Development of an Augmented Reality Cultural Tourism Application in Thung Song Junction Community, Nakhon Si Thammarat Province

Abstract

This study aimed to 1) develop an augmented reality (AR) cultural tourism application for the Thung Song Junction community, 2) evaluate the appropriateness of the content and the quality of the application, and 3) examine user satisfaction with the AR-based cultural tourism application. The sample consisted of 50 participants, including municipal officers, community leaders, local residents, and tourists visiting Thung Song District. Research instruments included the AR cultural tourism application, a content appropriateness and application quality evaluation form, and a user satisfaction assessment form. Mean and standard deviation were used for data analysis. The results revealed that the developed application can be installed on Android mobile devices and effectively presents three-dimensional virtual objects within realworld environments. The results of the evaluation of content appropriateness and application quality were at the highest level ( X =4.52, S.D. = 0.50), and user satisfaction was also at the high level ( X =4.48, S. D. =0.43). These findings indicate that the ARbased application effectively enhances cultural tourism experiences in the Thung Song Junction community.