Digital Spatial Communication for Wellness Tourism: A GIS-Based Model for Communicating the Lifestyle Identity of Bang Kobua Community and Promoting Tourists’ Stress Relief in Krapao Moo, Phra Pradaeng District, Samut Prakan Province, Thailand

Abstract

This study aimed to: (1) identify community-based wellness tourism routes in Bang Kobua Subdistrict, Phra Pradaeng District, Samut Prakan Province, Thailand; (2) develop a geographic information system (GIS) to support wellness tourism promotion; and (3) evaluate the effectiveness of the developed system. The study adopted a developmental research design grounded in the Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC) framework. Research instruments included the GIS-based wellness tourism platform, a system quality assessment form, a user satisfaction questionnaire, and a technology acceptance questionnaire based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). The sample comprised five experts in information technology and computer science and 411 tourists selected through simple random sampling, of whom 338 were male and 73 were female. Data were analyzed using mean and standard deviation. The findings revealed four community wellness tourism attractions and two tourism routes, namely land-based and water-based routes. The developed GIS incorporated five core functions: wellness tourism destination database management, route management, destination search, destination information display, and route visualization via Google Maps. The evaluation results demonstrated that the quality of the information system the highest level (x̄ = 4.56), the effectiveness of users with the information system was at a high level (x̄ = 4.42) and the analysis of user acceptance of the health tourism information system was also at a high level (x̄ = 4.33). These findings indicate that GIS can function as an effective digital spatial platform for organizing, communicating, and promoting community wellness tourism. The study contributes practical evidence on how geospatial technologies can strengthen destination visibility, improve access to location-based tourism information, and support digitally mediated wellness experiences in community-based tourism settings.