THE STUDY OF LESSON DISTILLED FROM COMMUNITY-BASED TOURISM MANAGEMENT TO DEVELOPING COMMUNITY TOURISM PROTOTYPE: A CASE STUDY OF BAN POO TER COMMUNITY, MAE KU SUBDISTRICT, MAE SOT DISTRICT, TAK PROVINCE

Abstract

       The objectives of this research article were to: 1) analyze a community through the context of capability and readiness to advance into a model community in community - based tourism 2) create knowledge and comprehension while distilling the body of knowledge regarding the management process so that they are well-prepared before becoming the model community, and 3) summarize the lessons concerning community-based tourism management in the hope to adapt to the development of the model community. This research is a qualitative study that utilizes lessons learned from participatory action research. The population and target groups are 30 distinguished scholars and 57 experts. Research instruments include in-depth interview, observation, record and evaluation. The accumulated data had been synthesized and presented as descriptive analysis. The results revealed that   1) Ban Pu Ter community is appealing due to the close connection between local people and elephants. Thus, elephant husbandry intellect should be encouraged to distinguish them from other communities; 2) all involved parties must have a mutual understanding of teamwork while fully participating in every step of the process. The development of tourism and locality must be practical and proceed in all aspects to build a solid foundation and competent cultural capital; 3) the value of the community and the area are concluded through four dimensions: societal culture, communal environment, community - based economic, and knowledge in the community. In addition, it can determine the guidelines for the tourism development of the community to be cultural tourism and local identity (the way of happiness).