Abstract

Flooding is a natural phenomenon, although, a major hazard. During the past decades we have witnessed some of the most severe floodings, which have had damaging impacts on local communities, natural landscapes and cultural heritage sites and, as a consequence, also on the local tourism industry. Thailand is not new to flooding: the country, indeed, has always suffered from regular flooding and local communities have learnt to co-exist with the phenomenon and even to celebrate their relationship with water. However, due to the rampant urbanisation and climate change, flooding in Thailand is now becoming unpredictable and extremely dangerous, and the need for more targeted preventive and mitigating strategies is imperative. This paper aims to explore the ways in which heritage sites, in Thailand - affected by natural disasters- are perceived by tourists as well as the different ettects recent flooding has had on local heritage sites, tourism experiences and communities in Thailand.