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 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...
-
Kenya’s first female wildlife rangers unit
Team Lioness is Kenya’s first all female unit of community wildlife rangers. Created in 2019, the team is stationed near the traditional community land around Amboseli National Park on the border of Tanzania and Kenya. The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) team of 16 female rangers. The unit patrols the community lands of the Olgulului-Ololarashi Group Ranch (OOGR). Through…
-
Afghan refugees in Uzbekistan live in uncertainty, facing deportation
Almost every day Marina’s family turns the living room carpet of their flat into a dance floor. When the music starts, her two little sons immediately bop and twist to the song, as the whole family claps along. Marina, a 26-year-old Afghan journalist and women’s rights activist, fled from the city of Mazar-i-Sharif in mid-August, along with her husband, her…
-
South Korea, US at odds over deal to end Korean War
The governments of South Korea and the United States have publically reiterated that they are making progress in discussions on an agreement that all sides in the 1950-53 Korean War can agree to and finally formally end the conflict. Analysts suggest, however, that the show of unity is forced and designed to give the impression that the alliance remains resilient.…
-
Bitkub company and crypto-coin value surges as SCB buys 51% of shares
Cryptocurrencies just got a big boost in Thailand as Siam Commercial Bank Group’s parent company SCBX struck a deal to take over 51% of shares of Bitkub from its parent company Bitkub Capital Group Holdings, a deal valued at 17.85 billion baht. SCB Securities will hold the shares and collaborate with Bitkub to create a national infrastructure with a digital…
-
Thailand ranks ninth on Global Climate Risk Index for “extreme weather events”
When it rains, it pours in Thailand… and torrential downpours during the country’s monsoon season is known to cause severe flooding, damaging property and leading to injuries, sometimes deaths. The weather in Thailand is considered so intense that the country is ranked ninth on the Global Climate Risk Index 2021 on nations most affected by “extreme weather events” between 2010…
-
4,510 travellers arrived in 2 days of reopening, 6 with Covid-19
According to data released today, in the 2 days since Thailand’s grand reopening, 4,510 international travellers arrived at Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok. Of those arrivals, only 6 tested positive for Covid-19, less than 1% of arriving passengers, according to the Hazard Communication Director of the Department of Disease Control. The top countries arriving in the first two days of the…
-
Thailand’s reopening expect to boost Phuket’s tourism industry
The reopening of Thailand on Monday is expected to boost Phuket’s hard-hit tourism industry. Yesterday, the President of the Phuket Tourism Association said that the island is expected to receive up to 10,000 visitors a day in December, and as many as 1 million arrivals in the first quarter of 2022. This comes after the recent Airports of Thailand announcement…
-
Central plans 500 million baht reboot for New Years festival season
After months of restrictions for shopping centres, with promotional events banned in areas with high Covid-19 infection rates, 35 Central shopping centres across Thailand are preparing for the holiday shopping season with a multimillion baht market campaign to boost sales. Central Pattana Plc is set to spend as much as 500 million baht this New Years festival season in an…
-
Wednesday Covid Update: 7,679 new cases; provincial totals
56 coronavirus-related deaths were reported by the CCSA today, raising the pandemic’s death toll in Thailand to 19,394 with 19,300 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 7,679 new Covid-19 cases and 8,482 recoveries. There are now 97,585 people in Thailand being…
-
Thai court hands 4-year prison sentence to man for selling used medical gloves
An employee of the company accused of exporting millions of used medical gloves to buyers in the US has been sentenced to four years in prison. A recent investigation by CNN reported that the Thai-based Paddy the Room Trading Company sold and exported millions of dirty, used medical gloves, some with bloodstains, to American companies looking to cash in on…
-
Ethiopia: The Tigray crisis one year on
Ethiopia’s Tigray crisis in pictures SOURCE: DW News
-
Man believed drunk fell 7 floors down garbage chute to death
A Thai man was found dead after police believe he was very drunk and attempting to vomit down a garbage chute on the 7th floor of a Chon Buri apartment complex and fell into it to his death. The accident took place this week in Mueang Chon Buri Nong Maidang district and the Don Hualor Police received notification of the…
-
New road and construction planned to improve U-Tapao Airport
Plans are underway to ease traffic to U-Tapao Airport in Rayong, the primary airport to Pattaya, by linking it to a nearby street by constructing a 2-kilometre road. The Department of Highways announced the plan yesterday, saying the project will cost 4.5 billion baht and will break ground next year with a completion date set for 3 years from now.…
-
National Anti-Corruption Commission finishing up probe into Joe Ferrari’s unusual wealth
The ex-police chief accused of suffocating a suspect to death during interrogation is also being investigated by the National Anti-Corruption Commission for his unusual wealth, especially for a police officer in a rural area on an around 40,000 baht per month salary. The officer is said to have made millions of baht from confiscating luxury cars that had been smuggled…
-
Bang Sue Station offers teenagers vaccination this week
Walk-in vaccination is available for teenagers between the ages of 12 and 18 to receive a Pfizer vaccine at the Central Vaccination Centre at Bang Sue Grand Station. The program opened yesterday and will operate until November 10, administering first vaccines to any teenagers from 12 to 18 years old. There are few restrictions on the vaccine drive, welcoming Thai…
-
Studying in Phuket As Foreigner – Education Visa
The Thaiger offers the following deal on Education Visas… Every year, millions of tourists flock to Phuket for the weather, beaches, culture, food, and shopping. Many of them are long-term guests who have come to spend their vacations here. This country has so many facets that it would be hard to see everything in one or two three-week vacations. Many…
-
Airports of Thailand expects 726,000 passengers in November, mostly domestic
The president of Airports of Thailand says the country’s airports can expect around 726,000 passengers this month, following Thailand’s re-opening. However, Nitinai Sirismatthakarn says most of those will be domestic travellers, with around 270,529 expected from overseas. The Bangkok Post reports that 31 flights, carrying around 2,600 passengers, landed at Suvarnabhumi yesterday. Around 1,500 were international arrivals. Meanwhile, Anucha Nakasai…
-
Bangkok landmarks like Wat Po are not seeing many tourists
The doors are open, flights are landing, international tourists are finally allowed back in the country as of Monday. But popular tourist attractions like Wat Pho and Wat Phra Kaew are so far not seeing an increase in foreign visitors. The temple complex by the Grand Palace that holds such national treasures as the Reclining Buddha and the Emerald Buddha…
-
Wednesday Covid Update: 7,679 new cases and 56 deaths
7,679 new Covid-19 cases and 56 coronavirus-related deaths were reported today by the CCSA. In the 24-hour period since the last count, the CCSA recorded 8,482 recoveries. There are now 97,585 people in Thailand currently being treated for Covid-19. In the latest and most severe wave of the virus in Thailand, first recorded on April 1, the CCSA has recorded…
-
Facebook facial recognition system being ditched amid growing privacy concerns
Facebook is getting rid of its facial recognition system, which currently identifies and suggests tagging of individuals in photos and videos. The company’s vice-president of artificial intelligence, Jerome Pesenti, says the technology is being ditched due to uncertainty over its use. “Regulators are still in the process of providing a clear set of rules governing its use. Amid this ongoing…
-
PM says Thailand will step up fight against climate change
Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha has vowed to step up Thailand’s focus on tackling climate change. He made this announcement yesterday in Glasgow at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of the Parties, also known as the COP26. This convention is a forum in which world leaders can meet and make plans to address relevant climate issues. Prayut…
-
COVID: India opens for international travel – what happens next?
After nearly 18 months of closure, India will finally open its borders to fully vaccinated foreign tourists on November 15. The Home Ministry announced that tourist visas would be issued to those arriving on chartered flights first, whereas travelers on commercial flights would start getting their visas approved from November. “Foreign tourists entering into India by flights other than chartered…
-
How Germany’s new government could impact young Africans
It’s young, developing and brimming with potential. Yet, the African continent doesn’t seem to feature prominently on Germany’s foreign policy agenda. Just over a month after Germany’s much-anticipated federal election, coalition talks are still ongoing. Headline-grabbing issues like climate change and migration are on the agenda: But many young Africans are also keenly waiting for the outcome, with the new…
-
Vaccinations accelerated for inmates following Covid-19 outbreaks at prisons
More than 74,000 inmates at Thailand’s overcrowded prisons and detention centres have tested positive for Covid-19 over the past several months, which is about a fourth of the total number of prisoners in the country. Correctional facilities stopped allowing visits earlier this year and vaccinations have been accelerated. According to Nation Thailand, Justice Minister Somsak Thepsuthin said prisons will start…
-
One Free Press Coalition spotlights rampant impunity in killings of journalists
Since 2011, 278 journalists have been killed in line of duty. In the past seven days alone, two journalists in Mexico and one reporter in the Phillippines have been killed, one of them even tortured. Last week, the Committee to Protect Journalists published its Global Impunity Index stating that 81% of journalists’ murders in the past decade remained unsolved. In…
-
Tuesday Covid Update: 7,574 new cases; provincial totals
78 coronavirus-related deaths were reported by the CCSA today, raising the pandemic’s death toll in Thailand to 19,338 with 19,244 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 7,574 new Covid-19 cases and 8,279 recoveries. There are now 98,444 people in Thailand being…
-
6,600+ arrive on first day of Thailand’s reopening
Thailand reopened yesterday with quarantine free international travel for vaccinated visitors, with more than 6,600 travellers entering the country. It’s a major step forward for the country after closing borders at the start of the pandemic in March 2020. Fully vaccinated passengers from 63 countries can now enter without having to go through quarantine, with just a minimal isolation period…
-
Indonesia approves Novavax Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use
The Indonesian government has approved the Novavax Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use, the first country in the world to do so. The Bangkok Post reports that the manufacturer and its partner, Serum Institute of India, has confirmed the approval. The vaccine will be sold under the brand name Covovax. The manufacturers have applied for emergency use authorisation in several countries,…
-
Thailand aviation sector optimistic following November 1 re-opening
Following Thailand’s re-opening yesterday to vaccinated tourists from 63 approved countries, the aviation sector is feeling positive. According to a TTR Weekly report, Thai carriers are hopeful that the re-opening will mean they can restore their schedules to pre-pandemic levels by the end of this year. The current situation is that Thai Air Asia is operating just 10 of its…
-
No decline in Covid-19 infections across 10 Thai provinces
With no drop in Covid-19 infections in 10 provinces, the CCSA says the Public Health Ministry is monitoring the situation closely. Spokesperson Apisamai Srirungson says that while new cases in Thailand as a whole have now dropped below 10,000, the situation is proving concerning in Khon Kaen, Rayong, Chiang Mai, Tak, Chanthaburi, Nakhon Si Thammarat, as well as Songkhla, Yala,…
Don't forget to check out some other things to do in Thailand - get help starting a business or finding a job in Thailand, buy Thailand property, rent a yacht or book a medical procedure worldwide.