Potential Thai tourist segmentation to reduce dependency on foreign tourists highlighted by the COVID-19 crisis

Tourism is highly vulnerable to both internal and external factors ranging from political crises, natural disasters, and disease outbreaks. The popularity of Thai tourism has substantially increased over the last decade with international tourist arrivals exceeding 40 million in 2019. However, the COVID-19 pandemic severely impacted Thai tourism and international travel plunged. This article studied the segmentation of potential Thai tourists to replace the downturn in foreign tourists after the COVID-19 crisis using both quantitative and qualitative research methodology. Data were collected using a questionnaire from 1,200 Thai tourists aged 20 years and over, earning more than 50,000 baht per month, and living in provinces with municipal administration and populations of more than 1 million. Data from the questionnaire were incorporated with information gained from in-depth interviews with 41 key informants who were representatives of national tourism agencies. The results of K-means cluster analysis, behavioral analysis, and crosschecking with national tourism agencies showed that high-end domestic tourists could be divided into three groups as Trend Escape, Fun Escape, and Away Escape. This research promoted quality domestic market tourism as a stabilization measure to increase tourism income, while also reducing the economic risks of relying on international tourists.