Thailand is a country that is located in the Southeastern part of Asia. It is particularly famous for its serene beaches, breathtaking ruins ancient temples that images of Buddha and royal palaces. Its capital city is Bangkok where there are ultramodern skylines of architecture rising opposite the silent communities and the iconic temples. (Guardian, 2009). Thailand is a major tourist hub in Asia. Having a contribution of up to 10% of the Country’s GDP, it plays a major role in the economy. Tourism has had its impacts in this beautiful nation. They have been both positive and negative impacts. The paper aims to discuss the impacts including tourist attraction sites, the visitation progress, issues analysis and the policy implications by the government.
Thailand has had its fair share of tourists throughout the twentieth and twenty-first century. However, a drastic increase in numbers has been traced to the beginning of the 21st century. The highest number of arrivals at over 26 million was witnessed in 2013 (Vanhaleweyk, 2017). The numbers have been fluctuating since then having increased and decreased up until the year 2017. Most of the reported declines in the numbers can be attributed to political unrests and terrorist attacks as seen in 2015 when the Erawan Shrine was bombed.
Chinese have been the greatest holders in the tourism count to Thailand accounting to more than 25% of the total tourists arriving in the country. Despite the inflow of tourists into the country, Authorities do not seem to be satisfied with the number, and they want more and more. They are working day and night to ensure that the number does not fluctuate and to ensure that the country remains the hub of tourism in the region.
The state of tourism in the country hit a record low in the year 2016 especially in October after the demise of the King of Thailand (Sullivan, 2016). This shows how much the nation puts into this industry under their good Leadership. The loss drove down the morale of the workforce, and this had a great effect on the industry. The situation however recovered on the onset of 2017 as the numbers were back to their high records.
Thailand has a tourist season in that there is an increase in the visitors that arrive. The number of these visitors during the first quarter of the year and the last quarter is more than the other quarters. This can be attributed to the pleasant climate that is usually in the country as compared to the less favorable conditions that are experienced in China, Japan, and Europe. The country has had some shortcomings that are factors the government could not control (Rittichainuat B & Chakraborty G, 2009). This is especially with the major floods that were witnessed at the end of 2011 and 2013. The beginning of 2014 also led to the decline due to political uncertainty. These factors cost the country around 1 and 2 Million extra potential tourists.
Thailand has some of the world’s greatest sites that tourism has to offer. As a matter of fact, in the year 2013, Thailand was the country visited the most in Southeast Asia according to the World Tourism Organization. The primary visited place in Thailand by most of the tourists is Bangkok. This is because Bangkok is very rich in the historical, natural and cultural sites in its vicinity.
Tourist sites can be majorly classified into three. The North, the Central and the Southern sites.
The North of Thailand is a hub for the daring and the brave hearted tourists. This is because it is the main destination for adventure travel and trekking. It has a high coverage of forests and mountains which include the Thanon Thong Chai Range, Khorat Plateau, and the Mekong River.
There is the central region. This is for the historical and mythical lovers. It is the area located in the Bangkok Metropolis. It is a zone of pure history one that has been fused together with ultramodern skylines making the area a major site to behold.
There is the southern region. It is covered by beaches and islands. Attraction sites include diving, sandy beaches, hundreds of tropical islands flora and bird culture (Sullivan, 2016).
Apart from natural and human-made sceneries, Thailand is a haven for Festivals, Thai cuisine that has become famous around the world for its keen use of fresh herbs and spices, Thai massage, elephant tourism, exotic malls and open markets.
Thailand is bordered by the Indian Ocean. It was one of the countries that were hit by the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquakes and tsunami. It was a great tragedy that resulted in thousands losing their lives and thousands sustaining injuries (UNEP, 2005). The worst affected areas were the Islands where diving sites are located. Infrastructure was severely damaged. The installing of the Tsunami Warning System by the government to foresee such calamities and offer immediate evacuation thus bringing salvation to many lives that would otherwise have been lost.
Not so long ago, tourists arriving in Thailand were greeted by sights of children playing in large green plantations of rice. They have started to slowly diminish as the local communities accept tourism as an income earner (Vanhaleweyk, 2017). Large tracts of land have been reclaimed from agriculture to facilitate the bulging tourism economy. Also, the fresh, natural environment has started to choke under the pollution that has been brought about by tourism effects. It is an issue that the government is trying to address to maintain a clean environment for its people (Green, 2005).
The dawn of international tourists in Thailand has had a huge effect on the social life of the Thai communities. Different western cultures have started to get adopted by the young upcoming generation slowly. This is being perceived as a threat to the culture of Thailand as it is slowly degrading and will soon wash away. It is, therefore, the mandate of the government in collaboration with societal leadership to embark on the preservation of culture for the sake of future generations.
This is evident in the entire nation. Tourism has resulted in huge changes in the country. Infrastructure has been put up from the grassroots to the urban areas. This has led to increasing in accessibility all across the country as roads, rail, and motor vehicles gain access to the rural areas. Improved communication and the rise of mobile money have also led to a rise in living standards of the people of Thailand.
As an issue that is affecting international communities, Thailand faces this issue ad it is a national concern (Wongkit and McKercher 2016. As a hub of the ASEAN community, it makes it a potential target for terrorism activities. This owes to the large numbers of visitors from all walks of life coming into the country. Addressing this issue is the upgrade of airport security and an increase in state security as well. Thailand has gone to the extent of having tourist police that aid in increasing security for the visitors. They can also be mandated to be on the look-out for any hideous activities. No country is immune to terrorism, and therefore great caution needs to be taken. (Rittichainuat B & Chakraborty G, 2009)
In recent years, there has been a recent spread of Aids in Thailand, and this has been an issue that has affected the tourism industry at large. It has brought a reputation to the country as having AIDS and thus discouraging the desirable tourists from coming into the country. The industry has affected the spread of Aids in Thailand. Being addressed as the “sex capital” of the world, (Santikarn, 2004)this has attracted visitors from all over the world who accelerate the rate of transmission of the disease by either bringing it into the country or leaving it from the country. The Government, therefore, has to work on a Campaign to Brand Thailand and to correct then negative image of sex tourism looming over the Country.
Tourism has brought about varying impacts in its wake all across Thailand. These impacts can be classified as positive and negative depending on how they have been received by the community and what they have done.
Large amounts of money are poured into the preservation of local heritage. This is by provision of better local facilities, developing infrastructure and this translates to a better living condition for the people through improved education, access to leisure facilities and more social events (Noree 2016). There is a lot of interaction between the people and the tourists, and it brings about a mixture of both settings. A cosmopolitan culture then results in the very locale of the community. Because employment is available at their locale, heritage is preserved in a more efficient manner.
Tourists are attracted to what they see in a place. Therefore improving the scenery of the nation is of great importance. It, therefore, mandates that the environments be beautified by upgrading the landscape and planting of more trees and flowers (Glaesser 2006). Having restoration of monuments, clean water, improved sanitation, and infrastructures come up has resulted in increased travel to the country and within the country as well.
As a result of increased tourism, Thailand has felt an impact to its economy. International trade increase, better policies in place, increased employment, better education, new and improved technology, foreign investment, new industries and a boost in communication are some of the positive impacts that have graced the economy (Henderson, 2007).
Land as resources is comprised of wildlife, wetlands, forests, fertile land, etc. The rising number of constructions of various leisure facilities has stretched out the natural resources and the stunning landscapes (Kontogeorgopoulos et al. 2015). This can result in degradation of land as a result of the changes it is experiencing. The increase in fuel consumption has led to further activities of illegal logging and deforestation. This has resulted in the forest cover of the country being destroyed as a result of tourism. This will ultimately result in the decrease of arable land in the community to plant rice. This will affect a lot of people since most of the rural communities are involved in agriculture as a source of employment.
In comparison, incomes from tourism are much better and come in more quickly as compared to what agriculture has to offer to the rural local communities. Tourism requires planning and attention to prevent the invasive foreign values that are brought upon the society by some tourists (Duffy & Moore 2010). The young generation is opting for the tourism employment, and some are moving to the cities to explore the opulent lifestyle available there. It has therefore left the tedious work of farming to the elderly who have been left in the rural areas. There has been a decrease in farming as witnessed in the southern part of Thailand. In Koh Samui for example, the cultivation of Coconuts which are a tourist attraction in that area has declined over the years. Social life in the villages has all of a sudden declines as a result of tourism (Ghimire 2013). Loss of culture and traditional practices such as ceremonies, lifestyles, traditional cuisines, the way of dressing, language corruption and loss of morals are just an example of how much erosion of these cultures has happened.
Water is one of the most important natural resources that Thailand has. Increased tourism has resulted in overuse of this resource. As more luxurious infrastructure comes up like lavish hotels and swimming pools, it increases the amount of water used per individual tourist (Guttentag 2009). The rate of water usage by tourist is twice or thrice compared to that used by the local communities. If this is not monitored, it will result in a decline of water supply that will lead to shortages across the country. Sanitation has also had a challenge in most of the towns in Thailand. This is because of pollution of water sources by arrogant tourists and also improper use of sanitation facilities resulting in blockages of drainage pipes. This increases resources used to undo this mess that would otherwise be used to preserve water.
Tourist results in the pollution of the environment. The amount of rubbish and junk accumulation all over the country is alarming. The air pollution that is being witnessed from the numerous traveling across the country is also worrying (Nara et al. 2014). Emission levels continue to rise as the tourist population continues to swell. This has affected the environment at large polluting even the water sources including the occurrence of acid rain and ultimately aiding in increased global warming.
Some of the policies that need to be implied in the Thailand tourism may include:
The quality of employment needs to be improved in Thailand for the sake of the community and the society at large. Making sure that there are sufficient and permanent jobs resulting from tourism should be emphasized. This is by ensuring that there are standard pays or minimal wages clearly stipulated. This will help in controlling the conditions of the services rendered and the availability of the jobs to all. It should be a fair process that is free from discrimination due to gender, color, age or physical conformation or other ways (UNEP, 2005).
To maintain and strengthen the quality of life in the local community, the social structures including access to resources, life support systems, and amenities need to be well taken care of (Ardahaey 2011). This is by avoiding any means of social or environmental degradation or exploitation. If by any chance there is degradation, misappropriation, and depletion of resources for the community, then this will affect the industry in a negative way as there will be no coexistence between the tourists and the community involved.
Making the visitors feel welcome, safe and satisfied is a necessity as this will dictate the probability of them coming back again. This should be a service that is available to all visitors without any favoring or discrimination of color, gender, age or physical impairment. This could be achieved by improvement of access to facilities and infrastructures, in that opportunities are created for them that are socially and economically challenged as well. It’s a simple gesture that goes a long way.
To encourage ownership of tourism and projects associated with it, there should be a local control policy where the community gets to be engaged in planning and decision making on how to manage and develop the future of tourism in their locality.
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