Abstract

Volunteer tourism is viewed by most people as exploitation in the form of social assistance, and events are held to attract tourists’ attention; because of this authentic experiences for tourists have been lost. The objective of this research is to study the context of Volunteer Tourism management by non-government organizations (NGOs) in the northeastern region of Thailand. This research, however, objects to these previous beliefs owing to the extent of involvement of the NGOs. They have operated closer to the communities and focused on the value that tourists obtain, rather than taking advantage of the benefits that can result from volunteer activities. Tourism management is based on authenticity. A volunteer tourism program - stemming from the communities’ needs, builds up a relationships with them by providing tourists with real information therefore, tourists have a freedom to travel. These steps help make the work of NGOs easier, as “frontage creation” fades away gradually. New perceptions of tourism, seamlessly adding value to communities and meaningful experiences for tourists have thus been created.

Key words: Authenticity, tourism experience, NGOs management, volunteer tourism, community.