Abstract

The tourism industry in Thailand is important for economic activity and for determining the regional policy of the country. Tourism is likely to increase its contribution to the GDP from its already significant role of more than 10%. Local people get undeniable benefits from tourism in their economic and social environments. The management of tourism destination has become more important for stakeholders, especially in terms of destination identity of tourism. Koh Chang Marine National Park (KCMNP) stakeholders, both senders and receivers, emphasize the importance of destination identity. The development and use of a strong destination identity are critical when making strategic marketing plans. The information the tourist uses to make their decision can come from a stakeholder’s focus on managing destination identity. Effective management will improve KCMNP’s revenues on a long-term sustainable basis, as well as, ensure that the local community gets the benefits associated with a successful tourist destination in the form of more tasks, better jobs, improved services, and increased quality of life. A qualitative content analysis of data is conducted in this study, to identify key requirements and components of Koh Chang Marine National Park’s stakeholders. The main research results and recommendations are provided along with suggestions for future research. The tourism industry in KCMNP requires improvement in order to provide a better tourism destination identity. An improved destination identity can help KCMNP effectively share its message to potential tourists, ultimately stabilizing and growing the number of visitors every year. It is necessary though, that this activity is actively supported by the stakeholder community and tourists. Koh Chang Marine National Park is one of 127 national parks in Thailand. In the past, it was a very popular destination, and Chang Island, as the largest most developed island in the park, benefitted the most. However, in recent years, tourist arrivals to the national park have significantly decreased from its peak in 2010. Koh Chang Marine National Park (KCMNP) is a 42-island archipelago in the Gulf of Thailand. It is located in Trat Province in the eastern region of Thailand close to the Cambodian border, nearly 8 kilometres from shore. Its most significant tourist destination is called Chang Island or Koh Chang. The Island, the second largest in Thailand after Phuket was declared a district of Trat province in August 2007. Because of its size and prominence as the second largest island in the kingdom, there are many visitors. In the past, the island, while technically uninhabited, was used as a port to escape the monsoon, as well as, provision resources. Later on, the Island was developed as a tourist destination and was designated a national park on 31st December I982 to become the 45thnational park in Thailand. This study aims to gain insight into the situation behind the lacklustre arrival numbers and to explore the recognition of both the sender side and receiver side of KCMNP’s stakeholders. This should help identify key issues that will allow facilitating the development of suitable guidelines to generate a strong, viable destination identity. Analysis of resources, competencies and capabilities of the locale are the basis from which the destination brand identity can be developed. This study tries to determine the key components of the destination identity of Koh Chang Marine National Park? The objective of this study is to better understand the perception of stakeholders about KCMNP using interview questions as a base for research.

Keywords: destination identity, stakeholders’ recognition, marketing and managing destination identity.

JEL Classification: M31, Z32.

Cite as: Preechawong, P., Sawagvudcharee, O., & Mujtaba, B. G. (2019). Marketing and managing destination identity for tourism promotion: the case of Koh Chang Marine National Park in Thailand. Marketing and Management of Innovations, 2, 160-172. https://doi.org/10.21272/mmi.2019.2-14

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License

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