Ten royal projects initiated by the late King Bhumibol will be promoted by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) as alternative destinations, to generate income for local residents.
The state tourism agency said it will launch a new promotion campaign to give visitors a chance to appreciate King Bhumibol's wisdom on the sufficiency economy principle and his efforts to protect the environment.
The 10 selected pilot projects are in six provinces, and represent all regions -- Chiang Mai, Buri Ram, Ratchaburi and Nakhon Pathom, Rayong and Nakhon Si Thammarat.
The TAT said the campaign will promote five routes. It considered the two projects in Nakhon Pathom and Ratchaburi as one combined destination.
It also hoped local people would benefit from more tourists visiting their communities.
The agency said more royal projects could be added in the future. (continues below)
"They will be new alternative destinations for tourists, who will also be encouraged to respect and understand the local communities and people," TAT governor Yuthasak Supasorn said.
TAT promotes secondary destinations in the hope of convincing local and foreign visitors to put less popular provinces on their destination map.
Tourism accounts for about 10% of gross domestic product.