Guidelines for Development Riverfront Market as River Basin lifely Cultural Tourist Attractions, Case Study: Sriprachan Market, Thachang Market and Samchuk Market, Suphan Buri Province

Abstract

The objectives of this research aim to survey and evaluate tourism potentiality of Sriprachan Market, Thachang Market and Samchuk Market, Suphan Buri Province to propose guidelines for developing riverfront markets as river basin cultural lifely tourist attractions. The data has been compiled from field study, interview with semi-structured interview and participant observation. The 30 key informants comprise of local scholars, tourism community leaders, river basin community leaders and communities and stakeholders and jointly survey and evaluate river basin cultural tourism potentiality in Suphan Buri province. The content analysis and interpretation are applied for data analysis and then arranged and proposed as facts under theory framework. The results showed that Sriprachan Market, Thachang Market and Samchuk Market possess tourism potentiality in four aspects as follows: 1) services 2) attractions 3) management; and 4) tourist attractions capacity. This includes natural and manmade tourism resources, tourism activities promoting tourists to learn living and wisdom of river basin communities that reflecting identities of riverfront community markets. Thus, guidelines for Sriprachan Market, Thachang Market and Samchuk Market development as river basin cultural tourism are to enhance potentiality and management pattern for tourism management, build body of knowledge for communities, tour and service through place stories and cultural tourism experiences for tourists focusing on utmost efficiency of local resources utilization. Besides, preserve and slow down physical change and connect river basin living to new tourism as sustainable river basin cultural tourism.