World Heritage Volunteers 2024: A Proposal for Effective Tourist Management in Ayutthaya World Heritage Site
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Abstract
This academic article presents the outcomes of the 2024 World Heritage Volunteers (WHV) project conducted at the Ayutthaya Historical Park. The project aimed to manage and distribute tourist flows more effectively, reducing congestion in the historic core and promoting tourism in the peripheral zones of the World Heritage property. Its central goal was to enhance volunteer engagement in the conservation and development of UNESCO World Heritage sites. Ayutthaya was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1991 for its Outstanding Universal Value (OUV), embodied in its architectural heritage, urban layout, and sophisticated water management system. The project is grounded on the principle of redistributing tourist flows from the congested city center to surrounding heritage sites and communities, thereby fostering a deeper understanding of Ayutthaya’s OUV. The operational process consisted of field surveys, quantitative and qualitative analyses of tourism routes, the development of a heritage tourism master plan, and participatory collaboration with local communities through presentations and feedback sessions.
The results are summarized in four key aspects: 1) Integrating living culture with historic sites, which revitalizes underused monuments through community-based cultural activities and reintroduces heritage as part of living traditions; 2) Harmonizing mobility and authenticity representation, which enhances connectivity between heritage sites through improved transportation systems, water routes, and creative interpretation strategies such as aerial viewpoints; 3) Combining heritage, community, and water management, which involves developing the “Ayutthaya Go” campaign that links spiritual tourism, local gastronomy, and creative economy initiatives to strengthen cultural and economic sustainability; and 4) Revitalizing Thung Kaew–Thung Khwan, which transforms the northern floodplain into an integrated heritage and ecological tourism zone through canal restoration and networked water routes.
These outcomes demonstrate innovative, community-driven approaches that integrate cultural values, water-based heritage, and participatory management to achieve a balance between conservation, tourism, and long-term sustainability at the Ayutthaya World Heritage Site.
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