Easy way to boost Thai tourism: improve national parks

South Korea is five times smaller than Thailand with 60 per cent covered by mountains. The great thing is that admission to national parks is never more than US$5 (Bt170), and free in some cases. Also, buses take you right to the entrance of almost every national park. There are numerous, well-maintained walking trails that lead to the peak in each park. Some even have cable cars. 
 Now contrast this with Thailand. The entrance fees for national parks here are usually at least Bt400 – for foreigners, anyway. If you don’t use your own vehicle, you will be lucky to find a songthaew that drops you even within a few kilometres of the entrance, let alone the actual park. And once there, you will be encouraged to get a tour guide or some vehicle to get the top, as the few walking trails that do exist are poorly maintained and do not have clear directions. 
Like South Korea, Thailand has many mountains, but unlike South Korea, the potential of its national parks is not being maximised. Thailand could attract even more visitors if its national parks were taken better care of. 
Paul