Explorations in Thai Tourism (Tourism Social Science)

the long version

"Erik Cohen, who has published extensively on Thai tourism, turns in this volume to some new, and as yet unexplored, topics. In a wide-ranging series of detailed case studies, he examines the intricacies of tourism dynamics on the micro-level in Thailand: tourism in the tsunami disaster; the prolonged struggle regarding the filming of "The Beach" on pristine Maya beach; the "postmodern" mitigation of the conflicting explanations of the Mekong fireballs; the transformation of a backpacker enclave in northern Thailand; the process by which the Thai elephant became a tourist plaything; the Thai cowboy sub-culture as a tourist attraction; the rapidly growing medical tourism to Thailand; and the manner Santa Claus was turned into a tourist on Thai Christmas cards. Each study is placed within a broader theoretical and comparative framework. The case studies are based on a wide variety of sources, including interviews, observations and printed material.The book is an original contribution to the anthropology of tourism, and to the growing field of Thai studies."--BOOK JACKET.