Critical Case Study on Thailand Tourism

This report presents a critical case study on Thailand tourism, covering its attractions, issues, and impacts on the economy, environment, and socio-cultural aspects. It discusses the positive and negative impacts of tourism activity and identifies policies for sustainable outcomes. The report also includes statistics on tourist visitation, GDP contribution, and employment in the tourism sector.

Running Head: International Tourism
International Tourism
Critical case study on Thailand Tourism

1
Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
Tourist Visitation in Thailand..........................................................................................................2
Attractions in Thailand....................................................................................................................3
Issues related to tourism and destination development in Thailand................................................4
Negative and positive impact of tourism activity............................................................................5
Economic impact..........................................................................................................................5
Positive impact of tourism activity...........................................................................................6
Negative impact of tourism activity.........................................................................................6
Environmental impact..................................................................................................................6
Positive impact of tourism activity...........................................................................................6
Negative impact of tourism activity.........................................................................................7
Socio-cultural impact...................................................................................................................7
Positive impact of tourism activity...........................................................................................7
Negative impact of tourism activity.........................................................................................7
Policy implications to attain sustainable tourism outcomes............................................................8
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................8
References........................................................................................................................................9

2
Introduction
According to WTO (World Tourism Organization) defines that tourism as “travelling and staying
at particular place for not more than one year for the purpose of business, leisure or for other
purposes”. Tourism is of two type i.e. domestic and international tourism. When people visits in
the same nation for above mentioned reasons for not more than one year is known as domestic
tourism whereas when people visit out of their nation for the same reason mentioned above is
known as international tourism. In this report, international tourism and its related aspects will be
discussed with regards to the Kingdom of Thailand. It is one of the most visited countries by
tourists for numerous reasons. Tourism is a major sector for the economy of Thailand and in
2016, contribution of tourism sector was approximately 18% to the GDP. While, it has been
evaluated that tourism sector contributes approximately 10% to the world’s GDP.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) holds all the power in relation with controlling and
monitoring the activities in relevance with the tourism industry. TAT promotes Thailand across
the globe as “Amazing Thailand”. Under this report, various aspects in relation with the
international tourism will be discussed including the statistics regarding average number of
visitors in the country in a year along with the major attractions of the country which attracts
people to visit Thailand. In relevance with this, satisfaction and motivation theories will be
discussed in relation to the tourism system which attracts visitors to visit Thailand. Further,
issues and challenges related to the tourism and the destination development at Thailand along
with the negative and positive impacts of tourism activity over Thailand. The last phase of the
report will conclude identification of 4 policies for Thailand through which outcomes in relation
with sustainable tourism could be attained.

3
Tourist Visitation in Thailand
GDP: Total Contribution  USD 85.2 Billion
 20.6% of the GDP in 2016
 Forecasted to increase by 9.4% in
2017.
 Expectations are for 2027 are 31.7%
of GDP
Employment: Direct Contribution  2,313500 Jobs creation
(Approximately 6.1% of total
employment in 2016)
 6.3% in 2017
 Expectations are 10.4% in 2027
Employment: Total Contribution  57,39,000 Jobs created in 2016
(15.1% of total employment)
 6.9% increase in 2017 and reached to
61,37,500
 Expectations are 24.9% of the total
employment by 2027 (approximately
9,599,000 jobs)
Visitor Exports  53.7 Billion, 19.2% of total exports in
2016 (Backer & Hing, 2017).
 Forecasted to grow at 10.3% in 2017
 Expected to 119.5 Billion By 2027
(29.7% of total)
Investment  7.1% of total investment (7 Billion
USD)
 Forecasted increase by 10.3% in 2017
 Expected rise by 5.5% year on year
growth until 2027

4
Attractions in Thailand
Thailand is one of the most visited countries across the globe and as per the research it has been
found that in 2016, approximately 32.5 million foreign tourists visited Thailand. Major reason
behind this is the attractions of the country such as crustal blue beaches, wide range qualitative
food, and best luxurious hotels. Thailand is all types of tourists which include from budget
tourists to the high spending tourists because in this country, everyone finds its interest as per
their budget. Thus, Thailand has attained an effective place in the most visited places across the
globe (Çakmak, Lie & Selwyn, 2018).
Apart from the attractions, Thailand’s culture and history is another major factor for tourist
attraction. Following are some attractive places in Thailand which motivates tourists to visit
Thailand:
 Erawan Falls
 Ao Nang
 Floating markets near Bangkok
 Hua Hin Beach
 Prasat Hin Phimai
 Khao Yhi National Park
 Mu Ko Ang Thong
 Ko Phi Phi
 Phang Nga Bay (Fang, Yin & Wu, 2018).
Apart from these places, there are numerous other places which are included in major attractions
for Thailand tourism. TAT has collaborated with Anushka Dandekar (Indian Actress) as the
brand ambassador to promote Thailand tourism across the globe. Main motivation for tourists to
visit particular place is attraction, adventurous things and accommodation, infrastructure and
support from local community are some of the effective factors in relation with promoting
Thailand Tourism. Apart from this, tourists visit a particular place with high expectations and if
these expectations get fulfilled, number of repeat visitors increases. Iso-Ahola’s theory of
motivation states that people gets motivated towards a particular destination due to personal
seeking, interpersonal escape, personal escape, and interpersonal seeking. With regards to the
motivation of tourists in relation with visiting a destination, they seek for satisfaction in

5
relevance to their purpose of visit in various aspects. These aspects relates to the food,
accommodation and other attractions of the place. Thailand is famous for all types of tourism i.e.
for leisure and for business as it has several relevant aspects in relation to these types of tourism.
Due to these reasons, Thailand attracts number international tourists every year and thus, it
stands on the 4th place in terms of adventure value and on the 7th place in terms of cultural
heritage across the globe (Horner & Swarbrooke, 2016).
Issues related to tourism and destination development in Thailand
Thailand is one of the largest tourist destinations and it has become one of the favourite choices
in terms of holiday destination for almost all age groups. Millions of foreign tourists visit
Thailand every year and the major reason behind is the number of attractions and numerous of
activities for all types of tourists. Apart from this, Thailand welcomes every type of tourist i.e.
economical as well as for premium tourists as they have appropriate activity as per their
requirements (Inkson & Minnaert, 2018). Following issues are faced by Thai tourism industry
along with the challenges in destination development:
 High global warming is leading to reduce coastal line and it is one of the major factors
which is affecting Thai economy (Liu, Li & Parkpian, 2018).
 Illegal exports of fish are affecting tourism industry along with Thai economy and it is
also affecting sea bodies.
 Over development of Ko Phi Phi is starving the coral reefs of sunlight and smothering
the surface in pollutants.
 Increase traffic is affecting air quality due to high number of visitors and this is also
affecting to rapid urbanisations (McDowall & Lin, 2018).
 Thailand is known as the god’s creation destination and the rapid construction of hotels
and resorts are damaging the natural ecosystem of the country.
 Due to large number of visitors every year in Thailand, usage of natural resources has
been increased and this is hampering natural beauty along with the lives of local public.
 Waste management is another crucial factor which is affecting destination development.
Apart from these issues, major challenges faced by the Thai tourism industry are inherent
globalisation and development processes. Tourism sector is segregated into various parts and it

6
includes hospitality i.e. hotels, resorts and travel services. However, tourism industry also gets
affected due to various issues and challenges. Some of those issues are climate change, health
and wellness, resource depletion, etc. Major issues faced by tourism industry of Thailand are due
to high number of visitors although, it is also benefiting the economy but the reality is that it is
also affecting natural ecosystem and culture heritage of the country. Due to these factors, TAT is
also facing various challenges in relevance with development of tourism industry (McLeod &
Croes, 2018).
 Carbon and other emission: Tourism sector alone is not the only factor for emission
of green house and other harmful gases, development of international travelling
industry is the major contributor for the emission of these harmful gases and this is a
sub category of tourism industry. This is increasing air traffic and ultimately
contributing carbon in the air (Moore & Donaldson, 2016).
 Energy consumption and wastage of water: Due to number of sectors involved in the
tourism industry, consumption level of energy is bit high especially in the hotel
industry. In relevance with providing appropriate and luxurious services to its guests,
consumption of energy in hotel industry is high. Energy consumed per room and the
start rating of hotels is correlated with each other. Extra amenities provided luxurious
hotels consume extra energy in relevance with satisfying guest’s needs. Apart from the
energy, there is high consumption of water and along with the consumption, there is
high wastage of water resources have been analysed. This has become the major cause
for high global warming (Mostafanezhad & Promburom, 2018).
 Contribution to local economy and job creation: Developed countries promote its
tourism industry aggressively as it is the great source of income for their economies.
Along with contributing towards economy, it is also a major source of job creation.
 Disposition of waste: Waste management is another big factor which is affecting
tourism industry and destination development in Thailand because due to high number
of visitors, natural resources including water, energy, etc. are consumed to the
maximum level which is affecting natural ecosystem and local lives of people
(Mowforth & Munt, 2015).
 Due to high number of visitors and one of the most visited countries across the globe,
TAT is not able to focus over restoration over the cultural heritage and historical

7
monuments. It is necessary to restore the major attractions so that sustainable tourism
related objectives could be attained. But TAT is not able to perform its actions to
restore its monuments which are affecting the destination development (Muangasame &
McKercher, 2015).
 Restoration will take certain period of time and till then whole country needs to face
certain challenges such as increased traffic on roads which ultimately affects the lives of
local public.
Negative and positive impact of tourism activity
Every activity has both positive as well as negative impacts and as tourism is based on season
and the impact of tourism apparently occur after time. There are three major categories of impact
and it is common for all industries, following are the positive and negative impact of tourism
activity on Thailand:
Economic impact
Thailand is one of the hottest tourist destinations in the globe and in the last year Thailand saw
more than 39 million foreign tourists for business and leisure purposes. Thus, it could be said it
is one of the largest tourist destinations across the globe. Every visitor has its own choice
regarding visiting particular place. Ancient architecture, varieties of cuisines, warm hospitality,
and cultural heritage are major reasons for Thailand’s popularity across the globe. In terms of
economy, Thailand tourism industry contributes almost 18% to the GDP. Apart from this, it
generates various job opportunities which ultimately enhances purchasing power of local public
and enhances the standard of their living (Pongajarn, 2017).
Positive impact of tourism activity
 Contribution towards GDP
 Enhances standard of living of local public
 Increases job opportunities
 Motivates to enhance infrastructure
 Approximately USD 85.2 billion towards overall GDP
 Increases foreign investments
 Visitor exports (Quinn, 2018).

8
These factors states that numerous positive impacts are linked with tourism activities over
Thailand economic conditions. Growth in GDP, rise in infrastructure, creation of various job
opportunities, increase in exports and investment from foreign companies are major attractions
for the Thailand’s economy in relevance with the tourism industry.
Negative impact of tourism activity
 Huge spending over private costs
 Increase common economic cost of the economy
 Quality of life of local public gets affected
 Property and other environmental aspects gets affected
 Huge investment in promotion of tourism activities
 Environment issues increases (Sharpley & Telfer, 2015).
Environmental impact
Thailand is one of the favourite destinations for all age groups as it has numerous activities for
all segments of the people. Country hosted millions of tourists in last year. Thus, it could be said
that high number of tourists will lead to critical ramifications which could lead to affect natural
ecosystem along with the cultural heritage of the country (Timothy, 2017).
Positive impact of tourism activity
 Enhanced awareness regarding environment
 Various policies and procedures have been developed in order to reduce issues and
challenges related to environment. Penalties have been imposed by the Thailand
government on defaulters of the policies.
 Measures adopted by the Tourist Authority of Thailand to preserve natural habitat and
heritage of the country (Tverijonaite, 2017).
 Policies formulated to restore the biological diversity and wildlife of the country.
Negative impact of tourism activity
 Impact over costal line due to increased global warming is the major negative impact of
tourism activities.
 Illegal exports of fish and drugs dealing are hampering society as well as natural habitat
of the country.

9
 Increase in air traffic
 Improper waste management is the factor for degradation of environment
 Environmental system is affecting due to high number of visitor
 For making luxurious hotels and resorts, natural beauty of the god’s creation destination
is being destroyed (Wattanacharoensil & Schuckert, 2016).
However, government bodies along with the Tourism Authority of Thailand are taking
appropriate measures to ensure the natural ecosystem. In relevance with this, authorities have
imposed penalties on defaulters of the policies. Along with this, government is also taking
appropriate measures to spread awareness amongst the public in relation with environment
sustainability amongst the local as well as foreign tourists so that they could take care for the
environment.
Socio-cultural impact
Tourism industry has contributed towards various sectors of the Thailand. In relation to the
growth of economy, job creation, increased revenues for the local businesses, increase in quality
of life along with raising the standard of living for local people, etc. have been contributed by the
tourism industry in Thailand. These factors have a positive as well as negative impact over the
society which is as follows:
Positive impact of tourism activity
 Due to major attractions, Thailand is being popular amongst the world’s visitors and to
serve them in more appropriate manner, government bodies along with Tourism
Authority of Thailand is focusing over remote areas’ development. With the help of local
communities, TAT is developing these areas by building attractive infrastructure so that
more benefits could be attained from the tourism industry along with making attractive
accommodation facilities by building hotels and resorts in remote areas (Zaidan &
Kovacs, 2017).
 With the increased tourism activities, scope and opportunities for local public have been
increased in various aspects. Apart from this, local public is also learning various
measures to improve tourist’s satisfaction in order to gain positive outcomes. Local
public of Thailand is moving towards development as they are sharing knowledge with

10
different people and it is widening their horizon which helps them in personal
development.
 With the help of governmental programs, local public along with tourists are becoming
aware regarding negative impact of tourism activities over society as well as
environment, this is making them to act as proactive in relation with preserving
ecosystem. Apart from this, various creative measures have been created by local public
to preserve infrastructure for attracting more tourists (Kovacs, 2018).
Negative impact of tourism activity
 High tourist traffic is affecting culture and lives of local public
 With the large number of visitors, foreign companies are attracted towards Thailand and
this leading to exploiting interest of local businesses.
 Growth in tourism industry is vulnerable to terrorist attacks which could damage the
natural habitat and culture of the country (Bennett & Dearden, 2014).
Policy implications to attain sustainable tourism outcomes
 Government bodies and TAT had imposed policies in relation with developing public
relations and marketing the tourism attractions along with marketing roles of local
administration so that Thailand could be showcased as the globally recognised
destination across the globe.
 In relation with providing quality services to the visitors, government promotes inter-
agency cooperation. This has also increased quality of the personnel in relevance with
meeting with the growing demands of the visitors.
 Government has also adopted promotional and marketing strategies to promote the
tourism of Thailand in order to boost up the revenues from tourism industry.
 Enhancing standards for safety and security of tourists to make them feel safe in
Thailand. Apart from this, policies have also been made to promote sustainability of the
environment.

11
 Along with ensuring the interest of tourists, government has also made policies in relation
with the local public and local business so that their interest could not be exploited
(Mason, 2015).
Conclusion
From the aforesaid information, it can be concluded that the tourism sector plays significant role
in economic development of particular place. Along with the economic development, impact of
tourism is on various other sectors of the country. In this critical case study of tourism impact on
Thailand, various significant factors have been discussed. Along with the issues and challenges
of the tourism impact have been discussed in relevance with the tourism industry of Thailand has
been discussed. Various negative and positive impacts have also been considered in this report
along with the policy implications by government to enhance the tourism sector of the Thailand.

12
References
Backer, E. and Hing, N., 2017. Whole tourism systems: an academic portrait of Neil
Leiper. Anatolia, 28(2), pp.320-325.
Bennett, N.J. and Dearden, P., 2014. Why local people do not support conservation: Community
perceptions of marine protected area livelihood impacts, governance and management in
Thailand. Marine Policy, 44, pp.107-116.
Çakmak, E., Lie, R. and Selwyn, T., 2018. Informal tourism entrepreneurs’ capital usage and
conversion. Current Issues in Tourism, pp.1-16.
Fang, Y., Yin, J. and Wu, B., 2018. Climate change and tourism: A scientometric analysis using
CiteSpace. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 26(1), pp.108-126.
Horner, S., & Swarbrooke, J. (2016). Consumer behaviour in tourism. Routledge.
Inkson, C. and Minnaert, L., 2018. Tourism management: An introduction. Sage.
Liu, Y., Li, Y. and Parkpian, P., 2018. Inbound tourism in Thailand: Market form and scale
differentiation in ASEAN source countries. Tourism Management, 64, pp.22-36.
Mason, P., 2015. Tourism impacts, planning and management. Routledge.
McDowall, S. and Lin, L.C., 2018. A Revisit of Domestic Tourist Satisfaction and Destination
Loyalty: A Case Study of Bangkok, Thailand. Consortium Journal of Hospitality &
Tourism, 20(1).
McLeod, M. and Croes, R.R. eds., 2018. Tourism Management in Warm-water Island
Destinations. CABI.
Moore, J.D. and Donaldson, J.A., 2016. Human-scale economics: Economic growth and poverty
reduction in Northeastern Thailand. World Development, 85, pp.1-15.

13
Mostafanezhad, M. and Promburom, T., 2018. ‘Lost in Thailand’: the popular geopolitics of
film-induced tourism in northern Thailand. Social & Cultural Geography, 19(1), pp.81-101.
Mowforth, M. and Munt, I., 2015. Tourism and sustainability: Development, globalisation and
new tourism in the third world. Routledge.
Muangasame, K. and McKercher, B., 2015. The challenge of implementing sustainable tourism
policy: a 360-degree assessment of Thailand's “7 Greens sustainable tourism policy”. Journal of
Sustainable Tourism, 23(4), pp.497-516.
Pongajarn, C., 2017. Tourism destination development in Thailand (Doctoral dissertation,
Wageningen University).
Quinn, M.S., 2018. Driving Forces and Barriers for a Sustainable Energy Mix in Fragile
Environments: North–South Perspectives. In Sustainable Energy Mix in Fragile
Environments (pp. 21-32). Springer, Cham.
Sharpley, R. and Telfer, D.J., 2015. Tourism and development in the developing world.
Routledge.
Timothy, 2017. Managing heritage and cultural tourism resources: Critical essays, Volume one.
Routledge.
Tverijonaite, E., 2017. Effects of accessibility on visitor composition and impacts in protected
areas (Doctoral dissertation).
Wattanacharoensil, W. and Schuckert, M., 2016. Reviewing Thailand's master plans and
policies: implications for creative tourism?. Current Issues in Tourism, 19(10), pp.1045-1070.
Zaidan, E. and Kovacs, J.F., 2017. Resident attitudes towards tourists and tourism growth: A
case study from the Middle East, Dubai in United Arab Emirates. European Journal of
Sustainable Development, 6(1), pp.291-307.
Zhang, J., 2018. How Could We Be Non-Western? Some Ontological and Epistemological
Ponderings on Chinese Tourism Research. Asian Qualitative Research in Tourism: Ontologies,
Epistemologies, Methodologies, and Methods, pp.117-136.