Identifying Carbon Emission Hotspots and Low-Carbon Pathways in Tourism Supply Chains: Evidence from Northeastern Thailand

Tourism is carbon-intensive, with transport and mobility driving much of its greenhouse-gas emissions, yet destination-level evidence on carbon hotspots and decarbonization from a supply-chain perspective remains scarce, especially in developing regions. This study examines low-carbon tourism supply chain management in seven purposively selected provinces of Northeastern Thailand (Isan) using a qualitative-dominant convergent mixed-methods design that integrates demand- and supply-side evidence. A visitor survey yielded 74 open-ended responses (60 complete questionnaires), alongside seven semi-structured key-informant interviews with tourism supply chain operators across the seven provinces. Quantitative data were analyzed with descriptive statistics, and qualitative data with thematic analysis using qualitative data analysis software, drawing on code-frequency and co-occurrence analysis; the two strands were triangulated in joint displays. Visitors reported moderate satisfaction (grand mean 3.91 on a five-point scale) but rated environmental management and safety lowest, engaging with sustainability through visible service cues rather than emissions. Key informants identified perceived carbon hotspots, carrying capacity, and seasonality as dominant concerns, attributing the destination’s footprint chiefly to transport dependence (informant-reported estimates ranging from approximately 80% to nearly 100% private-car arrivals, amid limited public transport) and accommodation energy; these hotspots reflect stakeholder perceptions rather than measured emissions, as no carbon accounting, environmentally extended input–output analysis, or life-cycle assessment was conducted. Integration revealed a demand–supply perception gap and five proposed, interdependent low-carbon pathways: coordinated mobility, accommodation energy efficiency, strengthened local procurement, carrying-capacity and waste management, and multi-stakeholder governance. The findings offer a developing-region, supply-chain-oriented basis for future tourism decarbonization research and practice.