Perceived benefits and socio-environmental pressures of urban service tourism in Hat Yai, Thailand

Abstract

Border cities often pursue service-led tourism because visitor spending supports accommodation, transport, food, retail and leisure. The same demand may also intensify pollution, living costs and pressure on urban land. This study provides a 2025 post-pandemic descriptive update on perceived socioeconomic and environmental impacts of service tourism in Hat Yai, Thailand. A cross-sectional questionnaire survey covered 300 respondents recruited through purposive and snowball procedures, with equal quotas of residents, tourism operators and domestic/international tourists (n = 100 each). Responses were analysed descriptively and pooled across stakeholder groups. The sample was young (64.0% aged 18–25), predominantly female (62.3%), and 59.0% held at least a bachelor’s degree; students formed 47.7%. Most respondents perceived economic benefits: 91.3% agreed or strongly agreed that tourism increased residents’ income, and the same proportion perceived improved living standards. However, 72.0% also agreed that tourism increased living costs. Tourism-related pollution was reported by 76.0%, and 62.0% perceived damage to green areas; 95.0% reported that conservation efforts were present. These findings describe a coexistence of perceived economic benefits and social-environmental pressures among surveyed respondents. Because the study uses non-probability sampling and pooled descriptive results, it neither represents Hat Yai’s wider populations nor establishes differences between stakeholder groups. The findings point to policy considerations including benefit-sharing, affordability monitoring, lower-emission mobility, waste management and protection of urban green space; the study did not evaluate these measures.