ECONOMIC VALUATION OF TOURISM AT WAT CHEDI, SICHON DISTRICT NAKHON SI THAMMARAT PROVINCE

Abstract

This research article aims to  1) to study general information of tourists who came to travel 2) to study the level of opinions of tourists 3) to assess the tourism value. In the study, quantitative research methods were used. by collecting data from the questionnaire Based on a simple random sampling of 323 people, the statistics used in the data analysis were frequency, percentage, mean, and valuation of tourism using the travel cost method. The results of the data analysis revealed that The general information of tourists is mostly female. accounted for 52.3%, most of them were in the range 21-30 years old, 40.9% most had a bachelor's degree. accounted for 52.3%. Most of the income levels had monthly income of not more than 10,000 baht, representing 36.8%. Most of them had more than 3 visits or more, accounting for 38.4%. The objectives of the trip were as follows: Egg's reputation for holiness the most, accounting for 32.8 percent, followed by asking for blessings on the blossoms. accounted for 24.5 percent. The tourist opinions on various factors found that 4 factors were 1) tourist attractions, 2) tourist facilities, 3) shops, 4) public relations. Tourists have a high level of satisfaction. As for the results of the economic valuation of the visit to the Wat Chedi by using variables age of tourists Education level, income level and expenses, it was found that the value of consumer surplus per person was 31.57 baht per person. And when it comes to assessing the value of tourism at Wat Chedi, it is found that the value of tourism is between 6,629,624.95 baht per month to 9,470,892.79 baht per month, which is a very high economic value.