The Natural Resources and Environment and Tourism and Sports ministries have agreed not to limit the number of tourists visiting Phu Thap Boek, the mountain attraction in Phetchabun province, despite concerns over a surge in visitors.
The ministries came to their conclusion at a meeting Monday to tackle the problem in Lom Kao district of the province.
"Actually, we would like to control the number of tourists at Phu Thap Boek but we do not want to destroy the tourism atmosphere which is gaining momentum," said Natural Resources and Environment Minister Surasak Karnjanarat.
"We are finding compromise measures which will help Phu Thap Boek develop sustainably," he said.
"Phu Thap Boek might be popular this year, but maybe not next year due to more rubbish, a deterioration in facilities and water shortages," Gen Surasak said.
Such problems could arise because of poor management, he said.
As a result, agencies need to work together to complete a master plan for the area's management within three months.
The minister said the plan will be designed to promote sustainable development and maintain a balance between tourism and nature.
The ministry will ban the construction of more resorts until the plan is complete.
Existing structures that are found to be legal will have to be renovated to match local nature and culture and strengthened to boost safety.
According to a report by an engineering team in Phetchabun provice, the structures of all 62 existing resorts in Phu Thap Boek are sub-standard and unsafe for tourists.
Tourism and Sports Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul said the ministry will support a plan to try and boost sustainable tourism in the area by promoting the Hmong ethnic minority's identity so it can be passed on to future generations.
She said the ministry has agreed that further construction of facilities must be undertaken to strike a balance between development and preservation of nature.
Regarding any measures to curb the number of tourists, the tourism minister said limitations on road infrastructure to the mountainous area are a key factor that will automatically reduce tourist numbers. "They will not be happy spending several hours in a car to reach their destination," she said, referring to traffic jams on the road to Phu Thap Boek on the weekend.
"We [the Tourism Ministry] do not want to promote only one tourist site. Please do not pack into only one site. We have still many beautiful places to go," she said.