Research & Article

This paper presents a study of the willingness to pay by the Thai population to preserve historic temples in Chiang Saen, an ancient city in Chiang Rai Province, Thailand. The temples are facing degradation and deterioration from natural disasters such as storms, earthquakes and human activities. This study aimed to determine the factors that affected willingness to pay by the population to preserve cultural heritage in Chiang Saen and investigate the concept of willingness to pay and its attributions. The contingent valuation method was applied to conduct an economic assessment of non-market values for the preservation of ancient temples. Results indicated that Thai people have a positive and optimistic perception and attitude towards cultural heritage in Chiang Saen ancient city and most respondents stated their willingness to pay for a preservation programme. The logit model demonstrated that the determinants of bid amount, gender, income, age and education level significantly influenced the willingness to pay. This willingness to pay analysis will be advantageous for decision-making on how best to preserve cultural heritage effectively and efficiently.