Thailand’s Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) will introduce an e-ticketing system at marine locations, effectively barring entry by walk-in, the Bangkok Post reports.
Proposed by the State Audit Office and the National Anti-Corruption Commission, the move is meant to regulate the number of visitors and increase transparency in revenue collection.
The e-ticketing system will be rolled out first at Hat Noppharat Thara-Mu Koh Phi Phi Marine National Park in Krabi province, Ao Phangnga National Park and Mu Koh Similan National Park in Phangnga province.
Currently, there are three contenders bidding to become counter-service agents to sell e-tickets: 7-Eleven stores, Krungthai Bank, and Siam Commercial Bank.
Songtham Suksawang, director of the DNP’s National Park Office, told Bangkok Post that the bid winner – to be selected by a committee currently in the process of being set up by the department – will be announced by October.
