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Abstract:
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The purpose of the present study is three-fold: 1) to examine the socio-economic characteristics of those foreign travelers who came to Chiang Mai Province for tourism activities, 2) to understand the factors influencing these foreign travelers to visit Chiang Mai Province and the tourist behavior of those samples under study, and 3) to assess the satisfaction of foreign travelers in different types of tourism with their stay and activities in Chiang Mai. The needed information was collected from 100 samples each, identified by convenience sampling method, of foreign tourists in the types of natural and eco-tourism, art and cultural tourism, wellness tourism, and long stay. The total 400 samples were interviewed with questionnaire format. The background information was analyzed based on descriptive statistics including frequency, percentage and arithmetic mean while the factors determining tourists’ behavior and the tourist’s satisfaction were analyzed and assessed upon the results of Likert scale rating.
In natural and eco-tourism, the foreign tourists were mostly found to be European male. Both push and pull factors made them decide to visit Chiang Mai as a tourism destination namely their adequate personal income for traveling abroad and the reasonable and worthwhile tourism expenses. While in Chiang Mai, they spent 3,250 baht per day per person, and their average length of stay was 4.43 days. They expressed moderate level of satisfaction within Chiang Mai Province.
In art and cultural tourism, most foreign tourists can be described as coming from East Asian countries, being female. The push factor for them to travel to Chiang Mai for tourism activities was advice from relative/friend/social media while the pull factor was the reasonable and worthwhile tourism expenses. While in Chiang Mai, they spent averagely 3,780 baht per day per person, and 3.68 days for the length of stay. They felt highly satisfied with all travelling conditions in Chiang Mai Province. In wellness tourism, the majority of foreign tourists could be characterized as East Asian male. Similarly, the push factor for them to visit Chiang Mai for tourism was the advice and persuasion given by relative/friend/social media while the pull factor was the not too high yet worthwhile tourism expenses. While in Chiang Mai, they spent on the average 5,440 baht per day per person, and had their length of stay averagely 4.37 days. They expressed their high level of satisfaction within Chiang Mai Province. In long stay group, most foreigners coming to stay for lengthy period of time in Chiang Mai Province typically originated from Europe and were Japanese by nationality. They were generally male, 61 years old and above. The push factor for their coming to stay in Chiang Mai was their wish to start a new life in a foreign country and the pull factor was the not too high cost of living in Chiang Mai. While in Chiang Mai, they used the red two-row mini bus for transportation, rented condo/mansion for living accommodation and commonly in the areas of Santitham – Chang Phuek, Chang Klan Street – the Nigh Bazar, spent about 1,450 baht per day per person for the cost of living, and had their length of stay for a year or so each time. They had high satisfaction while staying in Chiang Mai Province.
Keywords: travelling patterns , travelling , tourist , foreigner , Chiang Mai Province
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