THAI TOURISTS’ BEHAVIORS AND OPINIONS TOWARDS CULTURAL TOURISM IN CHACHOENGSAO PROVINCE

Abstract

             The research aimed to study Thai tourists’ behaviors and opinions towards cultural tourism in Chachoengsao Province. The Accidental Sampling method is applied for the research. The research samples were 400 Thai tourists who visited Chachoengsao for cultural tourism activities. The research tool was a questionnaire, which had the reliability is .80. Data were analyzed using frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation.

            The results showed that there were three groups of tourists visiting Chachoengsao province who paid respect to the Buddha. 200 tourists (50.00%) visited Wat Samanrattaram, 150 tourists (37.50%) visited Wat Sothornwararamworraviharn, and 50 tourists (12.50%) visited Way Huasuan (Lamomprachasan). There were 225 participants (63.80%) from outside the province and 145 participants (36.30%) within the province. 214 participants (53.50%) were traveling with the family, 148 participants (37.00%) were with friends and 32 participants (8.00%) were couples. Advertisement, family, and friends were the channels to perceive tourism information in Chachoengsao province, respectively 45.00%, 40.50%, and 28.50%. The reasons why they visited the temples in Chachoengsao province were its sacredness (75.30%), beauty (17.00%), and famous (7.80%), respectively. 376 samples (94.00%) were willing to visit again, while 24 samples (6.00%) were uncertain. 388 samples (97.00%) revisited the province, though 12 samples (3.00%) would not probably return. Regrading Thai tourists’ opinions toward cultural tourism in Chachoengsao province, it was found that faith in the temples was ( = 4.65) and the temple was the center of the goodness ( = 4.56). It is followed by the temples that have been cleaned from drugs ( = 4.47), the temples are used for mental discipline ( = 4.44), and there is enough clear useful information at tourist sites ( = 4.22).