The Cultural Tourism Management in the situation of Covid 2019: case study Wat Yai Rattana Pho, Nakhon Si Thammarat Province

Abstract

This Article aimed to (1) study the history of Wat Yai Rattanapho, Nakhon Si Thammarat Province, and (2) study cultural tourism management in the situation of Covid 2019. The research model was qualitative research. Concepts and theories in tourism, conservation, development, and creativity were used as a research framework. The research area was Wat Yai Rattana Pho, Mok Lan Sub-district,
Tha Sala District, Nakhon Si Thammarat Province. The key informants consisted of well-informed persons, practitioners, and stakeholders, totaling 30 people. Purposive sampling was used which consisted of 1) people in the community with real knowledge and 2) entrepreneurs with tourism relations in the temple area affected by the COVID-19 situation. Three types of research instruments were used: 1) observation (participation and non-participation), 2) interview (structured and unstructured), and
3) conversation. The data were analyzed using content analysis consisting of the classification of information from well-informed persons, practitioners, and stakeholders. Accuracy, reasonableness, and scientific connections were analyzed, then descriptive narratives were illustrated and key interviews were referenced.

The results showed that

1. Objective research results 1: Wat Yai Rattana Pho, Nakhon Si Thammarat Province was hundreds of years old (no written record). In the past, it was an abandoned temple and a source of ancient civilization before Nakhon Si Thammarat was founded (Mo Klan before and Nakhon Tang later) and was restored in 1950. It is currently being developed as a learning center for history due to the discovery of many ancient artifacts.


2. Objective research results 2: Cultural tourism management during the Covid 2019 situation, Wat Yai Rattanapho community residents had used word-of-mouth publicity in terms of self-protection measures before entering the temple in response to government policies. In this regard, it was the nature of self-help within the community because the government did not have the strength to support it rigorously. The community emphasized creating awareness and cooperation among tourists such as social distancing, eating hot-single spoons, washing hands, and wearing masks all the time when they were in the Wat Yai Rattanapho area.

The findings of this research were shared by well-informed persons, practitioners, and stakeholder groups. In summary, the study of local history and adaptation to the situation of COVID 2019 could integrate cultural tourism, where government agencies, the private sector, and civil society must take serious action. In addition, a tourism network for the Gulf of Thailand had been established both domestically and internationally, which created positive relationships between different regions of the world, including producing various souvenirs. Local economic agencies contributed to the creation of a micro-economy, which was a key factor for the sustainable development of macroeconomic stimulus.