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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 See the best of Northern Thailand this winter on a budget
The Thaiger key takeaways Peak season brings higher prices, but smart planning and local know-how can help you experience Northern Thailand affordably. Chiang Mai, Pai, and Chiang Rai offer plenty of free or low-cost attractions, from temples and canyons to...
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Royal Thai Air Force signs US$143 million contract for US-made aircraft
The Royal Thai Air Force signed a contract on Sunday to buy a new fleet of aircraft. These will come from Textron Aviation Defense, an American aircraft manufacturer that builds planes for the US military. The US$143 million, or about 4.86 billion baht, deal was made on the first day of the Dubai Airshow. The RTAF is set to purchase…
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Phuket’s Bangla Road inspected by national and local health officials
Health officials went to Phuket’s Bangla Road, but not for a beer. The deputy director of Thailand’s Department of Health went to Phuket and inspect the famed walking street in person, reviewing Covid-19 prevention measures. While bars and nightclubs are ordered to be closed nationwide, photos from the provincial health office show bars are the street packed with people, and…
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Vietnam gives green light to foreign tourists, limited destinations
As the Southeast Asian country steadily reopens its tourism sector amid the pandemic, Vietnam is receiving foreign tourists starting from November for the first time since Spring 2020. The daily newspaper Nguoi Lao Dong says two flights carrying foreign visitors from Japan and South Korea arrived in Khanh Hoa Province on the south-central coast on Thursday. About 430 travellers from…
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Thailand’s southernmost town Betong to reopen to tourism
Neighboring Malaysia, Betong in southern Thailand will reopen for sightseeing tourists from December 1. The Yala provincial governor says that over 70 percent of residents are fully vaccinated against Covid-19. Several renowned tourist attractions in the region, including the Anyorweng skywalk, hot springs, historical Malayan communist tunnel, and flower fields, have been prepared to welcome guests adhering to anti-Covid measures,…
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Singapore looks to Esports to help reboot tourism
As Singapore slowly reopens to foreign travellers, the country is hoping that Esports might be a new way to attract more tourists back to the island. Singapore has invested heavily in both digital and physical infrastructure, and has become Southeast Asia’s primary hub for Esports viewing and revenue, according to Bloomberg. Dr. Tan See Leng, Minister of Manpower and Second…
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Bali governor pushes for reduction in mandatory quarantine
The governor of the resort island of Bali is urging the Indonesian government to reduce quarantine time for international arrivals. TTR Weekly reports that Bali currently has a 2-night quarantine in effect, but Governor I Wayan Koster says it’s putting tourists off coming. He wants to see it reduced to 1 night, until international visitors get the results of their…
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7 people arrested over kidnap and torture of a cryptocurrency investor in Hong Kong
Seven people were arrested by Hong Kong police on Sunday over alleged involvement in the kidnap for ransom and torture of a man who was entangled in a cryptocurrency scam. According to police, the victim was badly beaten and assaulted with hammers and metal chairs by a gang and held captive for about a week. The 39 year old victim…
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Biden-Xi summit begins, tensions high between China and the US
A highly anticipated virtual meeting between US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping has begun as tensions are high between the two countries, especially over the status of Taiwan, which is a self-ruling democracy claimed by Beijing. Speaking through a translator, Biden told Xi… “As I’ve said before, it seems to me our responsibility as leaders of China…
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Disgraced police chief Thitisan and 6 other officers indicted in murder case
A former police chief accused of murdering a suspect in custody has been indicted, along with 6 other former police officers. The Bangkok Post reports that public prosecutors have taken the case to the Central Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases. Thitisan Utthanaphon is accused of torturing Chiraphong Thanapat to death by suffocating the 24 year old with plastic…
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Commerce minister welcomes re-opening of 2 southern border checkpoints
Thailand’s Commerce Minister, Jurin Laksanawisit, has welcomed the re-opening of 2 border checkpoints in the southern province of Narathiwat, saying it will boost trade with Malaysia. Both the Tak Bai and Buketa checkpoints re-opened yesterday, with Jurin predicting an increase of at least 600 million baht a year in bilateral trade between Thailand and Malaysia. The Bangkok Post reports that…
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Thailand’s Maya Bay set to reopen in January
Maya Bay. Remember that breathtakingly pretty beach on Koh Phi Phi Leh off Krabi? Now, the beach that featured in “The Beach” is now poised to reopen. The iconic natural cove of limestone karsts, turquoise waters and THAT beach was one of Thailand’s most popular attractions for a decade with up to 6,000 visitors everyday. But in the end even…
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Will Ukraine take in migrants from Belarus-Poland border?
Heated discussions in Kyiv have been sparked after a German lawmaker suggested Ukraine could take in migrants and refugees stuck on the Poland-Belarus border, while the EU processes their asylum applications. As yet, however, neither Berlin nor Brussels have formally proposed the idea to Ukraine’s leadership. EU-Turkey deal as a blueprint? The suggestion, made by German parliamentarian Nils Schmid of…
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Pakistan: Citizens reel under high inflation as Khan’s popularity nosedives
Abid Hussain, 40, a factory worker in Faisalabad city, says he is planning to send his two children to an Islamic madrassa as he cannot afford to pay their fee for a private school. The madrassa offers free education, boarding and meals, he said. “My wife is not in favor of the children’s madrassa education,” he told DW. “But I…
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Pakistan: Rampant inflation piles on the pressure
Abid Hussain, 40, a factory worker in Faisalabad city, says he is planning to send his two children to an Islamic madrassa as he cannot afford to pay their fee for a private school. The madrassa offers free education, boarding and meals, he said. “My wife is not in favor of the children’s madrassa education,” he told DW. “But I…
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US journalist Danny Fenster released from Myanmar prison
Danny Fenster, American journalist who had been detained in Myanmar’s notorious Insein Prison for more than five months, was released and deported on Monday afternoon, according to his employer at Frontier Myanmar. The report was also confirmed by the US ex-diplomat Richardson, who recently visited Myanmar and talked with junta leader Gen. Min Aung Hlaing. He told Associated Press that Fenster “would…
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Singaporeans can still travel to most European VTL countries without being quarantined
Residents of Singapore who have been vaccinated will still be able to travel quarantine-free to seven of the eight European nations that have vaccinated travel lanes, or VTL, with the Republic. Despite the European Union’s upgrade of the Republic’s Covid-19 risk assessment on November 9, seven EU countries have yet to reimpose mandatory quarantine on passengers from Singapore, as required…
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Malaysia’s Langkawi will reopen next week as part of a travel bubble plan
Malaysia’s first international tourism bubble begins today as the country plans to reopen its borders next year in a bid to revive its tourism industry. Travellers from overseas who are fully vaccinated against Covid-19 are now able to travel to the island of Langkawi without undergoing quarantine. Langkawi, the tourist hotspot in northwestern Malaysia, was the first holiday spot to…
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Monday Covid Update: 6,343 new cases; provincial totals
45 coronavirus-related deaths were reported by the CCSA today, raising the pandemic’s death toll in Thailand to 20,081 with 19,987 of those fatalities during the latest wave, which was first recorded on April 1. In the 24-hour period since the last count, the CCSA recorded 6,343 new Covid-19 cases and 7,663 recoveries. There are now 94,163 people in Thailand being…
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Only 8 foreign tourists visit Hua Hin since November 1 reopening
Despite Thailand’s reopening, the beach destination of Hua Hin is still extremely quiet. The country officially reopened its borders on November 1, and has seen almost 45,000 international visitors arrive in the last two weeks. But in that time, the town of Hua Hin has seen only 8 foreigners arrive. Hua Hin has historically been a popular beach town in…
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Bars are closed in Bangkok… but not on Khao San Road
The Thai government says bars are closed, and will be until mid-January, but if you look hard enough you’ll find many are open… and packed. Over the weekend, the entrance to Bangkok’s notorious Khao San Road was blocked with a Covid-19 checkpoint. To get on the street to party, people needed to show proof of vaccination or test negative for…
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Heavy rain and landslide cause villas at Koh Samui resort to collapse
Heavy rain and landslides caused several villas at a resort on Koh Samui to collapse on Saturday. Torrential rain over the past several days flooded several areas on the island and, according to weather reports, rain is expected to continue for the next few days. The landslide hit the Merit Resort Samui early Saturday morning. The resort’s general manager described…
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Cambodia ends quarantine for vaccinated arrivals from today
Cambodian PM, Hun Sen, has announced that from today, vaccinated arrivals will no longer be required to carry out mandatory quarantine. According to a Bangkok Post report, the PM confirmed the decision in a voice recording on social media. Cambodia has been imposing mandatory quarantine on foreign arrivals for the last 18 months. The country’s leader says this will no…
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Covid-19 still a concern for upcoming Loy Krathong festival
The Loy Krathong festival is set to take place this Friday in Thailand. But according to a recent poll, a number of Thais are concerned that the Covid-19 measures in place are inadequate, and that another wave of infections because of the festival is possible. These concerns are making people hesitant to participate in the festivities. Last month, PM Prayut…
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2 anti-government protesters shot in Bangkok as German embassy accepts letter from activists
At least 2 anti-government protesters were shot during yesterday’s rally in Bangkok, which culminated with activists delivering a letter to the German Embassy. (Some reports in Thai media say 3 protesters were shot.) Protest leader Thatchapong Kaedam said the letter informed the embassy of a recent Constitutional Court verdict that ruled that 3 activists were guilty of plotting to overthrow…
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Supalai Oriental Sukhumvit 39 offers modern and luxurious living
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Indonesia: Exchanging plastic for books
A librarian on the Indonesian island of Java has started a mobile library, lending children books in exchange for trash. It develops their awareness of the environment — and they get to read more at the same time. SOURCE: DW News
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Protesters march to German embassy, present statement against monarchy
Today saw a large and intense pro-democracy demonstration that culminated in a march to the German embassy where protesters submitted a statement against absolute monarchy. When they arrived, 3 representatives of the protesters were allowed to enter the embassy and officially present the declaration which stated that they were calling for a protection of democracy and an opposition to a…
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Pattaya sees big tourism growth, but mostly domestic
Pattaya has been frustrated for being passed over for an exemption from the national alcohol ban that other tourist areas like Phuket have received as a tourism “Blue Zone”, but nevertheless, one of Thailand’s most popular resort cities is seeing tourism slowly emerge from its Covid-19 pandemic induced slumber. With a menu of events through the end of the year,…
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Phuket post-Sandbox arrivals double, surge in domestic tourism
Thailand has only been reopened for 2 weeks, but the Phuket Sandbox was the tourism experiment that started it all. And though Phuket has been welcoming international travellers since way back in July, the November 1 reopening saw a noticeable boost in arriving visitors, both foreign and domestic. The Sandbox scheme that required a soft quarantine where travellers could roam…
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