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The purpose of this paper is to consider the history and dark tourism attractions associated with a case study of the Thai-Burma Railway in the city of Kanchanaburi, Thailand. The paper considers how history has been abridged and distorted at a number of attraction sites in order to exploit the dark tourism commercial potential. The role of film media is considered as a critical element of the site narrative and the reality of the tragic past of this place is discussed within the context of Thailand’s role in the Second World War. Kanchanaburi, through the urban attractions that constitute the primary motivations for visitation, distorts and exploits its dark history for commercial and ideological purposes. Where accurate the Second World War interpretation was identified, it was maintained by balancing the requirements of national governments and institutions with acceptable levels of ambiguity and non-controversial perspectives on this urban location’s dark past.

The paper draws on literature, historical documents and tourism publications related to the Second World War and the incarceration and forced labour associated with the Thai-Burma Railway and the city of Kanchanaburi. Fieldwork incorporating tourist attraction and commemorative site visitation was undertaken in Northern Thailand in January 2017. Curators, managers, operators and tourist authorities were contacted in advance of the fieldwork by e-mail to request interviews. The sites identified were the primary sites visited by tourists, and no related Second World War site in the area was excluded. For those interviewed in relation to the subject area, a standard questionnaire based on a rolling database, relevant to particular sites was utilised. Interviews were taped and transcribed.

The city of Kanchanaburi is defined by a heritage that has changed over time. Many factors imbue the meanings and content of place. This is a function of a plethora of competing Influences and agendas; political, economic, cultural, demographic and historical. Yet, this destination is defined by the dark history of the Second World War which is associated with this place. The visitor attraction sites considered in Kanchanaburi provide multiple narratives around the Second World War events. They offer a range of content driven by influences as diverse as simple commercial gain to the complex interaction of political, economic and ideological agendas (cf. Gegner, 2012). In each case, the interpretation is used to articulate heritage through objects, artefacts, audio recording, place or imagery. These elements exist in environment(s) of their creation; the Second World War heritage of Kanchanaburi is developed in a nation that has only a partial and selective acceptance of its role in this conflict. The visitor attractions examined in this research and their content have all re-constructed and re-represented the past. Historical memorialization remains embedded in interests that are global, commercial, ideological but rarely neutral. The interpretation of the Thai-Burma Railway and the narrative of the many victims is associated with the construction merit respect, commemoration and consideration that is value free and not distorted by ideology or commercial imperatives.

This paper provides a foundation for further consideration of how such contested dark heritage is viewed not least by visitors and users. Development of research in this area would provide a valuable source of data on: consumer profiles, motivations and orientation. Relating this data to nationality and origin would provide useful comparative data to that offered by operators and managers of key attractions. Furthermore, the prevalence of social and digital media as primary tourist information source could be measured against the continued (and possibly declining) importance of the filmic narrative. Furthermore, deeper evaluation of nature and content of interpretation is merited, given the range of approaches and content observed. At a political and policy level, the treatment of this part of Thai history and the degree of sensitivity around interpretation is linked to how a nation confronts its difficult past. More thorough evaluation of treatment in national media and education curriculum also merits review. Urban heritage is an important element of urban destination marketing and evaluation based around core themes of transparency, openness, respect for the past, and sensitive treatment of tragic events offer direction for application and evaluation in other urban contexts.

This is the first time the heritage of this city has been considered in the context of dark tourism and the role of Thailand in the Second World War. It incorporates an analysis of all of the relevant attractions in the city and provides through the fieldwork conducted an original contribution to the tourism literature in this field. It draws on historical record, original documentation, interview analysis and tourism data. It provides further evidence of the dark tourism phenomena in a South East Asian context linked to a conflicted and selective appraisal of the past.

This study aims to investigate the impact of service quality (SQ), perceived value (PV) and consumer satisfaction on Thai street food, with customer satisfaction (CS) as a mediator for customer loyalty and repurchase intention (RI). It also explores how consumer trust (CT) in Thai street food safety moderates these relationships.

Structural equation modelling (SEM) was utilised to analyse the complex interrelationships between various constructs. Multi-group analyses were conducted to investigate the moderating effects of CT on the structural model, considering two distinct groups based on trust levels: low and high.

The findings revealed that SQ and PV significantly influenced CS and behavioural intention, while the perceived quality of Thai street food had no significant impact on post-COVID-19 consumer satisfaction. The study highlighted the critical role of CT in moderating the relationships between SQ, PV and CS, with distinct effects observed in groups with varying trust levels.

The research emphasises the importance of enhancing SQ and delivering value to customers in the context of Thai street food, which can contribute to increased CS, RI and positive word-of-mouth. Furthermore, the study underscores the critical role of building CT in fostering enduring customer relationships and promoting consumer satisfaction and loyalty.

This research offers valuable insights into consumer behaviour and decision-making processes, particularly within the realm of Thai street food. It underscores the significance of understanding and nurturing CT, especially in the post-COVID-19 landscape, emphasising the need for effective business strategies and consumer engagement.

The purpose of this paper is to find a different perspective of interpreting a Second World War shared-heritage based on the case in Thailand.

A qualitative study was conducted at the Second World War sites in Thailand. The paper employed observation and interview of the local residents and other stakeholders at the site.

Conventional interpretation of the Second World War sites in Thailand predominantly focusses on two approaches with a little involvement of the local residents. One emphasizes cruelty, loss, torture, or inhumanity with strong influence of the Australian approach. Whether intentionally or unintentionally, such interpretation could point out the culprit and gives audiences enmity against the loser of the war. Another politically underscores a strong connection between Thailand and Japan by presenting romanticized stories of wartime. The paper suggests that the way to bring Second World War shared-heritage site to life is to put an emphasis on the voice of the local residents rather than focussing on political agenda.

The argument and recommendation raised in this paper will be particularly useful for the local residents and those who are involved in heritage management field. It would contribute to the better understanding and respect among people with different cultural backgrounds.

The paper is the first study of a different view of the interpretation of Second World War shared-heritage. The argument raised in the paper would lead to a wider discussion among heritage professionals.

This study aims to investigate what the crucial elements are when it comes to using a mascot to brand a destination. This study applies the proposed framework of “mascot usage for destination branding” to two mascot cases, namely, Kumamon and Sukjai. In particular, the Kumamon mascot is first investigated, looking at how it is used to promote Kumamoto, one of the key cities in Kyushu, Japan. Sukjai, another mascot, is then analysed in a similar light. The dominant factors that lead to the success of Kumamon mascot are analysed on the case of Sukjai mascot. The disparity between the two mascot cases allows for a better understanding of the dimensions and practices or lack thereof, that can occur in mascot creation and implementation.

A qualitative methodology is applied, and thematic and content analyses are applied to the three data sources, namely, secondary data collection from different data sources in the English and Japanese languages; researcher onsite observation in Kumamoto; and an in-depth interview with purposive sampling experts.

The findings indicate that according to the proposed framework, Kumamon has shown all three elements of the framework, namely, promoting destination identity and personality, creating differentiation for the location and having strong stakeholder involvement. On the other hand, these elements were found not to be as strong in the Sukjai case. The findings from the case comparison determine several underlining factors, including the national culture, which can help or hinder in laying the groundwork for the successful application of a mascot in destination branding.

This study complements the previous literature on mascot branding and elaborates on the framework of mascot usage for destination branding based on a combination of the three proposed elements.

The challenges of both community-based and heritage tourism result in significant impacts that have occurred in many tourist areas. These negative effects are the main problems that damage indigenous communities and are involved with cultural heritage preservation and economic development. This study aims to apply a qualitative method to scrutinize the problems and their causes in a community.

This study applied a qualitative method to scrutinize the actual data. The 50 informants from the relevant stakeholder groups of Ban Wangka village were interviewed with 22 themed questions based on the indicators of sustainable cultural heritage destinations.

Results indicate that tourism development at Ban Wangka village faces significant challenges due to the conflict between economic development and cultural heritage preservation.

The limitations also exist. First, the Mon people use their own language which resulted in the need for an interpreter during interviews. Therefore, sometimes it was impossible for the researcher to access the informants’ actual emotions. Second, this study is based on the concept of sustainable tourism development, which is an abstract idea to the local people, and thus Mon people understand it but are never concerned. Finally, this study focused only on the Mon community, which is not enough to fully achieve sustainability. Therefore, the community from the Thai side of the river must also be involved.

Such challenges have a direct impact on the sustainability of tourism operations. This indicates that the problems will lead to serious conflicts in the future unless they are resolved gently. The Ban Wangka Mon village is faced with problems that are not very different from other tourist attractions in Thailand, especially the intense growth during this time, which has brought significant changes to the destination. Subsequently, conflicts arose easily and quickly because of the motivational power of income. To overcome these problems, the community needs to be strong in fighting against the influence of tourism income.

The challenges of the destination have a direct impact on the sustainability of tourism operations. This indicates that the problems will lead to serious conflicts in the future if they are not resolved. Ban Wangka Mon village is faced with problems that are not very different from other tourist attractions in Thailand, To overcome these problems, the community needs to be strong in fighting against the influence of tourism income. In addition, good tourism planning that places importance on all stakeholders equally and providing a balanced income management plan and a fair share of income will surely eliminate many of the conflicts.

This case study of Ban Wangka Mon Village is based on the theory of sustainable tourism development, which contains three dimensions: environmental, economic and social and ethical. All impacts from tourism at Ban Wangka Mon village can be summarized into four challenges consisting of severe tourism growth, economic growth conflict, identity deterioration and behavioral changes. Some of these challenges are similar to other destinations such as the Vlorë Region.

This chapter reports findings from a qualitative case study of principals and assistant school principals in southern Thailand who work in areas targeted by Muslim separatist groups. Principals and assistant school principals discussed the pressures they experienced working in an area of conflict and the requirements placed upon them by the Thai Ministry of Education (MoE). This study emphasizes the importance of social context to school leadership and career development. Findings suggested that the MoE’s centralized practice of policy implementation has particular consequences on the development of principals in the three border provinces because it fails to take into account the unstable social context. Consequently, many teachers working to become principals and principals wanting to become senior principals find themselves unable to meet the requirements and resort to unethical practices to achieve promotion.