Chapter 1 Introduction

1.1 Background and Significance of the Study

There have been four stages of development since the birth of tourism. The earliest stage is called conventional tourism，which aimed at economic development and used all tourism product-marketed strategies. The second stage is modern tourism，which shifted the marketing strategies from product-oriented to market-oriented and developed mass tourism market by focusing on tourist demand. Conventional tourism and modern tourism have promoted economic development but have had adverse effects on the environment and traditional culture as well. In the context，alternative tourism and post-modern tourism emerged. Alternative tourism considers environmental protection and eco-friendly tourism. Post-modern tourism focuses on niche markets and pays more attention to the quality of experience of tourism products and services（Figure 1.1）.

Figure 1.1 Shift of Tourism

Source：Choibamroong，et al.，2011.

Community-based tourism or CBT is one of the forms of alternative and postmodern tourism. The concept of CBT originated from the recognition and improvemental strategies of the negative effects of mass tourism on social，cultural and environmental aspects. Although mass tourism has brought economic growth to tourism destinations，it has also caused negative results in physical impacts e.g.，environmental degradation，depletion of resources and pollution，as well as in socio-cultural impacts e.g.，cultural conflict，unfair income distribution，loss of indigenous culture，drug abuse，security，crime，etc.（Hummel，et al.，2013）. From the 1960s to the early 1970s，alternative approaches to responsible and sustainable development of tourism began to be thought and sought. The participation of local community is gradually considered as the basic and one of the most essential tools of community-based sustainable tourism development（Leksakundilok，2004）. The concept of CBT was proposed in the context and gradually developed. As an alternative form of tourism，CBT emphasizes the entire-process participation，self-management and benefit-sharing of local community，and focus on improving the happiness of local residents and promoting the sustainable development on socio-culture and environment of local community（Goodwin and Santilli，2009；Giampiccoli，2020）.

The sustainable development of CBT depends on the local people's ability to autonomy and their resource awareness. Through the participation and selfmanagement of local community，the local cultural and environmental resources should be transformed into value-added experiences for not only local residents but also tourists and share all benefits throughout the community. In the process，the resource awareness of local residents and their autonomy ability are very important. At the same time，they also need the support of external agencies（Leksakundilok，2004；Chatkaewnapanon and Lee，2022）. Community often requires the support of external organizations in terms of resource orientation，value conversion，and marketing，and the main external organizations include academic institutions，public sectors，private sectors，and industrial sectors.Under the premise of community residents leading and managing，external agencies participate in the development of CBT through mutual cooperation with local people，adding value to the local wisdom by creative tourism，and assisting in marketing to promote the sustainable development of CBT（Kaewnuch，2018）.Community-based tourism development or CBD is a strategy for tourism planners to mobilize community residents to participate in tourism industry in a broader range. The operation of the CBD first needs to find the right people and organizations that fit the development of the community，e.g.，the cooperation of community leaders and local non-governmental organizations（NGOs）. Then，with their joint efforts，the development goals and approaches that the community needs to achieve should be clarified to guide the direction of community development. Next，community-led tourism projects based on available resources and community needs should be creatively designed and implemented，using tourism as a tool for community development. Finally，the tourism project is evaluated and monitored to meet the goals of community development（Kaewnuch，2018）（Figure 1.2）. An effective CBD design can be effective in managing natural resources，providing infrastructure，and ensuring primary social services. Successful CBD design should be based on understanding local needs，taking advantage of existing institutions，and clarifying the changes required for agencies in supporting community action（Narayan，1995）.

Figure 1.2 Development of CBT

Source：Kaewnuch，2018.

Through the process of development of CBT，it can be found that as an alternative form of tourism，CBT is the tool to strengthen the local community and must achieve the goal of sustainable development in all aspects（Goodwin and Santilli，2009；Kaewnuch，2018）. Although emphasis is placed on the autonomy and management of local community residents to ensure the authenticity of the local culture and the undamaged natural environment，the sustainable development of CBT also requires the support of external agencies and provides products of cultural exchanges and interactive experiences to tourists to achieve value-added and transformation of community resources（Forstner，2004；Sitikarn，2021）. In this link，targeted marketing is essential. Otherwise，the resource value of CBT cannot be fully realized and it will hinder the sustainable development of CBT. During the process of resource transformation，the destination marketing based on the concept of CBT development needs to combine with the supply of resources to jointly realize the dynamic balance of supply and demand in CBT development，to better serve local community residents，and achieve sustainable development of community culture and environment（Choibamroong，et al.，2011）. Thai Government promotes CBT according to the Second National Tourism Development Plan（2017 to 2021）and Sustainable Community Action Plan（2016 to 2020），which also stress the basic principle of sustainable development of CBT.

Chinese tourists have always been an important tourist market for tourism in Thailand for many years. According to the statistics from the Ministry of Tourism and Sports（MOTS）of Thailand，during the Chinese New Year holiday on February 15-21，2018，313.000 Chinese tourists came to Thailand to travel，which generated revenue of 17 billion baht，a year-on-year increase of 34.3%.Chinese tourists are also the highest spending among international tourists coming to Thailand. With the development of China's social economy，and the growth of emerging Generation Y of young people（they were born in between 1980 and 1999 and known as generations“ post-80s-and-90s” or“ after-80s-and-90s” in China），their attitudes of tourism consumption have changed over their parents.They began to show their talents in all works of life，pursue individuality，attach importance to self-assertion，and are willing to spend time and money on things that they consider most meaningful and useful. They value communication，prefer to communicate through the internet，think during play，find opportunities in play，and adapt to a diversified living style and behavior（Ralston，et al.，1999）. Generation Y visitors are typical “ experience explorers” for their travel activities（Gao，et al.，2021），and value the balance between work and life. In addition to the common features of Generation Y tourists，Chinese Generation Y tourists are distinctive in some of their tourist behaviors due to the uniqueness of Chinese culture. Influenced by Chinese traditional cultural factors e.g.，Confucianism，Buddhism and Taoism，families play a central role in social and cultural life（Fuligni and Zhang 2004），and research（Nelson and Chen，2007）shows that Chinese younger generation continues to respect and follow these traditions. Chinese tourists like to connect with people（Fu，et al.，2012）and explore novelty in nature and social as well（Xiang，2008；Pung and Chiappa，2018）. When traveling，Chinese Generation Y tourists are willing to participate in local community to learn and interact with local people. They expect deeper and richer experience to explore novel and different culture during their trip.Mostly，they prefer to use local cuisine as an aspect of local culture and are willing to perceive local culture from stories，poems，and paintings. Moreover，they are more inclined to perceive the local environment from representative tourist images（Ralston，et al.，1999；Pearce，et al.，2013；Xiang，2008）.Meanwhile，they also have strong family obligations and unique cultural beliefs，concerning about security and self-efficacy，and they are willing to share appropriate local gifts to Chinese friends（Gardiner and Kwek，2017）. It can be found that a considerable number of Chinese Generation Y tourists have developed to concern about environmental ecology，cultural exchanges，and sustainable development，and have become emerging groups of responsible tourists. Their attitudes of tourism consumption and digital lifestyles are creating a larger niche tourism market and changing the future tourism market pattern.

Although Chinese tourists make a good performance to Thailand in the mass tourism market，few Chinese tourists have heard about and understood CBT as a responsible and alternative tourism in Thailand，even in the area of Andaman Coast which is the most well-known destination for Chinese market. The development of CBT is also unknown to Chinese tourists. The Andaman Coast，represented by the three provinces of Phuket，Phang Nga and Krabi，is a popular tourist destination in Thailand and is widely known by Chinese tourists. Chinese tourists love to travel here for a holiday，traditionally experience the sea，the beach and the sun. However，in addition to sightseeing and vacation，the area is rich in human history and village scenery，and the CBT resources are extremely abundant and unique. According to statistics from the Tourism Authority of Thailand（TAT，2016），as of 2016，the development of CBT in the region already reached 12 communities in Phuket，9 in Phang Nga and 5 in Krabi. The region is rich in CBT resources and has good potential for sustainable CBT development. Buddhists，Muslims and indigenous people live in harmony，and various cultures complement each other，which is suitable for carrying out various cultural touristic activities；various natural sceneries e.g.，mountains，forests，waterfalls，caves，beaches，hills，and tropical island groups are suitable for various recreational activities（Seenprachawong，2016 ）；residents of local communities plant tropical crops e.g. rubber trees，palms，cashews，coffee，and coconuts；the industries of agriculture and fisheries are more developed which can be used to conduct various interactive activities with local residents. Although local tourists and international tourists occasionally visit CBT on the Andaman Coast，it is possible to expand the CBT market for Chinese Generation Y tourists for the Andaman Coast.

As a tourist destination，the CBT community，which provides interactive experience products to tourists，differentiates its marketing from traditional marketing. The traditional marketing concept is based on the analysis of 4Ps（products，prices，place or channels，and promotions），first positioning the target customers of the service，and planning and designing the 4Ps according to the needs of the target customers. However，for the marketing of the community as a tourist destination，the products of the CBT community have been established which are based on the activities of the local community's natural environment and community lifestyle as the carrier. It is necessary to select target tourists based on product analysis. Hence，the service design and promotion of CBT are different from traditional marketing（Kolb，2011）. From this perspective，it is one of the key links for CBT marketing that to bring out the community's enthusiasm of participation，to link the characteristics of community products with the experience of tourists，and to create image and package services that are convenient for the perception of tourists（Kolb，2011）.

As mentioned above，marketing is an indispensable part of the success of CBT. In the digital era of Generation Y，the behavior pattern of tourists changes a lot compared to the traditional way. They pursue“want everything” and “ now want”（Bolton，et al.，2013），pay more attention to emotional value rather than economic value in the consumption process（Kumar and Lim，2008），and are accustomed to digital media，prefer diverse and flexible social attention and care for the family（Donnision，2007）. They regard that travel is a very important part of their lives（Moscardo，et al.，2011）. Chinese Generation Y tourists have developed some new features on tourist behavior，for example，when traveling，they are accustomed to using digital technology，socialize with family or friends，balance the link between travel and work，and are responsible for sustainable development（Pearce，et al.，2013；Gardiner and Kwek，2017）. In the face of the demand of Chinese Generation Y tourists for responsible tourism，it is necessary for CBT to study their travel behavior and digital lifestyle，and design corresponding tourism products to attract them to participate in CBT activities through innovative marketing strategies and create value for them（Furseth and Cuthbertson，2016；Jacobs，2014；Spieth，et al.，2014；Vargo and Lusch，2008；Wijnberg，2004；Maciariello，2009；Xu and Pratt，2018）. Therefore，innovative marketing strategy is critical to establish and develop the long-term and stable relationships with the target visitors，and also essential for CBT to develop sustainable success.