- Thailand Ranked No. 1 for Happy Expats/Blessing of the Fleet Ceremony/Vascular health seminar/Sunrise hike and trail run/Israeli-linked land deals probed/Grab streamlines airport operations/Delivery competition shifts/Young Thai doctors quitting/Stricter medical cannabis bill/’Am Cyanide’ sentenced to death
- THE IRAN WAR: Thailand faces fresh LNG squeeze
- ECONOMY: Oil prices to lift Thai living-cost index/Cabinet extends 1,000-baht co-pay aid/Plan aims to combat fuel crises/Bangkok condo sales rebound
- TOURISM: Thailand Medical Tourism Growth/Surviving Sin City/Russian Tourists and COVID-19 Rise
- THAILAND EXPERIENCE: Elephant Nature Park rescue
- HUA HIN TRANSPORT and LINKS
Thailand Ranked No. 1 for Happy Expats — and 42% Say They Want to Stay Forever
Happiness may be subjective, but living on lush tropical islands and eating delicious food is probably a good formula for the emotion when living abroad. And foreigners in Thailand appear to be the happiest of all.
Expats living in the Southeast Asian country reported the highest levels of life satisfaction, according to a new report from InterNations, a platform for expats around the world. The company found that 86% of surveyed respondents living in Thailand were happy with their lives in the country, compared to just 70% of those globally. In total, 42% of those living in Thailand said they would like to stay there forever. Continued …
Blessing of the Fleet Ceremony returns to Hua Hin Saturday
The Hua Hin Ship to Sea Ceremony will return on Saturday, offering residents and visitors the chance to witness one of the town’s longstanding fishing community traditions.
The annual event, officially known as the Sea Misfortune-Casting Ceremony, is also sometimes referred to as the Blessing of the Fleet. It will be held at the Chao Mae Thapthim Shrine, next to the Hilton Hua Hin Resort & Spa. Continued …
Vascular health seminar set for Saturday
Be Well Medical Center and BPK9 International Hospital are teaming up to host an interactive health seminar in Hua Hin focusing on common vascular diseases and circulation problems.
Taking place on Saturday at iSanook Resort in Khao Takiab, the session will cover three important areas: varicose veins, blood clots and deep vein thrombosis (DVT), and arterial health and circulation. Continued …
Sunrise hike and trail run set for Sunday
A Hua Hin sunrise hike and trail run this Sunday will give participants a chance to explore little-known trails on the mountain behind Pineapple Valley Golf Club.
The event is organized by Pineapple Valley Golf Club, Hua Hin Trail Runners, Runista and Why Hua Hin? The Hua Hin Expo 2026. Participants can choose between two guided routes, with viewpoints along the way and breakfast at the clubhouse afterward. Continued …
Israeli-linked land deals probed in southern Thailand
Deputy Interior Minister Polapee Suwanchawee says he will personally investigate reports of Israeli-linked companies buying land worth nearly 100 million baht in Thailand’s three southern border provinces.
Polapee also said officials were widening checks on Chabad centers across Thailand, including completed sites and projects still under construction. Polapee said authorities were examining around eight or nine Chabad locations nationwide. Continued …
Grab streamlines airport pick-up operations
Grab is expanding its airport services to prepare for the fourth-quarter travel peak, a period when its airport ride bookings typically increase by 35% to 40% compared to non-peak times. To manage this anticipated surge, the company has expanded its pick-up area at Suvarnabhumi airport from three lanes to 12 lanes and introduced new booking tools, including a feature called NIP.
This new system allows passengers to use a Grab pick-up point to confirm their trip with a driver and receive a four-digit digital code, which helps reduce congestion and manage passenger queues at the airport.
Delivery competition shifts up a gear
The competition in Thailand’s logistics and express-delivery market has shifted from price and scale toward faster, more reliable, and specialized services. This transition is driven by economic pressures, rising fuel costs, and increasing consumer expectations for service quality and reliability.
Companies are now focusing on niche capabilities, such as cross-border logistics, same-day delivery, and specialized agricultural logistics, to differentiate themselves. To maintain service stability and manage operational costs, providers are also investing in technology, including digital dispatch, automated sorting, and improved route management.
Young Thai doctors quit over system pressures, not long hours alone
Nearly 1,000 doctors a year are leaving Thailand’s public healthcare system, according to the head of a young doctors’ network, who says heavy workloads, burnout and structural problems are pushing many out despite continued demand.
Dr. Supanan Janeteerawong, president of the Thai Junior Doctor Network, said yesterday that many doctors she had spoken to still wanted to practice medicine and had chosen the profession themselves. Pressure from the healthcare system, rather than the profession alone, was contributing to decisions to leave government service. Continued …
Cabinet backs stricter medical cannabis bill
Thailand’s Cabinet has approved a draft Cannabis Control Act that would place tighter controls on cultivation, sales and medical prescribing. The proposal must now go before the House of Representatives.
Public Health Minister Pattana Promphat announced the Cabinet decision at Government House yesterday, saying cannabis is to be used for medical purposes only. The draft would introduce more clearly defined and tougher penalties than those under the legislation currently in force, he said. Continued …
Serial killer ‘Am Cyanide’ sentenced to death
The Criminal Court yesterday imposed the death sentence on Sararat Rangsiwuthaporn, widely known as “Am Cyanide” after finding her guilty of killing Chantarat Wongkraisin using cyanide in 2022.
The court said that, on August 9, 2022, Rangsiwuthaporn purchased cyanide. She then made an appoint with Chantarat to meet at a gas station in Phetchaburi on Aug. 15 to return some money invested with interest. At that appointment, the court said Rangsiwuthaporn gave the cyanide to Chantarat, claiming that it was medicine to treat symptoms of COVID 19. Continued …
Thailand faces a fresh LNG squeeze as Hormuz crisis raises prices
Thailand is confronting a renewed energy-security challenge as the crisis around the Strait of Hormuz pushes global LNG prices to about US$28 per million British thermal units, close to levels seen during the Russia-Ukraine energy shock. Thailand is responding by accelerating domestic gas exploration, reviewing LNG procurement strategy and seeking to diversify away from spot-market exposure.
The pressure is particularly significant for Thailand because imported LNG already supplies roughly 30% of gas used for electricity generation, while domestic production from mature Gulf of Thailand fields is declining. PTTEP has warned that every US$3/MMBtu increase in LNG prices could raise Thai electricity prices by around 5%, leaving manufacturers, households and power generators exposed to prolonged international price volatility. Continued …
Higher oil prices set to lift Thai living-cost index in fourth quarter
Assoc Prof. Aat Pisanwanich of Rangsit University’s Faculty of Economics said yesterday the university had prepared an economic and international trade policy analysis of the Thai Household Cost of Living Index (CLI) for the third quarter of 2026 and the fourth-quarter outlook, titled “The impact of oil prices on Thai living costs”.
Calculations based on 2023 showed that the nationwide household cost-of-living index had risen significantly since the second quarter. The index stood at 114.4 in the second quarter, up 14.5% from the first quarter and its highest level in three years. Continued …
Cabinet extends 1,000-baht co-pay aid to November
Thailand’s Cabinet approved a 43-billion-baht relief package yesterday, extending Thais Help Thais Plus through November and raising welfare-card support for October. Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas said the measures would ease energy-related living costs and help keep Thailand’s 2026 growth on track for 2.5%.
Ekniti said renewed fighting in the Middle East had pushed up global crude oil, diesel and petrol prices, prolonging pressure on households. Thailand faced three waves of economic strain: energy costs, weakening purchasing power, and rising living costs and inflation. Ekniti put headline inflation at 2.5%, with producer prices up almost 10%. Continued …
New strategic plan aims to combat fuel crises
The cabinet has endorsed a strategic plan for the Oil Fuel Fund and a fuel crisis response plan covering 2026-29 with wider use of biofuels made from domestic raw materials to help deal with volatility in global energy markets.
The transition to fuels blended with biofuels is a priority, as are measures to stabilize fuel prices during crises, deputy government spokeswoman Lalida Persvivatana said yesterday. Continued …
Bangkok condo sales rebound
Thailand’s Greater Bangkok housing market is showing an increasingly sharp divide, with condominium sales rebounding while low-rise housing remains weighed down by weak purchasing power, tight lending conditions and a prolonged inventory overhang.
New condominium sales in Bangkok and five surrounding provinces rose 19.5% year on year in the second quarter of 2026, while developers slowed new launches and total unsold inventory fell 10.2%, according to the Real Estate Information Center (REIC). Continued …
Thailand Medical Tourism Growth Links Bangkok and Phuket to Wellness Travel
Healthcare in Thailand is expanding its medical tourism services, which include hospital healthcare, preventive health services, wellness programs, and tourism services, for international tourists in both Bangkok and Phuket.
By 2026, the tourism industry in Thailand will consist of a variety of services that include packages of medical tourism, such as hospital visits, hotel accommodation, airport transfer, and recovery services. This is being done as Phuket is enhancing its digital healthcare services through the Health Sandbox project. Continued …
Surviving Sin City: Sex and death in Thailand’s tourist paradise
It’s the holiday hotspot that draws in billions of dollars with the promise of sun, sand and sex. Police promise Pattaya is one of the safest cities in Thailand. But the shocking killing of a teenage girl earlier this year exposed the dark underbelly of the city’s sex industry.
This video travels to Pattaya to hear directly from sex workers, police and tourists about life on the streets of the party city. Video …
Thailand Trips for Russian Tourists Face Uncertainty Amid COVID-19 Rise
Trips to Thailand booked by Russian tourists through the end of the year could face disruptions amid a rise in reported COVID-19 cases. Some Russian travelers who have already paid for holidays at Thai resorts between October and December have reportedly been warned about possible problems with their trips as infections increase.
Thailand has officially recorded 135,700 COVID-19 cases since the beginning of the year, with nearly 65,000 reported between Aug. 9 and Sept. 8 alone. The highest numbers have been recorded in major tourist destinations, including Pattaya, Bangkok and Phuket. Twenty-six people have reportedly died from the virus since the start of the year. Continued …
Elephant Nature Park rescue story
Hua Hin Links and Transport
Calendar of events/Airport schedule/Bangkok airport bus schedule/Hua Hin-Pattaya bus schedule/Air pollution index map/90-day online report/driver’s license/Market Village and Bluport
InterContinental Hua Hin Resort has been named The Most Favorite Pet-Friendly Hotel at the 16th AROUND AWARDS 2026. The annual awards, organized as part of AROUND Magazine’s 16th anniversary, recognize hotels, restaurants and lifestyle businesses across Thailand.
Thailand has recorded 21,620 dengue infections and 31 deaths so far this year, as the seasonal outbreak continues to gather pace, the Department of Disease Control (DDC) said yesterday.
Thai police say they arrested suspects in 7,261 firearms-related cases and seized 7,872 guns during a nationwide 15-day crackdown between Aug. 12-26.
Pattaya is preparing for the influx of US Navy personnel when the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and two accompanying vessels are scheduled to dock at Laem Chabang from Sept. 2-6.
American money, military spending and technical assistance helped Thailand build roads, airports and modern institutions while neighboring states faced wars. The transformation brought rapid growth, but also strengthened military rule and widened social inequality.
Data centers have dominated the discourse in Thailand over the past year, becoming a symbol of technological advancement and innovation and evidence that Thailand is capturing a valuable component of the AI value chain.
New vehicle sales in Thailand increased by over 20% to 59,196 units in July, up from 49,102 units a year earlier, according to the latest data released by the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI).
For two decades, Thailand was regarded as a sure-fire success story in the Asian travel industry. In 2019, the last year before the pandemic, just under 40 million international visitors traveled to the country, generating revenue of around three trillion baht.
Passengers heading to Suvarnabhumi Airport face seven months of traffic diversions on the elevated roads serving the passenger terminal, starting on Aug.31. The maintenance program will run until April 7, 2027, affecting elevated access routes to and from the terminal, which connect with Motorway No. 7, the Bangkok-Chonburi route.
Thailand’s passport has been ranked 99th worldwide by Passport Reports, with a mobility score of 93. The assessment places Thailand fifth among the 11 ASEAN countries and 21st among 50 Asian countries assessed.
A Glimpse of Solar Energy in Thailand
Thailand’s move toward cleaner energy is putting greater pressure on the country’s electricity network to accommodate more renewable power while maintaining reliability, affordability and system stability.
Since Aug. 12, any Thai exporter shipping packaged goods into the EU has technically fallen under the bloc’s new Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) – whether they know it or not.
As the world shifts toward a greener future, Thailand’s Department of Foreign Trade (DFT) is stepping up to ensure Thai businesses don’t just survive, but thrive.
Thailand is facing a double crisis: an overwhelming volume of illegally dumped hazardous waste and a deadly climate of intimidation against activists trying to stop it.
The collapse of the lower section of a Himalayan glacier may have unleashed the ice, rock and sediment that caused catastrophic flooding near Nepal’s border with Tibet, although experts have not established why the glacier failed. Satellite images indicated that part of the glacier broke away at an altitude of about 5,200 meters before plunging approximately 1,200 meters onto the valley floor. 
Philippe Meranger just finished his grocery shopping in Montreal. The 61-year-old held several products under his arm as he said: “Tariffs hurt our economy, but they force us to buy Canadian. And I’m all for that.” 
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam’s commercialhub, is proposing to gradually restrict gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles from its downtown area from mid-2027 as part of a planned low-emission zone (LEZ). Under the proposal, the city would pilot the LEZ from July 2027 in its core downtown area and the new Thu Thiem urban area, which covers roughly 930 hectares (3.59 square miles).