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

    What do you need before moving from the US to Thailand?

    The Thaiger key takeaways The most common medical emergencies for expats in Thailand include motorcycle accidents, tropical diseases, and food or water-borne illnesses. Air pollution and heat-related conditions like heatstroke also pose serious seasonal health risks, especially in northern and...

  • Cops bust thieving couple who sold items to second hand shops in Phuket | Thaiger

    Cops bust thieving couple who sold items to second hand shops in Phuket

    Cops busted a thieving couple in Phuket on Monday, a husband and wife team who stole items and sold them to second hand shops. Police say the husband has been identified as Banjerd, and the wife as Toon Mathurasorn, The Phuket News reported. A Russian man, Oliver Thurman, alerted Wichit Police on January 6 that a towing rig and a…

  • Cabinet announces change to holiday calendar | Thaiger

    Cabinet announces change to holiday calendar

    The government yesterday announced a change to the Thai holiday calendar. Government spokesperson Traisuree Taisaranakul revealed the Cabinet has declared Friday, May 5, a special holiday, making it a four-day holiday for Coronation Day. The Cabinet agreed to change the date because this year’s Coronation Day falls on a Thursday, reported Bangkok Post. “The long holiday for Coronation Day will…

  • Ghosts in Thailand: some eerie sites to explore | Thaiger

    Ghosts in Thailand: some eerie sites to explore

    Thailand is known for its beautiful beaches, delicious food, and rich culture, but it also has a dark side. Thai culture has long believed in ghosts, some good, some bad. A large percentage of people in modern life are still afraid of ghosts in Thailand and as such, the country has some infamously haunted and eerie places. Here are a…

  • Thai police seize 30 kilograms of heroin bound for Hong Kong hidden in puppy pads | Thaiger

    Thai police seize 30 kilograms of heroin bound for Hong Kong hidden in puppy pads

    Thai authorities seized a sizeable 30 kilograms of heroin yesterday in Samut Prakan province, just north of Bangkok, believed to be headed to Hong Kong. Police arrested a Hong Konger and a Thai national during the raid. Officers from the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) raided a house in the Kanchanaphisek 39 area of Samut Prakan to find…

  • Phang Nga’s turtle nesting season continues with more nests discovered | Thaiger

    Phang Nga’s turtle nesting season continues with more nests discovered

    Phang Nga’s turtle nesting season continues and more nests are being discovered. Two more nests were found, bringing the total number of nests unearthed to eight so far, The Phuket Express reported today. The nests were found on the Baan Thung Darp Beach in the Koh Phra Thong sub-district of Kura Buri district. The Department of Marine and Coastal Resources…

  • Thai AirAsia ranked 3rd most on-time low-cost airline in the world | Thaiger

    Thai AirAsia ranked 3rd most on-time low-cost airline in the world

    Thai AirAsia is ranked the third most on-time low-cost airline in the world and the most punctual carrier in Asia-Pacific countries in 2022, according to Cirium, a data analytics company in the aviation and travel industry. The average on-time rate reported by Cirium was 97.47% The Chief Executive Officer of Thai AirAsia, Santisuk Klongchaiya, announced the company’s good news yesterday,…

  • Daily direct flights between Phuket and Shanghai to takeoff next week | Thaiger

    Daily direct flights between Phuket and Shanghai to takeoff next week

    Daily flights between Phuket in southern Thailand and Shanghai in China will takeoff next Wednesday, January 18, operated by Shanghai’s Juneyao Airlines. The inaugural flight will be the first direct service between Phuket and mainland China in almost three years. China reopened its borders yesterday, and given that China was once Thailand’s top tourism market, Thailand braced itself for an…

  • 2 Thai women attacked by foreign mafia in Koh Samui | Thaiger

    2 Thai women attacked by foreign mafia in Koh Samui

    A Thai woman sought help from the Thai media after she and her mother were attacked by some foreigners who claimed to be part of a mafia gang at a bar in Koh Samui on New Year’s Eve. The woman turned to the media because the police ignored her case. The local Facebook page Samui Fresh News posted a video…

  • Police on the prowl for scam gang after Thai teen commits suicide | Thaiger

    Police on the prowl for scam gang after Thai teen commits suicide

    Police are on the prowl for a scamming gang after a teenage boy committed suicide in Thailand’s central Nonthaburi province. The boy, 15 year old Arthit, hung himself in a wooded area in the Pakkret district on Sunday. Arthit left a note apologising to his mother for stealing up to 15,000 baht from her purse. Investigators later found that criminals…

  • Thailand informs airlines about removal of Covid-19 vaccine rule | Thaiger

    Thailand informs airlines about removal of Covid-19 vaccine rule

    Unvaccinated travellers heading to Thailand can now feel at ease knowing airlines around the world have been informed that Thailand no longer requires arrivals to prove they are vaccinated against Covid-19. Thailand momentarily reintroduced the two-dose Covid vaccine entry requirement with barely any notice as a measure to mitigate the risk of importing a caseload of coronavirus from China, which…

  • Piracy in decline around the world | Thaiger

    Piracy in decline around the world

    The Covid-19 pandemic has been rough on everyone. But as we focus on rebuilding tourism and the economy, spare a moment in your thoughts for Jack Sparrow. A new report says that last year worldwide pirate activity was at its lowest since 2008, and possibly since 1992. Piracy and robbery on the high seas are at their lowest levels since…

  • Male prostitute threatens to kill woman in Isaan | Thaiger

    Male prostitute threatens to kill woman in Isaan

    A lonely, fearful woman in the Isaan province of Udon Thani filed a complaint with the police after a male prostitute stole from her, murdered her dog, and threatened to kill her. The 32 year old woman named Boom told the media that… “I’m embarrassed to talk about this, but I think this is too much, and I have to…

  • Soapy king makes PM Prayut’s inauguration slippy | Thaiger

    Soapy king makes PM Prayut’s inauguration slippy

    Former soapy king turned amateur super-sleuth Chuwit Kamolvisit tried to gatecrash Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha’s inauguration into United Thai Nation (UTN) Party yesterday. PM Prayut officially joined the UTN Party yesterday where he gave an impassioned speech on how he values the democratisation process, seemingly forgetting that he toppled the democratic process when seizing power in a 2014 army coup.…

  • Bangkok City Hall assesses Covid readiness | Thaiger

    Bangkok City Hall assesses Covid readiness

    With travel increases to Thailand, and with the reopening of China, comes the risk of spreading Covid-19. Bangkok City Hall is taking steps to ensure that visitors can enjoy their stay while keeping themselves and others safe as they brace for an influx of tourists. Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt tasked his deputy governors with conducting a full assessment of the…

  • Chinese tourists trickling in after reopening | Thaiger

    Chinese tourists trickling in after reopening

    With a back and forth over Covid-19 restrictions, as China opens its doors for its citizens to travel outbound again, the wave of the coveted Chinese tourist demographic has been nothing more than a trickle. The first arrivals in three years on a direct flight from China to Thailand landed in Bangkok on January 8, with 200 enthusiastic travellers. After Covid…

  • Iran sentences young footballer to 16 years for ‘enmity against God’ | Thaiger

    Iran sentences young footballer to 16 years for ‘enmity against God’

    Iran’s regime sentenced a young footballer to 16 years of imprisonment for “enmity against God,” several news outlets reported yesterday. The footballer, 26 year old Amir Nasr-Azadani, participated in protests against Iran’s theocratic regime last year, which began after Iranian authorities murdered a young woman for allegedly showing too much of her hair. Nasr-Azadani was found guilty of “partaking in…

  • Thai gold necklace thief arrested after fleeing to Myanmar | Thaiger

    Thai gold necklace thief arrested after fleeing to Myanmar

    The Thai thief was arrested by Burmese police officers yesterday after stealing a 150,000 baht gold necklace from a shop in the northern province of Chiang Rai and escaping by swimming to Myanmar. The theft happened at a gold shop named Seri Phan in the Mae Sai district of Chiang Rai on November 26 last year. The male thief pretended…

  • Thai army shoots dead 6 foreign ketamine traffickers | Thaiger

    Thai army shoots dead 6 foreign ketamine traffickers

    Thai paramilitary rangers shot dead six drug traffickers smuggling 300 kilograms of ketamine into Thailand in the forests of Chiang Mai province near the border of Myanmar at 3am today. In the dead of night in the dense jungle, Thai paramilitary rangers crossed paths with “foreign drug traffickers” in Mon Pin subdistrict in Chiang Mai’s Fang district. The rangers reported that…

  • Two 10 year old schoolchildren killed after reckless sedan crashes into school bus | Thaiger

    Two 10 year old schoolchildren killed after reckless sedan crashes into school bus

    Two 10 year old schoolchildren were killed and another 19 were injured after a reckless sedan driver crashed into a school bus. The smash caused a collision between a school bus and a minibus on a road in the northern province of Phichit. The incident happened on the Phichit-Saklek Road in the Mueang district of Phichit at 5.30pm yesterday, January…

  • Violent monk flees scene after leaving teenage girl for dead | Thaiger

    Violent monk flees scene after leaving teenage girl for dead

    A violent monk is on the run after attacking his 17 year old granddaughter with a hammer and leaving her for dead at a temple in the Isaan province of Ubon Ratchathani last Saturday. Police believe that a letter found at the scene suggests the monk had a crush on the girl and was jealous of a friendship she’d recently…

  • British man claims he was tortured by Thai police | Thaiger

    British man claims he was tortured by Thai police

    A British man claims he was tortured by Thai police for seven days straight in Phuket, southern Thailand when his holiday abroad went gravely wrong. British authorities have launched an investigation into the alleged abuse, reports FirstPost. He allegedly sustained broken ribs, bruised limbs, septic infections, swollen wrists, and lost four teeth in the ordeal. The victim, 51 year old Carl…

  • What makes Amari Phuket a private tropical paradise? | Thaiger

    What makes Amari Phuket a private tropical paradise?

    Sponsored Phuket’s crystal clear waters, stunning beaches, and vibrant nightlife make it an unrivalled travel destination in Thailand. What’s more, the island is renowned for its stunning resorts, boasting luxurious amenities and spectacular views of the Andaman Sea. Amari Phuket, one of Phuket’s luxurious 5-star beach resorts, sets itself apart as a private paradise. But what differentiates it? Private yet…

  • Thailand’s second-hand car sales industry predicted to rise modestly | Thaiger

    Thailand’s second-hand car sales industry predicted to rise modestly

    The Association of Used Car (AUC) predicts the second-hand car market in Thailand will increase by 15% this year despite the ongoing shortage of semiconductors needed for the production of new vehicles. The worldwide shortage of semiconductors is exacerbated by a political game of cat and mouse between China and Taiwan. Taiwan is largely known as the semiconductor capital of…

  • Tourism Authority of Thailand plans first roadshow in China after pandemic | Thaiger

    Tourism Authority of Thailand plans first roadshow in China after pandemic

    Now that China has lifted travel restrictions for its citizens, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is once again tapping into the Chinese tourism market. TAT is planning a roadshow in China during the third week of February. This will be the first roadshow after the Covid-19 pandemic, according to TAT’s Regional Director of East Asia Chuwit Sirivejkul. The roadshow…

  • Unleash the power of Thai Cuisine: 7 health benefits of a Thai diet | Thaiger

    Unleash the power of Thai Cuisine: 7 health benefits of a Thai diet

    The Thai diet is a healthy and nutritious way to eat. It is full of flavorful dishes that are rich in vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients. It is also low in sodium, bad cholesterol, and fat, making it a great choice for anyone looking to lose weight or improve their overall health. The Thai diet also contains anti-inflammatory ingredients, which…

  • Charred corpse discovered in sugarcane field in Thailand | Thaiger

    Charred corpse discovered in sugarcane field in Thailand

    A sugarcane harvester found a charred human corpse in the middle of a sugarcane field in Suphan Buri province in central Thailand yesterday. Officers at U Thong Police Station were informed that a dead body was found at a sugarcane plantation in Chorakhe Samphan district and rushed to the scene to investigate with rescue workers. Officers found the body of…

  • 2 Russian men report money missing from safe in Pattaya hotel | Thaiger

    2 Russian men report money missing from safe in Pattaya hotel

    Two Russian men filed complaints with the police after nearly 140,000 baht disappeared from safety boxes in a hotel in Pattaya. Investigating officers reported there is no traces of the thief because the hotel’s CCTV cameras were all broken. The two Russian men, Natalina Chernova and Oleg Gipke, filed a complaint at Mueng Pattaya Police Station on Saturday, January 7…

  • Man lives in a tree for 3 years due to financial embarrassment | Thaiger

    Man lives in a tree for 3 years due to financial embarrassment

    A Thai man in the Isaan province of Udon Thani has been living in a tree for three years due to financial embarrassment. A provincial official offered him a new house on the ground and food, but he refused. He insisted on staying in the tree until officials find him a job. The 38 year old man, Charlie, constructed a…

  • Elephant brutally kills mahout in southern Thailand | Thaiger

    Elephant brutally kills mahout in southern Thailand

    An elephant went into a violent frenzy and killed its mahout (elephant trainer) in Phang Nga province in southern Thailand yesterday. Officials believe that Jojo the elephant turned on its owner because it was fed up with work. Jojo both trampled on his owner and stabbed him with his tusks numerous times, said rescue workers. Officers from Kapong Police Station…

  • Fans boo Thai royal anthem at Blackpink concert | Thaiger

    Fans boo Thai royal anthem at Blackpink concert

    K-pop band Blackpink kicked off their world tour in Bangkok on Saturday to a chorus of boos. Thai media reported video clips released on social media shows fans booing as the Thai royal anthem played on stage as the words “Please pay your respects to His Majesty the King” appeared on the screen before the band took to the stage. Prachatai English…