Analysis of the International Tourism System in Pattaya

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the international tourism system in Pattaya, Thailand. It begins with a historical overview of the city's transformation into a major tourist destination, highlighting the development of infrastructure and attractions. The report then delves into the visitation of international tourists, discussing the key factors that attract them, such as the beautiful beaches and marine activities. It examines the city's ranking in global destination indices and the growth of marine tourism. Furthermore, the report explores the positive and negative impacts of tourism on the host community, including economic development, environmental concerns, and pollution. It concludes by discussing key destination development issues, such as sustainable tourism practices and infrastructural challenges, emphasizing the need for sustainable measures to maintain tourist footfall and environmental balance. The report draws on various studies and reports to support its findings and recommendations.

Running head: INTERNATIONAL TOURISM SYSTEM – PATTAYA
INTERNATIONAL TOURISM SYSTEM – PATTAYA
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Introduction
Pattaya is one of the most beautiful cities of the world. Located within the territorial
boundaries of Thailand, the city is known for the beautiful beaches that have been present within
the city. The city attracts a large number of tourists all-round the year due to the beautiful
beaches and the familiar climatic conditions (Rice and Khanin 2019). The following paper sheds
light on the tourism industry within Pattaya. The paper opens with a historical development of
the tourism industry within Pattaya and thereafter analyses the visitation of the international
tourism in the city. The paper proceeds to discuss the factors that attract the tourists to the city
and the impacts of the tourism activities on the host community of Pattaya. The report nears a
conclusion with the discussion on the development issues and the tourism policy issues as are
faced by the residents of Pattaya.
Overview of the historical development of tourism in Pattaya
The city of Pattaya is one of the major tourist destinations that have evolved in the recent
years. The city was known to have been one of the humblest villages located within the political
boundaries of Thailand. The city was known to have been the home of the fishermen who have
been living in the area since the 1960s (Liu 2017). The area has now been observed to have
transformed itself into one of the most attractive and busy cities of the world. The present
conditions of the country have been known to have been dealing in the matters that are related to
the increase and the improvement of the infrastructure as is present within the concerned city.
The proper infrastructure as is required to be maintained within the city is observed to have been
highly developed within the last few years. The last few years have observed to demonstrate a
huge improvement in terms of the beach resorts that are present within the country. The city is
observed to have been developed a huge number of resorts and other high-rises which have been

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built within the city (Ngwira and Kankhuni 2018). The city is known to have been dealing in the
conditions wherein there has been observed a growth in the residential accommodations that are
known to have been effective in providing the needed accommodations to the tourists. The
inclusion of the modernization and the accommodational developments within the city have led
to the increase in the number of the tourists within the city. This has further helped in the proper
understanding of the issues as have been highlighted in terms of the attraction of the concerned
international tourists to the city (Sitorus 2017). The present conditions within the Thai city of
Pattaya demonstrates an improvement in terms of the factors that have been known to be
increasing the overall footfall of the tourists within the city.
Analysis of international tourism visitation to Pattaya
The city of Pattaya have been a very popular international location for tourism all over
the world. Tourists from all over the world have been visiting the country of Thailand. The major
attraction factor that have been alluring the tourists to the concerned city refers to the extensive
beaches that are present within the city. The major attractions to the city refer to the activities
that are maintained by the various tourism authorities of the city. Nakapthom et al. (2019)
maintains that the Thai city is known to have been attracting a greater number of international
tourists who demonstrate a higher amount of attraction towards the activities that are related to
the sea like snorkeling, diving and other such activities. According to the reports regarding the
international tourist destinations, the city of Pattaya has ranked 15th in the list of the “Global
Destination Cities Index 2019” (Millington 2019). The report further suggested that the city had
hosted over 9.44 million international tourists in the year 2019 (Newsroom.mastercard.com
2020). However, the marine tourism within the area of Pattaya has demonstrated a steady
growth. The city has been demonstrated to have welcoming over 6000 international tourists from

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all over the world (Newsroom.mastercard.com 2020). The tourism management authorities that
are present within the city have further stated that they have been spending a greater amount of
their finances in order to flourish the tourism industry within the city as well as that of Thailand
at large.
Attracting tourists to Pattaya
The city of Pattaya is known to have been attracting a greater number of tourists from all
over the world. The major attraction to the city involves the activities that are majorly based on
the marine surroundings of the city. The tourists majorly visit the area in order to enjoy the
various maritime activities that include the various adventurous maritime activities and other
such activities as well. Dedusenko (2017) state that the proper accessibility to the various tourist
locations within the city helps in the maintenance of the attraction of the concerned tourists to the
city. The attraction/needs theory as suggested by McKercher highlights the fact that the tourists
who have been visiting a certain area are generally attracted to the substitutable activities that are
presented within the area. Junaid and Som (2019) highlight that the areas with a low variety or a
single unit of attraction is capable of attracting a lower number of tourist footfall as compared to
the other areas that boast of having a greater number of tourist attractions. The motivational
theory of anomie and ego enhancement however states that the tourists are generally interested
in travelling to various places all over the world in order to gain a relaxation from their mundane
daily lives. Thus, the people involved within the tourism industry are advised to undertake
various motivational activities which in turn would help in attracting the concerned tourists to the
given area. Qureshi et al. (2017) argue that the involvement of the various local people in order
to demonstrate a proper culture within the country would help in the attraction of the concerned
tourists to the tourist destination of Pattaya. The increase in the satisfaction levels that have been

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derived by the tourists as well as the tourism operators within the city would help the concerned
area to improve the amount of revenues that are earned through the tourism industry.
Impacts of tourism on host community at Pattaya
The tourism within the Thai city of Pattaya is known to have various positive as well as
negative impacts. The following section highlights some of the positive and the negative impacts
of the tourism industry on the host community of Pattaya.
The positive impacts of the tourism industry within the city of Pattaya refers to the
development in the financial factors as have been highlighted within the given territorial areas.
The significant increase in the number of the tourists who have been visiting the country has
been helpful in the economic development within the country. Nitivattananon and Srinonil
(2019) state that the increase in the tourist inflow within the city highlights the increase in the
activities that have been related to the direct contribution of the tourists towards the areas that
have been highlighted for the conservation. The increase in the contribution of the tourists
towards the conservation of the environmental factors as have been present within the country
have been helpful in the overall development of the city as well as the country at large. Santad
and Ratchadapunnathikul (2018) opine that this activity has further contributed to the
improvement of the infrastructure present within the country.
The activities related to the tourism within the city of Pattaya is known to have a plethora
of negative impacts as well. The major negative impacts of the tourism industry refer to the
huge stress that it lays on the use of the local resources as well as the flora and the fauna of
the concerned area. The increase of the tourist activities within the area is known to have been
leading to the increase in the pollution within the area. The various recreational activities that

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are undertaken by the tourists often lead to the conditions wherein there is an increase in terms of
the noise and the air pollution within the area. The increase in the tourism within the regional
boundaries of Pattaya has been known to lead to an increase in the noise pollution within the
area. Agarwal, Kariyapol and Pienchob (2019) opine that the area has earned the tag of being an
unhealthy place for the sensitive people. This is known to have been a result of the extreme hike
in the number of the transport vehicles as well as the instruments for the various activities that
are undertaken by the people who have been visiting the city of Pattaya.
Key destination development issues currently occurring at Pattaya
The city of Pattaya has been facing a plethora of developmental issues in the recent times.
The major issues that are being faced by the residents of Pattaya refer to the issues in terms of
the sustainable development within the area and the infrastructural development that is required
for the proper accommodation of the tourists within the country as well.
The country has been facing a lack in the proper infrastructure which is required for the
development of the welcome that is provided to the tourists. The lack in the proper infrastructure
has been leading to the increase in the pollution within the city. The city is known to have been
marked unhealthy by a certain number of people who suffer a lot due to the high levels of
pollution present within the city. Thawillarp et al. (2016) opine that the concerned authorities
should undertake major steps in order to deal in the lowering of the pollution within the country.
This in turn would help the country to attract a greater number of tourists from both the local and
the international markets. The attraction of a greater number of tourists from all over the world is
known to have been helpful in the improvement of the economic conditions that are faced by the
concerned nation as well as the tourists visiting the area. The creation of the better infrastructure

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would further help the concerned tourist destination to gain a better economic position in the
global markets.
The other issue that has been observed in the tourism industry of Pattaya refers to the
issue of the sustainable tourism that is present within the area. The sustainable tourism implies
the inclusion of the sustainability factors within the operations that have been highlighted within
the tourism industry that has been operational within the political boundaries of the city of
Pattaya. The city has been known to have been facing issues due to the lack of the sustainable
practices that should be undertaken by the concerned authorities in order to deal in the issues that
are related to the overall betterment of the environment within the area. The various adventurous
activities that are undertaken by the tourists are reported to have led to the lack in the
sustainability measures that are essential to the maintenance of a regular and proper growth
within the country. Kolenberg and Batra (2019) argue that the inclusion of the sustainability
measures within the tourism industry of Pattaya has further led to the conditions wherein the city
has been facing a lot of issues and challenges in terms of the maintenance of the pollution levels
within the area. Dedusenko (2017) state that the lack of the proper environmental sustainability
might further affect the flora and the fauna within the country and thus lead to the lack in the
tourist footfall within the area. Thus, in order to maintain the proper amount of tourist footfall
within the beautiful and serene city of Pattaya, the concerned authorities are advised to deal in
the implementation of sustainable tourism.
Tourism policy issue for Pattaya
The major tourism issue that is faced within the political boundaries of Pattaya refer to
the issue of overcrowding within the given city. The city of Pattaya is observed to have been
attracting a huge tourist footfall within the country. This in turn have been resulting in a neglect

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towards the environmental factors as are presented within the area. The high amount of the
footfall of the tourists as have been observed within the territorial boundaries of Pattaya has been
the major reason behind the increase in the overall pollution within the country. Kolenberg and
Batra (2019) argue that the pollution within the city of Pattaya has increased to such levels that
the city has been declared unsafe for the tourists who generally suffer due to the high intensity of
the pollutant particles within the atmosphere. There has also been observed an increase in the
noise pollution within the city due to the operations of the various instruments that are required
for the various adventurous activities that are undertaken by the various tourists who have been
visiting the area. This in turn has led to various negative effects on the flora and the fauna of the
area. Santad and Ratchadapunnathikul (2018) opine that the increase in the tourism activities as
well as the overcrowding of the area by the tourists have led to the decrease in the maintenance
of the sustainability within the area. This in turn has been harmful for the maintenance of the
environmental factors within the popular tourist destination of Pattaya.
In order to demonstrate a proper sustainable development within the area as well as the
maintenance of the natural beauty of the place, the concerned governmental bodies are advised to
impose restrictions on the number of tourists who have been visiting the area. Agarwal,
Kariyapol and Pienchob (2019) opine that this would lead to the conditions wherein the city
might be capable of maintaining the proper conditions that would enhance and boost the tourism
industry. The restriction of the number of people who have been visiting the area is helpful in the
matters that are related to the maintenance of the pollution levels within the area. The lower
number of tourists would ensure the fact that the instruments and the vessels that are used for the
recreational activities as well as for the adventurous sports would not be overused which in turn
would lead to the decrease in the levels of pollution within the area. Nitivattananon and Srinonil

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(2019) state that the lower number of visitors at a certain given point of time within the city
would also allow the residents of the area to maintain their daily lifestyle and activities. This in
turn would help in the developmental activities within the city. Junaid and Som (2019) highlight
that the restriction on the number of visitors within the city would further assist in the
development of the sustainable practices that need to be maintained within the city of Pattaya in
order to enhance the tourism industry of the area. The increase in the sustainable practices all
over the city would help in the maintenance of the major tourist attractions present within the
country as well.
Conclusion
In conclusion it might be stated that the city of Pattaya, though one of the most popular
tourist destinations of the world, lacks in the maintenance of the sustainable practices required
for the enhancement of the tourism activities within the country. The inclusion of the sustainable
practices within the tourism activities of Pattaya would help in the matters that are required for
the improvement of the economic conditions of the country as well as improve the revenue that
is earned by the country from the activities of the tourism industry present within the country.

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