removed cannabis and hemp plants from its banned narcotics list on June 9 leaving people in Thailand free to grow and…
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Thailand’s economy grows but it still misses China’s cash
A new poll revealed Thailand’s economy grew at its fastest in a year over the last quarter but the kingdom’s outlook is still threatened by the high cost of living and China’s decision to maintain a zero-Covid-19 policy. The Thai economy grew largely because of tourism and the government’s decision to relax entry rules into Thailand such as the Thai…
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Phuket expects recent India road show to bring in even more tourists, and revenue
Phuket officials are excited to see the payoff of a recent roadshow in India. The Tourism Authority of Thailand, along with the Phuket Tourism Association, went to a roadshow tourism marketing event in India from August 1-6. The event celebrated the 75th anniversary of Thai and Indian relations. Now, the PPAO’s vice president expects another 150,000 Indian tourists to arrive…
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Europeans lost in Koh Pha Ngan forest found by tourist police
An emergency rescue party managed to find two missing tourists lost in a Koh Phan Gan forest after receiving an emergency call last night. Koh Pha Ngan Tourist Police received a call on their 1155 emergency hotline at about 8pm last night from a Spanish man and a Belarussian woman saying they were lost and couldn’t find a way back…
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StyleCation: Latest TAT campaign aims at young domestic tourists
Forget the staycation and the workcation, “StyleCation” is the hot new awkward portmanteau the Tourism Authority of Thailand is pushing to attract visitors. The TAT has recruited top actors/singers Krit “PP” Amnuaydechkorn and Putthipong “Billkin” Assaratanakul to promote a new campaign aimed at getting Thai people traveling around the country. “Amazing Thailand StyleCation with PP and Billkin” is the newest…
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Pattaya’s tourist buses are back at the floating market, but missing Chinese
Now that many of Thailand’s Covid-19 restrictions have eased, tourists are boarding buses to Pattaya once again. Tour buses were back at the Pattaya Floating Market earlier this week. While there were several Indian and Vietnamese tourists on the busses, the buses were missing a group that once played a major role in Thailand’s tourism market- the Chinese. One boat…
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UK student conquers mountain in Thailand blindfolded
A Cambridge philosophy student conquered a Thai mountain blindfolded in tribute to his blind sister and to raise money for charity. The 21 year old scholar climbed the treacherous Doi Suthep, near Chiang Mai, with his girlfriend, as he embarked on a three-day journey on July 11 blindfolded to fundraise for a charity that supports his sister Harriet, who was…
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Thailand’s hotels are short on workers
The majority of Thai hotels surveyed recently admitted they are short on workers, according to the Thai Hotels Association. About 68% of 118 hotels surveyed said they are short-staffed. The workers needed include maids, receptionists, cleaners, cooks, waiters, and technicians. The survey was conducted from July 17-25. The reason not enough people are seeking hotel jobs may likely have to…
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Famous northern Thai dish declared world’s best soup
A famous northern Thai dish has been declared the world’s best soup by the foodie platform TasteAtlas.com. This was part of its list of “50 Best Soups in the World” published on July 25. The dish, called Khao Soi, includes red curry soup and meat, usually chicken, and egg noodles. It is then topped with crunchy noodles, fresh lime, pickled cabbage,…
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TAT says Thailand drew 3.3 million foreign tourists from January-July
Thailand has drawn 3.3 million foreign tourists between January and July this year, according to the Tourism Authority of Thailand. While about 1.9 million tourists travelled through Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport, about 600,000 travelled through Phuket International Airport. About 190,000 people travelled through Bangkok’s Don Mueang International Airport. As tourism officials had predicted in June, Malaysia has now beat India as…
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Hotels in South Thailand eager for surge in visitors this year
South Thailand’s hotels are eager for a surge in visitors during Thailand’s high season from October to December. About 80% of hotels in Songkhla province have reopened after ‘Thailand Pass’ was scrapped on July 1, according to the Songkhla Tourism Industry Council. Since Thailand Pass was scrapped, Songkhla has welcomed a rush of Malaysian tourists driving across the border. The…
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Northern Thailand’s Chiang Rai Airport to stay closed for 2 more days
The Nok Air plane that skidded off the runway in Chiang Rai on Saturday night, August 1, still hasn’t been removed. Mae Fah Luang Airport in northern Thailand announced that the airport will remain closed for two more days and plans to reopen on Friday, August 5, at 10pm. The airport announced the suspension of all flights in and out…
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Chiang Mai hotel reduces room rate to 1 baht per night to stimulate tourism
If you’re looking to travel northern Thailand on a budget, book this week and get a room for just 1 baht at Harmonize Hotel in Chiang Mai province. The room must be booked before August 7 for a stay anytime before October 31. Not only does the room cost a mere 1 baht – or US$0.028 – but the hotel…
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Thailand’s Nok Air relaunches Chiang Mai – Korat route
After four years, Nok Air has relaunched the airline’s route between Chiang Mai in northern Thailand and Nakhon Ratchasima – also known as Korat – in northeast Thailand. The route’s inaugural flight took off from Chiang Mai International Airport at 8.45pm yesterday and landed in Korat at 10.15pm. The route will serve two flights per week. The outbound service from…
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Nok Air explains shoddy evacuation of runaway plane in northern Thailand
Nok Air has made a public statement apologising to passengers who sat on a Boeing 737-800 for over an hour after it skidded off Chiang Rai International Airport’s runway on Saturday evening. Several passengers have expressed dissatisfaction with the evacuation procedure. Nok Air said the safety of passengers was the airline’s “highest priority.” The airline said the reason it took…
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Northern Thailand’s Chiang Rai Airport to resume flights on Wednesday
Flights in and out of Chiang Rai’s Mae Fah Luang International Airport in northern Thailand are expected to resume as normal on Wednesday, August 3, at 10pm. The runway has been closed since 6am yesterday after a Nok Air Boeing 737-800 aircraft skidded off the runway during landing due to adverse weather conditions on Saturday night. No one was injured.…
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Russian airline Aeroflot resuming flights from Moscow to Phuket
After halting flights due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Aeroflot is now planning on relaunching service from Russia to Phuket. The Russian airline will start its daily flight service from Moscow to Phuket on October 30, to shepherd Russians to the tropics to escape the cold of winter. Earlier this year, Aeroflot was joined with other Russian airlines in…
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Travel packages mired by pricey airfare, slowing tourism recovery
Many that have been eagerly awaiting the full reopening of Thailand and the return of tourism, did not anticipate the severe cost of airfare and travel packages that has come with it. Now, tourism recovery in Thailand is threatened by the staggeringly high cost to fly, pricing many would-be travellers out of the trip. The president of the Thai Travel…
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Heavy rain kills 2 elephants at a Thailand national park
Tragedy hit Khao Yai National Park this week when park rangers discovered the carcasses of two dead elephants among the rocks near Heo Narok Waterfall. Access now has been closed to the waterfall in Nakhon Ratchasima Province as rangers try to remove the bodies. Khao Yai National Park chief Chaiya Huaihongthong yesterday revealed that the elephants died as a result…
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Thai celebs join Olympic Day Walk-Run fun at Pattaya Beach
A number of famous Thai celebrities have signed up to make an appearance at the Olympic Day Walk-Run of 2022 at Pattaya Beach in Chon Buri. The final of the Olympic Day Walk-Run of 2022, which is scheduled to kick off at 6pm on Saturday, September 10, will be attended by Thai actors Phakin “Tono” Khamwilaisak, and Nuttanicha “Nicha” Dungwattanawanich,…
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UPDATE: Body of foreigner found dead in Phuket is US man
UPDATE: The foreigner’s body that was found in waters off Yanui Beach in Phuket’s main city district yesterday morning has been named as US citizen John Joseph Sheridan. The 74 year old’s body was discovered floating in the water after he apparently fell on sharp rocks and bled to death. Fisherman found Sheridan, from Pennsylvania, floating on the rocky part of the shore…
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Thailand has 2 of the world’s most beautiful beaches, UK newspaper says
After all these years, Thailand continues to be renowned for its breathtaking beaches. Thailand has two of the “World’s 20 Most Beautiful Beaches” on a list published by UK’s Daily Star newspaper. Thailand’s Sunrise Beach was ranked in sixth place, and Maya Bay came in at 12th place on the list. Both beaches are located in South Thailand. Sunrise Beach is…
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Pattaya’s Jomtien Beach planning temporary vendor zone
Pattaya officials have plans for a temporary solution to the drama over Jomtien Beach’s vendors. Earlier this year, a new stretch of the beach was created for tourists to enjoy. But merchants, local businesses, and hawkers quickly moved onto the area setting up stalls, tables, chairs, etc., denying access to people wanting to use the sandy area. Since then, the…
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No more monkey business! Phuket monkeys lose tourists from monkeypox scare
Phuket’s monkeys are missing out on their usual feedings from tourists at Koh Siray island’s monkey viewpoint. At the viewpoint, tourists usually buy fruit from vendors to feed to the roughly 200 monkeys there. But following Phuket’s recent monkeypox scare, after a Nigerian man was found to have the virus, fewer tourists are coming to feed their furry friends. Local…
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Airbnb’s travel revolution plans for Thailand
Airbnb plans to be at the forefront of a travel revolution in Thailand now the kingdom has eased all of its entry restrictions. The US, California-based vacation rental company revealed that there was an increase of more than 180% in international travel searches in the first quarter of this year for stays in Thailand. Bangkok, Phuket, Pattaya, Chiang Mai, and…
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Aviation industry eyes 33% recovery this year, 100% in 2024
Airports of Thailand (AoT) says the aviation industry is making steady progress in recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic and is forecasting a full recovery by the end of 2024. The AoT believe that in a year and a half, airplane and passenger traffic will finally recover to the levels they were at in 2019. The current prediction is that flight…
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Outbound tourism rebound slowed by Covid-19, rising costs
The number of tourist arrivals into Thailand is slowly picking up, but tour operators are nervous about the near future outbound travel, with economic and health worries still a factor in worldwide travel. The president of the Thai Travel Agent Association said that the beginning of the rebound of outbound tourism has been kneecapped by a surge in new Covid-19…
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Thai tourism ministry to get 2 billion baht ‘booster shot’
The Tourism and Sports Minister, Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, yesterday revealed his department expects to get a 2 billion baht “booster shot budget” to push Thai tourism this year after complaining to the prime minister. Phiphat revealed he approached PM Prayut Chan-o-cha and asked for the extra cash after being ignored by the man in charge of allocating additional funds, the Director…
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Indian tourists are picking up Phuket’s Old Town economy
Phuket’s recovering tourism economy is picking up again thanks to Indian tourists. Indians have been the biggest tourist group in Phuket, and Thailand overall this year. Since May 1, over 72,000 Indian tourists have visited Phuket, according to the president of Phuket Old Town Tourism Community, Somyot Pathan. Phuket’s ‘Old Town’ in the main city district is a particular hotspot…
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British Airways flights to Thailand suspended until 2023
British Airways isn’t heading back to Bangkok until at least next year. Tour operators were hoping the British flagship carrier would be adding regular flights again between Heathrow and Bangkok in time for Thailand’s high season, just when the winter kicks in in the UK. British Airways was originally set to resume flights in November this year but has now…
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