THE STANDARD CRITERIA OF COMMUNITY-BASED TOURISM MANAGEMENT AS A GUIDELINE FOR COMMUNITY-BASED TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN ANCIENT CHINESE CHAK NGAEO COMMUNITY, CHONBURI PROVINCE

Abstract

            With the understanding and awareness in cultural and architectural conservation of Ancient Chinese Chak Ngaeo Community located in Huai Yai Sub-district, Bang Lamung District, Chonburi Province, people in the community collaborated to sustain their cultures and architectures through community-based tourism development supported by the government sector. In order to meet the most effectiveness and highest potential in community-based tourism development, the researcher, therefore, conducted the field work for data collection by the in-depth interview and current-state evaluation of the local tourism by the local people’s self-assessment. The self-assessment, followed the standard criteria for community-based tourism, covered such five criteria as (1) community-based tourism management, (2) economic social and quality of life management, (3) cultural heritage supporting and conservation, (4) environmental and natural resource management and (5) service and safety management. According to the results of the evaluation, it was found that the ancient Chinese Chak Ngaeo community was distinctive with the cultural heritage supporting and conservation at the score 3.67, but weak in the environmental and natural resource management at the score 2.67. Focusing on the weak point, it was analyzed and found that the main reason explaining why the score the score was low came from the inappropriate garbage and trash management. Consequently, in the final part of the analysis, there is a guideline for operation improvement of the problem. The realization and understanding of the environmental and natural resource management among people in the community becomes the early aspect that should be conducted. Moreover, people in the community have to collaborate to plan and set the explicit community’s role and responsibility. Besides, the community have to communicate with tourists to cultivate the awareness and consciousness of environmental and natural resource conservation. Providing that the ancient Chinese Chak Ngeao community can improve and solve the weak point successfully, it will be the starting pace leading to further standard community-based tourism development.