The Impact of Online User-Generated Reviews on Thai Tourist Arrivals in Major and Secondary Tourist Destinations
Keywords:
Consumer Price Index, Major and Secondary Destinations, User-Generated ContentAbstract
This research aims to investigate (1) the impact of online user-generated reviews on Thai tourist arrivals in major and secondary tourist destinations (2) the impacts of economic and environmental factors on the number of Thai tourists in major and secondary tourist destinations and (3) a comparison of the impacts of online user-generated reviews and economic and environmental factors between major and secondary tourist destinations. A quantitative research approach was employed using annual panel data collected from 10 tourist destination provinces in Thailand, comprising 5 major tourist destinations and 5 secondary tourist destinations, covering the period from 2015 to 2024. The dependent variable was the number of Thai tourists. The independent variables included the Consumer Price Index, employment, average maximum temperature, and online user-generated reviews. The review data were extracted through web scraping from TripAdvisor, Google Maps, and Facebook. Sentiment analysis was conducted using PyThaiNLP to transform textual data into quantitative sentiment scores. The Random Effects Model (REM) was employed for data analysis, and the Hausman test was applied to verify model appropriateness.
The results indicated that the Consumer Price Index had a significantly positive effect on the number of Thai tourists in both major and secondary tourist destinations. Employment levels showed a significantly positive impact only in secondary tourist destinations, while average maximum temperature had a significant positive effect exclusively in major tourist destinations. Online user-generated reviews demonstrated a positive impact in secondary tourist destinations and a negative impact in major tourist destinations; however, these effects were not statistically significant. The findings highlight the differences in tourism demand determinants across regions, suggesting that tourism promotion policies should be tailored to the specific context of each destination. Additionally, systematic online content management strategies should be developed to support sustainable and high-quality growth in the tourism industry.
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