The Amphawa Floating Market Of Benefit Tourism Essay

Heritage cultural tourism defined as the nostalgia tourism that places special emphasis on heritage and cultural attractions. Cultural tourism began to be recognized as a distinct product category in the late 1970s when tourism marketers realized that some people traveled specially to gain a deeper understanding of the culture or a heritage destination

This paper concentrates on the area of Amphawa community. This community is composed of many cultural characteristics and themes which relate to the history of the area, cultures and lifestyle of Amphawa community, current situation problems and effects of tourism. Even though the benefits from tourism brought the development of infrastructure and the income from tourist’s expenditure, rapid development of community tourism may led to troubles and conflicts. Many people who came from Bangkok and neighbor had been interested in this area, so the local community had been adapted for new tourism. Cultural tourism with local people participating would make them realize the tourism management which could lead the community to real cultural tourism.

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Tourism has become the world’s largest industry as the tourism marketplace has become increasing dramatically, there has been a trend toward increased specialization among tourists with cultural tourism has becoming the fastest growing segment of the industry (Huh, Uysal, and McCleary, 2006). Cultural tourism began to be recognized as a distinct product category in the late 1970s when tourism marketers realized that some people traveled specially to gain a deeper understanding of the culture or a heritage destination (McKercher and du Cros, 2002). Sigala and Leslie (2005) define “heritage and cultural tourism” as “the segment of the tourism industry that places special emphasis on heritage and cultural attractions” The Travel Industry Association of America (Domestic Travel Market Report, 2003) also listed visiting historic destinations as one of the top five activities for tourists in North America.

Furthermore, Andersen, Prentice and Guerin (1997) identified the important attributes of cultural tourism in Denmark as being castles, gardens, museums, and historical buildings, when tourists made a decision to visit the country. In a similar in China, Sofield (1998) identified history, culture, traditional festivals, historical events, beautiful scenic heritage, historical sites, architecture, folk arts (music, dancing, craftwork) and folk culture villages as the attributes of significance.

Therefore, the increasing number of tourists and the corresponding trend towards cultural tourism that action must be taken to deal with the issues associated with quality tourism and the protection of a country’s cultural heritage places from improper and over-use. Moreover, the cultural tourism need to awareness of the variety of cultural heritage places and the preservation of environmental equilibrium in order to develop a ‘compatible tourism’ (An Ethics Charter for Cultural Tourism, 2000).

Tourism may strengthen some aspect by using culture and diminish others, even to the point of disappearance. The changing has relationship between cultural expressions under the influence of a change causing agent, such as tourism. However, it is possible that under the influence of an agent of cultural change, an expression will be substituted or adopted. The result can be no effect on other cultural expressions or varying degrees of effect (Carter and Beeton, 2004).

In this paper, Amphawa community is located in Samutsongkhram province. It is an interesting case to study because of its real attributes of local settlement and community and their evolution through time from the early Rattanakosin period (the late 17th century) to the present. This community is composed of many cultural characteristics and themes which relate to the history of the area, ways of life, and ways of living. The aims of this paper are to study and analyze both positive and negative impacts of cultural tourism to Amphawa floating market destinations in areas of local history, attractions, economy and community. In additions, the paper looks for some solutions to resolve problems of cultural tourism to push tourism will become real cultural tourism that offer a lot of benefits to local community.

Cultural Tourism

For cultural tourism in India, it is prevailing factor of the tourism segment, because India has the land of ancient history, heritage, and culture. The government of India has launched the ‘Incredible India’ campaign and this has led to the growth of culture tourism in India. One can see the influence of various cultures in dance, music, festivities, architecture, traditional customs, food, and languages. This richness in culture goes a long way in projecting India as the ultimate cultural tourism destination given boost to tourism in culture in India.

Rajasthan is the most popular. The reason for this is that Rajasthan is famous for its rich cultural heritage. The state is renowned for many magnificent palaces and forts which showcase the rich cultural heritage of Rajasthan. The various folk songs and music also reflect the cultural heritage of Rajasthan. A large number of festivals and fairs are held in Rajasthan such as the camel festival, Marwar festival, and Pushkar festival (Cultural Tourism India).

For cultural tourism in New Zealand, it provides tourists a unique experience into the indigenous people of New Zealand. Maori people live throughout New Zealand, and many are actively involved with keeping their culture and language alive. Within Maori community has focus on social, cultural and spiritual life. Traditional carvers also help to keep Maori culture alive by creating intricate works that pay respect to the past. Every pieces carved tells a story, which can be read by those who know how.

Maori Tourism in New Zealand started over 130 years ago with local Maori guiding visitors through the Central Plateau region of (Aotearoa) New Zealand. Tourists can enjoy a Maori experience with a variety of options. The Maori people are the indigenous people of Aotearoa (New Zealand) and first arrived here in waka hourua (voyaging canoes) from their ancestral homeland of Hawaiki over 1000 years ago. Today, Maori has over 14 percent of the population. Their language and culture has a major impact on all facets of New Zealand life (NewZealand Tourism Guide). The Maori’s mask is shown in the figure 1.

Figure 1 The Maori’s mask

Source: http://www.tourism.net.nz/new-zealand/about-new-zealand/maori-culture.html

For Thailand, it is a country of scenic diversity and ancient traditions, of tranquil temples and Thai rural style excitement. With independent history, it has managed to absorb a variety of cultural influences and blend them into something uniquely and memorably Thai. Each region of Thailand offers a distinctive experience for the traveler in search of discovery. In this case concentrate on the area of Amphawa community located on Samutsongkhram province.

History of Samutsongkhram

Figure 2 Samutsongkhram provincial Logo

Figure 3 Samutsongkhram tourist map

Source: http://www.tour.co.th/th/map.php

Samutsongkhram province is located in the lower part of the central region of Thailand. The former name of Samutsongkhram province is Maeklong. Its name comes from the attribution of geography, which is the location that Maeklong River runs through. This river is very important to this province. Samutsongkhram province is around 72 kilometers west of Bangkok. It is assumed that Samutsongkhram might have been established in the Ayuddhaya period. The modern Samutsongkham province is a little province, 416 square kilometers, and is divided into 3 administrative districts. There are Muang, Bangkhonthi and Amphawa districts. There are around 200,000 people in this province which is composed of 36 sub-districts or 278 villages (Samutsongkhram).

History of Amphawa community

This paper concentrates on the area of Amphawa community. Originally, Amphawa area was named Kwang Bang Chang. There is no evidence to prove that when Kwang Bang Chang was formed. Even though it was a small community in the past, it was prosperous with commercial and agricultural activities. There was rich traditional riverside living and classical architecture. It could be said that it was an important source of food and commodity for the capital city as Krung Thonburi and Bangkok.

Most settlements are established near a waterway, which is the traditional settlement style of gardener communities, although, in the present, there is more convenient transportation systems such as main roads and sub roads. This style of settlement has been preserved as a unique characteristic of gardener communities showing that their way of living depended on rivers and canals. There was a cluster of structures at the side of Amphawa canal. The densest settlement was in the business area, which was the center part of the town. This was located near the Amphawa canal mouth.

Usually, a community settlement was spread two-sides along the banks of the Mae Klong River, which is a major water route. In addition, there are small canals, creeks and irrigation canals such as the Amphawa canal, Bangjak canal and Dow-dung canal, which all join the Mae Klong River. As in many Thai provinces the spiritual center for Thais in this community has always been the temple. On the Amphawa canal there were plenty of boats which sold local fruits, vegetables, clothes, food and products necessary for living. At the mouth of the Amphawa canal there was a riverside single house having its cultivatable area along the canal. The Amphawa community was established at the intersection of Mae Klong River and Amphawa canal which is about 20 Km. from the Gulf of Thailand (Tourism Thailand).

Characteristic of Amphawa floating market

Amphawa floating market is located in SamutSongkram Province. Amphawa floating market is an afternoon floating market by the canal near Wat Amphawan Chetiyaram and brings visitors back to a rural Thai lifestyle of years gone by. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday, during 12.00 p.m. – 8.00 p.m., the Amphawa Canal is occupied by vendors who pack their boats with food and drinks, such as fried sea mussel, noodles, coffee, O-liang (iced black coffee), sweets, etc. Visitors can enjoy a comfortable atmosphere and music broadcast by the community members, explores the market, have food, and hire a boat to see fireflies at night (Amphawa Floating Market, Thailand).

Figure 4 Amphawa Floating Market, Thailand

Source: http://www.amphawafloatingmarket.com/

Amphawa is the most significant community in Samut Songkharm province in terms of role model for the local community’s involvement in the community-based tourism that had beginning of community-based tourism (CBT) in Thailand since early 1990s (Richards, 2009). In 2008, there were 558,326 visitors who traveled to Samut Songkharm. Being short distance from Bangkok, tourists can make one day trip to travel to the Amphawa. The most preferred activities for tourist, was to stay in home stay and an evening trip to watch fireflies. The length of stay was average 2.63 days for Thais and 4.40 days for foreigners. The Expenditures per day were approximately 2,866 Thai baht. There were 96 homes stay and resorts that increased by 75% from 2007 (Office of Tourism Department, 2008).

In addition, diverse biodiversity attracts tourists to come and travel about the nature such as fireflies that live in Lam Poo Tree along the canal of Amphawa. These natural and environment has been created as a tour program for tourists to visit and have sightseeing. Tourist can contact the counter to book the tour at the floating market themselves which cost 60 Baht per person (Amphawa Floating Market, Thailand).

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This community is also significant artists of traditional Thai arts and musical instruments prosper. In particular, it is generally acknowledged that the best coconuts for making fiddle are grown in this area. This is also a renowned center of excellent handicrafts made in time-honored fashion. The best way to get around in Ampawa is to walk or ride a bike because the roads and bridges are narrow. Most home stays have bikes available for hiring to guests at a nominal fee. Most of tourists are Thais, and ages under 25years. The main transportation is personal car. The purpose of visit is holiday, and they are independent tourists (TAT, 2008). This is playing as the heart of CBT, both as a movement and a shared their cultures for hosts and guests (Richards, 2009).

According to UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Award (2008) Amphawa canal community has successfully achieved public-private cooperation in the preservation of heritage structures in Thailand. This award demonstrates recognition of the cultural significance of Amphawa and an appreciation of both the architectural and living heritage of the historic canal community.

Figure 5 Amphawa canal community

Source: http://www.unescobkk.org/index.php?id=8109

All tourism involves the consumption of experiences and products (McKercher and du Cros, 2002). Cultural tourists want to consume a variety of cultural experience therefore cultural heritage assets must be converted into cultural tourism products that tourist can utilize. The transformation process should be sustainable management of the cultural product. Cultural heritage places are usually designated by communities for tourism potential. However, it is undeniable that cultural attractions are also for cultural tourism.

However, since the Amphawa floating market has prospered progressively and reputation. The number of the home stay increased each year to support demand of tourists. Even though the benefits from tourism brought the development of infrastructure and the income from tourist’s expenditure, rapid development of community tourism may led to troubles and conflicts.

The advantage impact by tourism

Social Advantages

According to ATTA (2010) tourism can help communities as tourism industry provides high standard of local people living. As a result of causing the income distribution and distribution of employment opportunities to local people directly such as employment in various business tourism industries as hotel staffs, transport staffs and local guides etc. Including creating career indirectly as people who delivering newspapers to the hotel, textile workers, banker etc. Also it provides a comfort and convenient from the development of infrastructure tourism. This is an important outgrowth that the local people will be able more comfort and convenient along with tourism such as main road, electricity, water supply and buses etc. Furthermore, more and more tourists come that are inspiration of local people for preservation and cherish their owe culture as immaculate condition.

All of Developing, managing and operating CBT (Richards, 2009) helps local people to develop new skills and knowledge which can assist them to communicate and to support effectively in support of their traditional cultures and ways of life.

Economic Advantages

The local tourism industry help reduce migration of population flows to capital that the nature of the local people if they could make money from the settlement and occupation of their hometown, they will not immigrate to another one. Also tourism gives the career opportunities in retail shop with local people. This may be an independent career such as local restaurant, souvenir shop and household industry. Moreover, the plentiful resources within community can bring to apply convert into souvenirs and also support folk wisdom. Include making another new career in local community. There are many tourist attractions that gain economical benefits from tourism. As a local resident of Plai-Pong-Pang Thai house tourism village, Samutsongkram province has been increased their revenue and job opportunities from tourism industry after applying cultural and eco tourism to promote their village (Wattanasukchai, 2002 and Sungwarn, 2003).

The disadvantage impact by tourism

Environmental disadvantages

The number visitors have grown to more than 10,000 a week and the local environment is suffering as a result. Most of wastewater problem caused by effluent from hotel or home stays accommodation, followed by wastewater from restaurants and places of tourist attractions. Some places discharge wastewater directly to local river or cannel without any treatment before. This is causing water pollution. Moreover, the problems of rotting garbage, annoying noise levels and an increase in the cost of living in Amphawa (The Nation travel, 2008). All attractions have waste problems as garbage in different levels. That depends on cooperation between a host community and tourists who travel in reasonable way. Furthermore, Thai farming and fishing families who rely on earth, forest and water to survive often have to compete with the tourism industry for access to land, sea and other essential resources. This makes life even more challenging (Richards, 2009).

Traveling receive a large number of tourists, mostly Westerners who’ve taken a motor-boat ride from the Chao Phraya River to see the exotic lifestyle of those living along Amphawa canal, which has served as a scene for the famous classic. This is bringing a great economic opportunity for the local community. However, this is the biggest problem right now for local people by deafening motor-boat noise that continues all day long from morning till evening for sightseeing firefly, in addition to the deprivation of privacy. A few years ago some angry villagers chose to chop down some nearby trees to dispel the fireflies (Bangkok Post, 2010).

Economic disadvantages

The career opportunity has changing from farmers to work in hotels, merchants or tour operators. That generate agriculture production will decrease dramatically while a demand increased. Due to the agriculture less profitable than business travels or hotels consistent with more number of tourists come to Amphawa. That makes people turn more interest to businesses hotels or home stay. This is a cause produces cost of living increase.

Social disadvantages

Many host communities, especially indigenous communities, trade cultural expressions for benefits that tourism can provide. As such, cultural expressions are a direct and observable link between a host culture and the tourist. Tourism may act on cultural character to effect change the community. Cultural attractions have a role in a community and provide benefits such as healing economy, spiritual enrichment and maintenance of social order (Carter and Beeton, 2004).

However, there are people feel tourists have privileged that cause produce decrease friendly attitude to tourists and also increasing social conflict within community. Such as some people are against for sightseeing firefly tourism between boat operators that cause by tourism that could make money from tourists. This result show local people lack the voice and influence needed to negotiate a fair deal from tourism development (Richards, 2009). Also there is decrease local awareness of the need for sustainable development because even more visitors that means more income too.

In addition, the success in home stay business has the impact for the community management. Increasing number of tourists caused the demand for the construction of home stay. Land-use pattern changed to serve for tourism, and caused increase in real property price in Amphawa. Without the awareness from stakeholder, purity of Amphawa will be destroyed. No control and standard makes community lost direction to use tourism as a tool to improve the quality of life. Environment and natural resources will be destroyed for commercial exploitation without concerning and restoration as well.

Living Style Change

Amphawa is crowded with people and cars on Friday-Sunday. Amphawa community is going to change and its integrity is threatened by tourism. However, this community still has living, prosperous entity to interpret for, and present to, visitors. It is in effect on outdoor living museum and cultural landscape. It represents living history with all its attractions for visitors which is full of cultural collective things related to Amphawa people and the prosperous time in the past. The issue facing the community is that of encouraging tourism and change without destroying or overwhelming the heritage value of what is there. The inclusive and cooperation of the local community is vital in future planning (Amphawa District, 2006).

Some residents are eager to be part of tourism development and gain some of the benefits they are entitled to. Some owners modified their homes to serve as souvenir shops. There is an art gallery and cafe, such as Baan Silapin, which is affiliated to the Association of Siamese Architects and other conservation agencies (Bangkok Post, 2010).

However, improvement of sustainable tourism won’t happen if the dwellers refuse to abandon Thai-style submission and have no faith in their basic rights. Somehow, they also need help from the law leaders by leading the way as “local community development plan”.

Solving way for problems and conflicts

Before it’s too late, local community and local entrepreneurs should get together to come up with a common plan and agreement on what they wish to see their communities grow into. They must draw up a list of problems that need to be mentioning both long-short term challenges. Some order is needed to save these sites from becoming too freely developed, which would set a threat to the very structure of the uniqueness and charm of these places.

On the other hand, tourists must be sensitive while visiting such sites and try, as much as possible, to support genuine local products and services (Bangkok Post, 2010) It would be encouraging if these tourists learn more about the unique history of the place they visit and bring back whatever aspects they see as positive to apply to their own city environment. Eventually, all places develop and it’s a challenge to ensure these unique markets or community evolves in a way that is sympathetic to way of ancestor living. Local community will benefit from encourage tourists more sensitive cultural tourism.

Conclusions

Cultural tourism as nostalgia for the past grows, many tourists lead to places like Suphan Buri’s Samchuk market, or the Amphawa floating market as the houses have architectural value for studying and travelling for the next generation. They are traditional wooden Thai style houses. An architecture style reflects way of life of people in Amphawa as river and canal since long time up to present based community. It is a uniqueness of riverside settlement of people in the past. Therefore, it is understandable why the yearning for something less efficient and retrospective is growing.

Tourism provides a benefic to local community as high standard of local people living and also all of developing, managing encourage local people to develop new skills and knowledge which can assist them to support effectively in support of their traditional cultures and ways of life. The growth in the community also helps reduce the population in the capital due to they can own living by themselves. However, mostly of Thai framing communities who rely on earth and water to survive often have to compete with the tourism industry progressively for preserving to land and other essential resources. This makes life even more challenging if no control and standard makes community lost direction to use tourism as a tool to improve the quality of life. Environment and natural resources will be destroyed for trade exploitation without concerning and restoration as well.

Therefore, this paper may make foreign and Thai visitors come to know and value cultural significance of historic setting in Amphawa community and protect traditional way of life as well as cultural structure from the past to present of riverside people.