A critique of community-based tourism development: The comparative case of Betong and Pho Tak Districts, Thailand

Abstract

Community-based tourism (CBT) promotes a model for enhancing communities’ social, environmental, and economic needs upheld as a post-Covid-19 revival strategy. This study aimed to critically review the model following longitudinal fieldwork in Thailand. “Reflection-in-action” methodology exposes CBT failings against sustainable development goals (SDGs). CBT falsely assumes: communities possess necessary capability for effective implementation; structural equity exists among host, and hosts possess uninhibited local control over their tourism assets. Such expositions underpin the study’s contributions: a supply-side focus on “community outputs” rather than the demand-side “expectations” of tourists; contradictions to known asset-based development assumptions; and theoretical extension to the CBT literature through critique to onsite experiences against sustainable development goals. Such may assist communities to move beyond their current “constraints” focus to that of “contextual experts” in local community assets. The study demonstrates a need for research, practice, and policy stakeholders to move CBT beyond theorization to a genuine sustainability tool.