Strategical Sustainable Tourism Development : Bang Bai Mai District, Surat Thani

Abstract

The research aims to study the internal and external environment of Tourism Potential and planning guidelines in the Sustainable Tourism Development Strategy of Bang Bai Mai District, Surat Thani. The research instruments used in data collection include in-depth interview and questionnaires. The data was collected through in-depth interview from 6 persons who are the administrative organization and community leaders of Bang Bai Mai district. The questionnaires were handed to 384 tourists. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics including average value and standard deviation.

The research findings show the internal environment of Bang Bai Mai that is near the city, people have a traditional way of life and harmony but people lack tourism knowledge and accommodation is not enough. For external environment, tourism is popular for Thai and Foreign tourists and supported by local organizations, but there are limits concerning season and parking. The opinion expressed by tourists is that there is high potential for tourism of Bang Bai Mai. When looking into each aspect of the potential for tourism, the researcher found that the highest scored aspects are the attractions, then activities, amenity accessibility and accommodation respectively. However they should focus on preservation of the environment and local culture for there to be Sustainable Tourism. It should improve transportation and accommodation in tourist destinations and training to educate about tourism and communication to people in the area.