Sustainable Tourism Scheme for Unspoilt Coastal District
An unspoiled corner of the Gulf of Thailand has launched an ambitious scheme to attract visitors without losing the charms that bring them in the first place.

Kung Wiman — “Heaven on Earth in Thai” is a tiny whale’s tail peninsula about 220 kilometres from Bangkok, and it has it all. It boasts some of the most scenic landscapes in eastern Thailand. The lush province of Chanthaburi is known as the ‘fruit basket of Thailand’. Local orchards are famous for a range of tropical fruits such as durian, rambutan, papaya, mangosteen, longkong, rose apples and salacca. Furthermore, every day a fishing fleet catches what the locals claim is the tastiest and freshest seafood in the country.

At one end of the whale’s tail, the fishing village overlooks the mangrove fringed bay of Kung Kraben while at the other, forested hills hill snuggle up to the water’s edge. In the middle, which is one of the high points of the peninsula, a tall standing Buddha watches the sun as it rises over the Cambodian mountains in the east and as it sinks into the Gulf of Thailand.

For centuries the people of Kung Wiman have lived off the sea and the forest and today they still do, supplementing their income with cash from rubber plantations, orchards and shrimp farms.

Until recently, tourists visiting Kung Wiman have mainly been local day trippers and weekend visitors from Bangkok and the Eastern seaboard. However its scenic beauty has also attracted film-makers and a newly established resort Faasai Resort and Spa which is targeting foreign and Thai travellers interested in eco- tourism, adventure, cultural activities or spa treatments.

Owned and operated by Bronwen Evans and Surin Laopha, Faasai Resort and Spa has been working in collaboration with local authorities to help promote tourism in order to boost the local economy. Both agreed that tourism growth needed to be sustainable and targeted at niche rather than mass market travellers in order to enhance, rather than detract from the natural advantages of Kung Wiman.

Their sustainable tourism goals include supporting the protection of natural areas and resources, provide interpretive and educational features for visitors, target small groups of travellers, and provide employment for the host community through giving them jobs, buying local ingredients and using local people as tour guides.

Bronwen Evans, whose native New Zealand is renowned for its adventure and nature tourism, says she believes Kung Wiman has great potential, “I love nature but I found it surprisingly difficult to experience it in Thailand as most places aren’t set up for it. Here at Kung Wiman it’s great for walking, running and cycling. Our unique location combines coastal breezes, mountain mists and a warm temperate climate so there is real biodiversity and amazing plants, insects and animals to marvel at.”

Bronwen says developing sustainable tourism is a difficult challenge because once a place is "discovered” there’s often a boom which means development can get out of control however she says there are a number of points in Kung Wiman’s favour. The geographic locality is small, the local government is committed to caring for the environment, and the travel trend for today is for travellers to be discriminating and look for different kinds of holidays.

“Many people want the fun of backpacking but they also like comfort, so what we offer is a civilised adventure — one that creates lots of memories but doesn’t put too much pressure on the environment.”

Contact information
Faasai Resort and Spa
Tel: +66 (0) 3941 7404
E-mail: info@faasai.com
Web site: www.faasai.com