CLASSIFICATION OF A POSITIONING STRATEGY OF NIGHT MARKETS AS SHOPPING TOURIST DESTINATION
Nealnara Wongkerd
DOI: 10.35666/25662880.2018.4.40
UDC:338.48:347.731.2”345”(593)
Abstract: Shopping at night markets is one of the most enjoyable ways for tourists who can get opportunity to getting up close local life in Thailand's capital. While tourists continually seek more diverse and rich experiences through a new adventures and new locations, night markets are spread out in most areas of the city and offer an incredibly diverse range of foods, goods and products, and entertainment. This article attempts to outline the theoretical backgrounds of night markets by introducing the views and results of the most relevant researchers in this field. First, the international literature is reviewed, then the most comprehensive case studies in night markets characteristics are introduced, finally the results of night markets case studies are outlined with a special emphasis in Bangkok. The study areas covered more than twenty night markets in Bangkok. Night markets’ characteristics and their position strategy are clustered to discern common pattern that are used in classifying night market characteristics. The contribution of this study will offer a comprehensive framework that can be used as a basis for more discussion and future research.
Key words: shopping tourism, night markets, positioning strategy, Thailand