Overtourism and Sustainable Tourism in Thailand Challenges and Strategies for Managing Tourist Destinations
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.64882/ijrt.v14.i3.1975Keywords:
Overtourism, sustainable tourism, Thailand, destination management, tourism sustainability, Bangkok, Phuket, Chiang Mai, tourism development, visitor management, community participation, environmental conservationAbstract
Over tourism has emerged as an issue of sustainable tourism development especially in the places with high growth of the number of tourists and high concentration of a tourism activity. This study aims to investigate the link between over tourism with sustainable tourism development in Thailand and the implications for sustainable tourism development in terms of environmental, economic and socio-cultural aspects related to over tourism. The research is conducted in a qualitative secondary approach, using analysis of literature, papers or articles that have been published since 2015 to Chiang Mai 2025 with specific target destinations: Bangkok, Phuket and Chiang Mai. The results show that too many visitors can lead to a heightened pressure on natural resources, infrastructure, local communities and cultural assets, but at the same time also generate jobs, business possibilities and tourism income. The study also pinpoints the significance of approaches that could be better leveraged in enhancing destination sustainability, such as visitor-flow management, community participation, tourism diversification, environmental regulation and the use of digital technologies. The study illustrates that an overtourism management must be apprehended in a multi-dimensional manner including: resident happiness, resident welfare, environmental protection, tourist growth and visitors’ satisfaction. The study stresses the need for planning to be destination-based and the need for cooperation among stakeholders to create more resilient and sustainable tourism in Thailand.
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