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.
-
Turkish woman robbed by Patong motorcycle taxi
Police have been searching for a motorcycle taxi, after a complaint from a Turkish tourist over sexual harassment and robbery. Police checked out the CCTV camera footage in the Patong area where the taxi picked up the victim. The 26 year old Turkish tourist was found by a police officer at Bangwad Dam yesterday while he was jogging. She was…
-
THAIGER TODAY Tuesday, March 27
Premchai being sued in civil case | New type of ‘start up’ visa on the way | Amorous Russians have left the country | Grab taking over Uber in South East Asia | Underwater gamblers in hot water | New Mae Hong Son flights from DMK | Arsonist lit fires on 10 vehicles in Chonburi | Road resurfacing magic in…
-
Four Andaman provinces discuss logistics issues
The Transport Commission of the National Assembly of Thailand held a meeting at the Proud Phuket Hotel to discuss logistics development for Phuket, Krabi, Phang Nga and Ranong with the governors of the 4 provinces. The Chairperson of the Transport Commission, Lt Gen Charaesak Anupap, says that the commission board have received many submissions from individuals, including operators and players…
-
THAIGER TODAY Monday, March 26
Driver point demerit system proposed (again) | Taxi driver found dead | Thai Government seeking exemptions over US tax tariffs | Serbian tourists fined over ‘innapropriate’ clothing at temple | Box jellyfish warning in waters off Trat | French tourist beaten up by 5 men in Pattaya | NGOs seek extension for registration of migrant workers | 35 passengers have…
-
Thailand Number 14 in road accident ratings. Which is the most dangerous country on the roads?
Compiling data from the World Health Organisation, World Bank and UNESCO, here is the latest ranking for road deaths around the world. Of course the situation changes every day but Thailand is in very poor company indeed with countries having a rate of more than 30 deaths per 100,000 people from road accidents. Thailand is, today, in 14th position around…
-
4,000 runners compete at 4th Supersports 10 Mile International Run 2018 @ Thanyapura, Phuket
A weekend of sporting fun saw a record-breaking 4,000 runners enjoy the 4th Supersports 10 Mile International Run 2018 Phuket Presented by Thanyapura. Held on March 24 & 25 at the award-winning Thanyapura Health & Sports Resort, there was something for everyone with distances including a 500 metre Kids Run, 3 Mile (4.8km), 5 Mile (8km) and the iconic 10…
-
Road-resurfacing in Kathu leaves traffic hazard
Good news for people driving around the Kathu Ring Road (specifically the section going past the Loch Palm Golf Course entrance), the roads are being resurfaced from the entrance of Soi Namtok to near the entrance of Loch Palm Gof Course today (Monday). Bad news, the roadmakers have left a 8-12 cm gap between the surface of the road and…
-
Four Malaysians arrested over alleged call-centre scam
Tourist police have arrested four Malaysian men who allegedly worked for a call-centre scam gang by transferring victims’ money to Dubai. The arrests were announced today at the Phaholyothin police station in Bangkok today (Monday). Police say the four suspects collaborated with Thai accomplices to steal Internet banking account details and OTPs (one-time passwords) from three Thai victims. They allegedly…
-
New ‘Start Up Camp’ visas on offer soon
The Thai government is to offer ‘Start-up Camp’ visas to foreign IT and tech experts, this from the PM’s Office Minister Kobsak Pootrakool. Areas affected will include Phuket, Chiang Mai, Bangkok and the Eastern Economic Corridor. The government will also revamp the tax law to encourage start-ups to stay here instead of later moving to low-tax regime countries such as…
-
A PHAB night of Glam, Glitz and Glitter
The Phuket Hotels Association, a nonprofit group of hoteliers focused on promoting a positive image for Phuket while supporting community-based projects, is hosting a benefit gala dinner on Saturday, 28 April 2018 to raise funds for 20 plus hospitality scholarships and traineeships for local residents. The Glam, Glitz and Glitter event will take place at the Latitude Marquee, Laguna Phuket…
-
Earth Hour saves power, lowers emissions – Bangkok
Bangkok saved 2,002 megawatts of electricity as a result of observing the 2018 Earth Hour last night (Saturday). Deputy Bangkok Governor Chakkapan Phewngam revealed the results, explaining further that the figures meant savings of 7.9 million baht and the reduction of 1,026 tonnes of carbon monoxide emissions. In the capital, the Earth Hour event was held at Central Plaza Grand…
-
35 tourists jump off burning dive boat in Krabi
35 passengers escaped unscathed after a diving boat called ‘Chontara’ they were travelling in caught fire near an island in Krabi province late last night/Sunday morning. No injuries were reported. The diving boat with 35 passengers was on its way back from a diving trip from Lanta Island to Phi Phi Island just after midnight. Fortunately, a nearby boat was…
-
3 Women arrested after picking up drugs parcel in Phang Nga
Police Region 8 have arrested three women who picked up a drugs parcel at the Takuapa bus terminal in Phang Nga, which contained drugs with a street value up to 4 million Baht. The investigative team received a report that there would be drugs smuggled via a Bangkok – Takuapa bus. The bus staff delivered the parcel to the bus…
-
Animal shows in Phuket. ‘Not in my back yard’!
OPINION by Tim Newton Three years ago the issue came into sharp focus in Phuket when a Ukraine company established ‘Nemo’, the first dolphinarium in Phuket, right next door to the Chalong Zoo. The dolphinarium drew a lot of kick-back from locals who took the NIMBY approach – Not In My Back Yard. They were applying their western values about the…
-
Alleged Phuket gunmen arrested
The two gunmen who allegedly shot a local man in Rassada have been arrested but they still deny all charges. The hitmen, including 26 year old Warin ‘M’ Khemma and 26 year old Damrongrit ‘Boat’ Srijaturat, from Udon Thani, are believed to have shot local men Sinchai Kaewlipon and Jakkapan Saluay-Iam. After an investigation police claim that Sinchai owed the…
-
Double fatality in Krabi bus crash
PHOTOS: มูลนิธิกระบี่พิทักษ์ประชา (Krabi Rescue) In what’s been a horror week on Thailand’s roads, two people have been killed and another six injured after a tour bus crashed into a pickup at an intersection in Krabi last night around 10pm (March 23). The double-decker bus was heading to Krabi Airport to pick up tourists. The accident happened in the Ao Luek…
-
Bus driver admits taking methamphetamine before fatal journey
The 44 year old driver (reported to be 45 in other media) of the bus which crashed in Nakhon Rachasim on Wednesday night, killing 18, was arrested in roadside buses where police found him hiding after he fled the crash-scene as emergency responders dragged the dead bodies from the wreckage. Krissana Juthachuen has admitted that he used methamphetamine to keep…
-
Air Asia mea culpa over bike unloading
AirAsia has apologised to cyclists whose bicycles were seen to be poorly handled by ramp staff in a viral video. As a gesture of goodwill the low-cost airline is waiving all fees to transport bicycles for April, said its CEO Riad Asmat. “As a cyclist myself, I was pretty disturbed when I saw the actions of our staff. Rest assured,…
-
“US-China trade war will hurt Thai exports” – Economist
By Wichit Chaitrong, The Nation The Government has been urged to brace for the impact from a possible trade war between the United States and China with US President Donald Trump planning to impose tariffs on many Chinese goods and China vowing to retaliate. Sompop Manarungsan, veteran economist and president of the Panyapiwat Institute of Management, yesterday said he was…
-
Phuket gets Number Two in list of Top Asian Destinations
The trip advisor list of Asia’s top 25 destinations is in. Good news… Thailand has five locations in the Top 25 reader-voted list. Bad news, Thailand’s not Number One. The Indonesian island of Bali has come in Number One with Phuket in Number Two spot. Hanoi in Vietnam is in Number 3, Cambodia’s Siam Reap Number 5 and the mega-city…
-
14 Thai Provinces off Rabies ‘red zone’ list
The Department of Livestock Development (DLD) has taken 14 provinces off its list of rabies outbreak zones. Another 24 provinces remain on the list because they contain areas where rabies is still suspected. Originally, zones in 38 provinces were announced in January, with the observation period expiring on Tuesday (March 20). The DLD Deputy Director-General Jeerasak Pipattanapongsophon says that, as…
-
More drug crackdowns in Krabi
Krabi Police held a press conference yesterday (March 22) to announce that two alleged drug mafia gang leaders had been arrested in Krabi with almost 20,000 amphetamine pills and 2 million Baht worth of assets. The two drug dealers, including 43 year old Wirote ‘Bang Lai’ Khaokham and 25 year old Nantanat ‘Fa’ Ratchaniyom, who are Krabi residents, were arrested…
-
Livestock Department promises NO “Set Zero”
The Department of Livestock Development (DLD) is giving assurances to the Soi Dog Foundation that the department will not follow a policy of “Set Zero” – wiping out all stray dogs in Thailand. The assurance that there will be no countrywide slaughter came from the DLD’s Director of the Division of Veterinary Quarantine and Inspection, Dr Burin Sorasithisooksakul. It came…
-
Governor rolls up his sleeves in a clean-up day at Phuket’s stray dog shelter
Phuket’s Governor, Norapat Plodthong, led a big group of officials and volunteers along with staff from Phuket’s Soi Dog Foundation to cleanup, paint and donate their time at Phuket’s Stray Dog Shelter yesterday (March 20). The Governor rolled up his sleeves and worked along with the other volunteers to give the shelter a well-needed publicly-funded home for Phuket’s strays. The…
-
Foreign thief captured on video in Patong
A Facebook user named ‘Thep PK’ has posted a video showing footage of a western man at a beer garden in Patong stealing a bag from the tourists sitting next to him. https://www.facebook.com/phuketgazette/videos/1652661594811662/ Facebook/Thep PK The man was looking left and right several times and kept staring at the bag that belonged to a group of four tourists who were…
-
Water truck careers off Patong Hill, killing one
There’s been another fatal accident on Patong Hill this morning (March 22). So far there’s been one fatality reported with another critically injured. A fully-loaded water truck has slipped over the side after crashing through the roadside barriers and fallen down the roadside cliff on the Kathu side. Long traffic delays in and out of Patong as a result, particularly…
-
Anonymous corpse retrieved floating near Rawai
A dead body, which is believed to be of a western man, has been discovered floating near Koh Kaewpissadan, on the west coast of Rawai yesterday (March 21). Police from Chalong station, Marine Police, Forensic Police and a medical team from Vachira Hospital as well as Phuket Ruamjai rescue team went out to collect the body with a boat belonging…
-
Police ban water splashing on main roads for Songkran
The Royal Thai Police are looking to impose a total ban on water splashing activities on main and secondary roads throughout Thailand during from April 11-17, the Songkran holiday break. They are citing road safety as the reason for the drastic plans. In phuket, in the past, Chao Fah east and west, Viset Road in Rawai and parts of Thepkasattri…
-
Phuket gives away more than 12,000 shirts to public drivers
Phuket Vice Governor, Sanit Srivihok, chaired a give-away ceremony this morning (March 21), aiming to encourage public transport drivers to dress more professionally. The 12,810 shirts are divided into categories of public transport by color, including a white shirt for taxi, Tuk Tuks with the number plate that begins with 30, bus and van drivers with the plates that begin…
-
Soi Dog calls for probe after temple dog poisoning
Soi Dog Foundation (SDF) today called for a full investigation into the poisoning of dogs and puppies in front of children at a school and on temple grounds in Nakhon Sri Thammarat province, and called for an end to such atrocities. Video of the killings has gone viral on Facebook, with more than a million views by today. The SDF…
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.