Phuket news & guides

Notes from the ground in Rawai — the market shifts, ownership rules, and events that actually matter if you're staying in, renting out, or buying a villa in southern Phuket.

Guides

Phuket news

Updated weekly · Last update 13 July 2026

Real Estate

Land title

Supreme Court demolition order reaches a 277-key Accor-managed resort at Naithon Beach

On 10 July officials posted formal demolition notices at the Pullman Phuket Arcadia Naithon Beach Resort after the Supreme Court ruled roughly 13 of its 38 rai sit illegally inside Sirinat National Park, rejecting the operator's request for a boundary survey first. It's the clearest sign yet that Phuket's beachfront demolition drive now reaches branded, institutionally-run resorts, not just informal shacks — a reminder to verify a chanote's park-boundary status before buying or leasing near any national park edge.

Thailand Hotel News · Jul 2026Read →
Supply

Colliers: new condo supply cools to 6,000–8,000 units in 2026 after a 25,000-unit surge

After two years of heavy launches, Colliers expects new condominium supply to moderate sharply this year, easing absorption pressure on everything except undifferentiated projects. Villa demand, meanwhile, is shifting structurally toward low-density living, with the ฿30–50M band the sweet spot and developers pushing inland as beachfront land runs out. Good news for owners of well-located, differentiated stock; a warning for generic condo product.

Colliers Thailand · 2026Read →
Outlook

Villas outperform as Phuket's luxury market holds firm — sales up 12.9% in 2025

Knight Frank Thailand expects prime west-coast villas and branded residences (Bang Tao, Layan, Kamala, Cherng Talay) to keep beating the wider market in 2026, with villa sales up 12.9% last year even as condo competition intensifies. Scarce seaview land and the planned Phang Nga airport point to durable capital growth — buy quality, well-located stock.

The Phuket News · Jul 2026Read →
Safe Haven

Global instability is steering ultra-prime buyers toward Phuket

List Sotheby's reports that geopolitical uncertainty is "accelerating conversations" at the top of the market, with wealthy international buyers treating Thailand — and Phuket specifically — as a safe-haven base. It reinforces demand resilience for prime, well-located stock even as broader new supply moderates.

Bangkok Post · Jun 2026Read →
Data

54,628 real enquiries show Phuket is a rental-led market — and Choeng Thale rules it

A FazWaz demand study (Dec 2025–May 2026) found 71% of all interest is to rent, not buy — roughly 2.5 renters per buyer, median budget ฿35k/month. Choeng Thale (Laguna/Boat Avenue) drew ~18% of all enquiries. The takeaway: buy where the rental demand actually is.

The Thaiger · Jun 2026Read →
Prices

Where the money sits: ~฿135k/sqm island median, ฿170–350k on the west coast

Current data puts Phuket's median around ฿135,000/sqm, with prime Bang Tao and Surin at ฿170,000–350,000 and Phuket Town nearer ฿70,000–120,000. Entry studios still start at ฿2.5–3.5M — useful anchors for pricing a buy or a rebuild against the right micro-market.

Tranio · 2026Read →

Tourism

Route

Emirates adds a third daily Dubai–Phuket flight on the A350, with Premium Economy

From 6 July Emirates operates EK390/391 as a third daily Dubai–Phuket service, lifting its Phuket schedule to 21 flights a week and bringing Premium Economy to the route for the first time on its three-class A350-900. Sustained Gulf and European capacity into low season is another steady inbound channel supporting shoulder-season occupancy and rental demand.

Emirates · Jul 2026Read →
Outlook

TAT holds its 33M forecast and goes hard on the second half — China +7%, Korea −19%

TAT is sticking to roughly 33 million foreign arrivals for 2026 (a flat +0.1%) and is spending heavily to defend it, with Chinese arrivals up about 7% and Indian up 8% while South Korea is down 19% and ASEAN down 8%. The headline lure is Tomorrowland in Pattaya (11–13 Dec), which sold out in seven minutes — 85% of buyers foreign. Thailand's growth is now event-led and source-market-volatile: plan occupancy around the calendar, not the average.

Nation Thailand · Jul 2026Read →
Hotels

Travel + Leisure relaunches the old Wyndham Sea Pearl as Club Wyndham Patong Hill

The 242-room Patong resort reopened on 6 July as the first Club Wyndham-branded property in Thailand, with eight pools, a spa and a new village-square precinct following a full repositioning. Timeshare-club inventory of this size in Patong pulls a steady, pre-committed guest base to the island — and sets a rising bar on the product Phuket rentals are judged against.

TTR Weekly · Jul 2026Read →
Route

Vietnam Airlines opens direct Ho Chi Minh City–Phuket, four flights a week

The inaugural VN621 landed 2 July with 152 passengers; the A321 service runs Tue/Thu/Sat/Sun, targeting Vietnam's fast-growing outbound market (TAT goal: 689,000 Vietnamese visitors in 2026). Another new short-haul source market means steadier peak- and shoulder-season rental demand.

The Phuket News · Jul 2026Read →
Costs

International departure tax jumps to ฿1,120 from 20 June

AOT raises the international Passenger Service Charge from ฿730 to ฿1,120 (about +50%) at six airports including Phuket, effective 20 June 2026; domestic stays ฿130. It's bundled into the airfare at booking, not collected at the gate — a small bump to factor into guest travel budgets and quotes.

Nation Thailand · Jun 2026Read →
Aviation

Air India Express opens Bengaluru–Phuket, four flights a week

A new direct BLR–HKT service launched 1 June 2026 (Mon/Fri/Sat/Sun on a 737-8 MAX), deepening Phuket's fast-growing India source market. More direct Indian seats support shoulder-season occupancy and steadier year-round rental demand.

Travel Daily News Asia · Jun 2026Read →
Aviation

IATA slot talks in Bangkok: new carriers inbound, Japan eyes direct Phuket

At the 158th IATA Slot Conference, 87 of 146 carriers showed interest in Thai routes; Virgin Atlantic, Riyadh Air and others won Winter 2026/27 slots, and Japanese airlines flagged direct Phuket services. More seats from new source markets means steadier year-round rental demand.

Nation Thailand · Jun 2026Read →
Access

Automated passport e-gates now live at Phuket airport

Eligible international departures can self-clear immigration via the new Automated Border Control lanes — faster exits and shorter peak-time queues. A small but real upgrade guests notice on the way home.

Travel & Tour World · Jun 2026Read →

Happening in Phuket

Festival

Phuket Parkland & Music Fest 2026, 24–26 July — Phuket Gateway, Thalang

The Phuket Provincial Administrative Organisation stages a three-day "SUGAR CANDY"-themed creative-tourism festival at the Phuket Gateway landmark in Sai Khao, Thalang, with two music stages, Thai headline acts and 140+ vendor booths, aimed at driving green-season visitor numbers and the local economy. A fresh reason to bring guests up to the quieter north of the island in the shoulder season.

Phuket PAO · Jul 2026Read →
Culture

Por Tor (Hungry Ghost) Festival, 19 August – 6 September 2026

Phuket's Chinese-Peranakan ghost festival runs through the seventh lunar month, peaking around 27 August, with red turtle cakes, offerings and ceremonies at shrines across Phuket Town and Kathu. It is one of the island's most photogenic low-season draws — a genuine reason for guests to come inland from the beach in late August.

Phuket101 · Aug 2026Read →
Sailing

PYC Yachting Festival, 15–19 July 2026 — Chalong Bay

Phuket Yacht Club marks its 30th anniversary with five days of monohull and multihull racing across Chalong Bay plus nightly parties at the waterfront clubhouse — an easy social draw on the island's quieter southeast coast in low season.

Phuket.Net · Jul 2026Read →
Culture

Buddhist Lent begins: Asalha Puja & Khao Phansa, 29–30 July 2026

The two back-to-back Buddhist holidays that open the three-month Rains Retreat are island-wide alcohol-free "dry days" — worth flagging to guests, as bars and shops pause alcohol sales. Expect candle offerings and processions at local temples and a quieter, more traditional couple of days.

Phuket101 · Jul 2026Read →
Live Music

Nirvanna — U.S. Nirvana tribute — plays Kandy Live Rawai, Sat 8 Aug 2026

The Orlando, Florida tribute act brings its first-ever Phuket show to Kandy Live Rawai on 8 August at 7pm — part of the band's biggest Thailand run yet, with Bangkok and Pattaya following on 29–30 August. Tickets run from ฿700 general admission (drink included) up to reserved tables and dinner-show seating. A rare big-name live night right in our backyard in Rawai — an easy evening out to point guests toward.

Megatix · Aug 2026Read →
Sport

Phuket King's Cup Regatta, 28 Nov – 6 December 2026, Kata Beach

Asia's premier sailing regatta returns to Kata for its high-season run, drawing crews and spectators island-wide. A reliable late-November/early-December draw that lifts west-coast bookings before the holiday peak.

Phuket King's Cup · Dec 2026Read →
Music

EDC Thailand returns, three nights, 18–20 December 2026

Electric Daisy Carnival's next edition lands at Rhythm Park with 100+ DJs across multiple stages — a major December draw expected to fill villas and hotels island-wide that weekend.

Phuket101 · Dec 2026Read →

Thailand Visa

Major change

60-day visa-free cut still not law — nothing in the Royal Gazette as of 12 July

The Cabinet's 19 May decision to trim visa-free stays (30 days for ~54 countries, 15 for three, tourism-only) still has no Gazette publication date, and it only bites 15 days after publication. The 60-day exemption therefore remains valid at the border today, and anyone already in the country keeps their permitted stay. The window is open — but it is not a plan; long-stayers should be lining up a DTV, LTR or retirement visa now.

TAT Newsroom · As of Jul 2026Read →
Enforcement

Phuket runs its toughest entry screening in years — ~2,000 turned away at the airport

Immigration is hard-targeting "visa runners": repeated visa-free entries, vague plans and undeclared work now risk denial of entry, with hotels looped into checks. Casual long-stayers should move onto a proper visa rather than hop the border.

The Phuket News · Jun 2026Read →
Tax

Foreign-income remittance relief still only a proposal — not yet law

A drafted two-year grace period would exempt foreign income remitted in the year earned or the next, but as of mid-2026 it has not cleared Cabinet and Council of State review. Resident owners should plan on the current rule (remitted foreign income is taxable) until it passes.

HLB Thailand · 2026Read →
DTV

DTV stays the default long-stay route: 5 years, 180 days an entry

With the 60-day visa-free window shrinking and enforcement tightening, the Destination Thailand Visa (proof of ~฿500k) remains the cleanest path for remote workers and frequent visitors — multiple entries, extendable on the ground.

Siam Legal Int'l · 2026Read →

Foreign Property Ownership

Policy

PM Anutin orders a nationwide nominee-land inspection, citing Chinese-linked EEC deals

On 6 July PM Anutin Charnvirakul ordered police and land agencies to inspect suspected nominee landholdings across the country, prompted by concerns over Chinese-linked capital buying large plots in the Eastern Economic Corridor for unapproved industrial use. It's a national-level escalation on top of the existing IBAS company-screening drive — one more reason anyone holding Phuket land through a Thai company should get the structure reviewed now rather than wait to be tested.

Nation Thailand · Jul 2026Read →
Scale

The nominee crackdown by the numbers: 21,459 companies flagged, 17,556 land probes

The Business Development Department's AI screening (IBAS, live since Oct 2025) has flagged roughly 21,459 companies for suspected breaches of foreign land and property rules, referring ~14,800 to the Revenue Department for tax inspection, 17,556 to the Department of Lands, and 2,700+ to police task forces. This is no longer a Phuket story or a headline campaign — it is a permanent, data-driven monitoring regime. Anyone holding land through a Thai company should assume it will be looked at.

Thai Examiner · Jul 2026Read →
Enforcement

Nominee crackdown reaches Phuket classrooms: Chalong police raid international schools

Court-approved searches on 26 June checked a southern-Phuket international school's land title, shareholding and management for concealed foreign ownership; Chalong police say 30 nominee cases are under investigation in their jurisdiction alone. The message for anyone holding assets via a Thai company: get the structure reviewed before it's tested.

The Phuket News · Jul 2026Read →
Market

Crackdown chills Phuket villa demand — small foreign investors most exposed

Agents report buyers delaying luxury villa purchases in Phuket and Koh Samui as the nominee-company loophole closes, with smaller foreign investors most affected. The legal condo route (49% foreign freehold quota) is unaffected — the risk sits in land held through Thai nominee companies.

Thai Examiner · Jun 2026Read →
Legal

Compliant routes unchanged: 49% condo freehold, registered lease, usufruct

The 49% per-project condo freehold quota holds, and registered 30-year leases plus usufruct remain the clean ways for foreigners to hold. The mooted 75% quota / 99-year lease reform is still only "approved for further study" — not enacted.

Global Law Experts · 2026Read →

Economy

Trade

Vietnam opens its first honorary consulate in Phuket, covering eight southern provinces

The consulate was inaugurated on 9 July at Nai Yang, with jurisdiction over Phuket, Phang Nga, Krabi, Trang, Satun, Ranong, Songkhla and Surat Thani; a Vietnam Connect Phuket 2026 business forum with around 60 companies followed the same day. Formal consular and trade infrastructure usually follows the money — a marker of how quickly Vietnam is becoming a real Phuket source market, days after the first direct HCMC flights landed.

VietnamPlus · Jul 2026Read →
Investment

Phuket's residential pipeline tops US$14bn — 45,066 units launched in 2021–25

New analysis puts five-year launch value at ฿469.72bn across 45,066 units, underlining how deep the capital base now is. Sustained investment at this scale supports liquidity and resale demand for well-located, well-run stock.

Travel Daily News Asia · 2026Read →
Infrastructure

Light rail, the Kathu–Patong expressway and Highway 402 upgrades advance

The MRTA is progressing a 58.6km, 24-station light-rail plan while the elevated Kathu–Patong link and Highway 402 smart-signal/underpass works move ahead toward 2026–2031 milestones. Corridor projects like these historically lift land values along their routes.

Travel & Tour World · 2026Read →