Posts published in “Thailand”

It reads like the sort of story that belongs in a supernatural thriller — a woman who stirred inside her coffin during funeral preparations, briefly breathing life into a stunned crowd — yet the real-life outcome was quieter and, sadly, more solemn. On December 14, 65-year-old Chonthirat Sakulku from Phitsanulok passed away peacefully at Bang Yai Hospital in Nonthaburi, officials confirmed. Wat Rat Prakhong Tham posted the news on Facebook on December 17, closing the extraordinary chapter that had captured national attention. The sequence of events is as unusual as it is heartbreaking. Chonthirat, who had been stricken by a serious illness and presumed dead by her family, was brought to Wat Rat Prakhong Tham under the temple’s free funeral programme to await cremation. During last-minute preparations, temple staff heard and then saw unexpected movement from inside the coffin. A frantic check found Chonthirat still alive. She was rushed to…

Thailand’s long-haul comeback: 10 million reasons to celebrate (and two lucky winners) Thailand has quietly — and then spectacularly — crossed a tourism milestone this year: long-haul arrivals have topped 10 million for the first time. The moment was marked in proper airport-glam fashion on December 17, when a Thai Airways flight touched down in Bangkok from London and was greeted by Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Governor Thapanee Kiatphaibool alongside representatives from partner agencies at Suvarnabhumi Airport. Cue the confetti, smiling officials and the selfie-ready tourists who helped make the number real. Why does this matter? Long-haul travellers — defined here as visitors from Europe, the Americas, the Middle East and Africa — now make up roughly one-third of all international tourists to Thailand. They are high-value guests: they tend to stay longer and spend more per trip, which perfectly aligns with TAT’s strategy of courting “high-quality tourism.” Thailand…

A foreign student’s fight for justice after a deadly crash at Mae Fah Luang University When a routine ride turned into a life-changing crash outside Mae Fah Luang University in Chiang Rai, second-year cosmetic science student La Min Khaing found herself recovering from serious injuries while also shouldering the burden of seeking accountability. Unable to rely on the driver she says caused the collision, she turned to TikTok — and to the kindness of strangers — to make her voice heard. The December 1 accident began, according to La Min Khaing’s TikTok account @laminkhaing05, when a Thai driver ran a red light and struck a male motorcyclist who was attempting a U-turn. The initial impact sent the motorcycle skidding across the road; it subsequently collided with La Min Khaing’s bike. The other rider was pronounced dead at the scene. La Min Khaing survived but suffered a broken wrist and a…

Customs and drama met on the tarmac at Suvarnabhumi Airport on December 16, when Thai immigration officers intercepted a 44-year-old Chinese national trying to slip out of the country under a fake identity. Carrying a counterfeit Mexican passport under the name “Gol,” the man — identified by authorities as Huang — was stopped for routine checks that quickly snowballed into something far more serious. What began as a passport check turned into a full-blown reveal: officers discovered Huang’s genuine Chinese passport hidden among his belongings, and a deeper identity check showed he is the subject of an Interpol red notice. For the uninitiated, a red notice is an international alert asking law enforcement around the world to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition or similar legal actions. In this case, the notice is tied to allegations that Huang was a central figure in an enormous cross-border investment scam…

Chiang Mai is gearing up to trade its centuries-old incense smoke and teakwood whispers for a very modern badge: UNESCO World Heritage status. In a decisive move on December 16, Thailand’s national committee on world heritage — led by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Suchart Chomklin alongside Minister of Culture Sabina Thaised — approved the nomination dossier titled “Chiang Mai: Capital of Lanna” for submission to UNESCO as a cultural World Heritage Site. Why the rush? Chiang Mai has sat on Thailand’s tentative list since 2015, biding its time like a patient monk. But a looming deadline has officials sprinting: sites already on the tentative list can still lodge a direct nomination only until January 30, 2026. After that, a new two-year preliminary assessment process comes into play. To avoid the bureaucratic detour, the government is fast-tracking the application so Chiang Mai can try to…