Development and Upgrading Products of Health Tourism to Support Elderly Tourists in a World Heritage City for Elderly Tourists (Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya District)

Abstract

         The goals of this article are as follows: 1) to research the patterns and products of health tourism in World Heritage Cities for elderly tourists; 2) to research the factors influencing demand for health tourism in World Heritage Cities for elderly tourists; and 3) to develop and improve health tourism to support senior citizens in World Heritage Cities for elderly tourists. This research is a Mixed Methods Research. There were two types of data collection tools: quantitative research tools and qualitative research tools. For quantitative research, a questionnaire was used to collect data from a random sample of 410 people using purposive sampling. The data were then analyzed by independent statistics, ANOVA, t-test, and F-test. For qualitative research, semi-structured interviews were used for in-depth interviews, small group discussions, and focus group discussions. Data triangulation is then used to validate the information. The results showed that

         1) The patterns and products of health tourism in World Heritage Cities discovered by elderly tourists can be divided into three main categories: (1) Thai food and dessert products; (2) herbal products; and (3) decorative products 

         2) The preferred forms of tourism activities for health tourism in World Heritage cities for elderly tourists were the consumption of bio-organic food or beverage service in restaurants, followed by the demand for natural herbal inhaler services, respectively.

         3) The product that meets the needs of elderly tourists from the result of the process model of developing and upgrading health tourism, which is Mexican mint products, Mexican mint balm, and mulberry tea.    

         The research findings contribute to the development and enhancement of medical tourism, including helping to increase the value of the community's foundation economy, and the community can use these findings to further develop other products.