Value Creation from Ecotourism: A Case Study of Aquarium in Koh Loy, Chonburi
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Abstract
Chonburi is the best known as travel destination and seaside town. It has many world-class tourist attractions which generate revenue for the country. Koh Loy is one of the attractions of Chonburi which has the potential that can be developed to increase the income of the local economy. Aquarium is considered to be a suitable option for the development because of the geography of Koh Loy itself. It also strengthens Chonburi position as maritime tourist attractions. Moreover, the aquarium is a part of ecotourism that can inspire the tourists to be environmental friendly. The purpose of this research is to identify the Thai tourist willingness to pay to visit the aquarium and to evaluate the benefit of Koh Loy aquarium. The research further examines the expected income of Koh Loy by using contingent valuation method to simulate Koh Loy aquarium. According to the close ended questionnaire, the willingness to pay for each aquarium visit is up to 474.23 baht per person with the value of the aquarium of 3,525,816,780 baht per year.
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