5.2 Guidelines to improve agricultural areas for the development of agrotourism in Ban Mor Village, Sam Sung District, Khon Kaen province.
In the focus group discussion, ten experts, which included academics, tourism entrepreneurs, representatives of involved public organizations and local philosophers proposed guidelines to improve the potential for agrotourism in Ban Mor Village, Sam Sung District, Khon Kaen Province, as detailed below:
(1) Improve Homestay in Ban Mor Village according to the Homestay standard in Thailand
Accommodations relate to tourism attractions and enhanced destinations. In terms of agricultural villages, Homestay is the appropriate type of lodging to support tourism. Staying at Homestay and participating in host farmer’s activities will bring tourists new experiences and help them to understand more about the farmers and local culture. Therefore, Ban Mor Village should officially establish and improve Homestay, according to the Homestay standard in Thailand. This will help to ensure the quality of agrotourism in Ban Mor Village.
(2) Improve facilitates to respond to tourists’ demands
Public utilities should be considered in tourism development. Improved access to Ban Mor Village is something that
is necessary and urgent. Better road conditions and clearly labeled signposts to the destination will help tourists arrive to Ban Mor Village conveniently. Water supply and electricity should be funded by involved public organizations to facilitate the tourists.
Furthermore, Ban Mor Village is well known for its local organic agricultural products which are healthy for consumers. Therefore, local cuisine with its healthy ingredients will add value and quality to agrotourism in Ban Mor Village.
(3) Promotion of agrotourism in Ban Mor Village
Nowadays, the Internet offers a rich abundance of information and resources for travelers searching for tourism destinations. It is also convenient and easy to access. Therefore, the Internet is one of the most popular channels to promote tourism destinations. At present, there is no website about agrotourism in Ban Mor Village. So, it is necessary to establish an official website to promote agrotourism in Ban Mor Village which would be taken care of by the Village Community Committee. This website should be designed in the Thai and English languages and should include a brief history of the village, agrotourism activities, accommodations and a map of the village. Keeping the agrotourism information up-to-date is important to ensure reliability with tourists.
In addition to that, brochures or booklets about agrotourism in Ban Mor Village should be created to increase the channel of approach to tourists. These brochures or booklets should be placed at travel agencies, airports and bus stations in Khon Kaen province.
(4) Establish a local agricultural learning center
A local agricultural learning center is the place to keep, preserve and share local history, and local wisdom. Ban Mor Village applies the Sufficiency Economy Philosophy as the fundamental concept for farmer livelihood. This philosophy focuses on economic development in a step-by-step process to attain sustainable development in Thailand’s rural areas. It is necessary to introduce this concept to tourists, especially international tourists, to enhance their awareness of the local social-culture in Ban Mor Village.
A tourist souvenir zone should be arranged to show local agricultural products such as chili paste and chili powder, the recommend dishes of Ban Mor Village.