From community-based to community-led tourism: community stakeholder responsibilisation in times of transition

Purpose Research on community tourism recognises the value of community stakeholder involvement, yet limited attention has been paid to how these stakeholders navigate transitions from top-down to bottom-up governance under conditions of declining institutional support. This study aims to examine how community stakeholders respond to transitionary periods and theorises how these responses reshape community-led tourism. Design/methodology/approach The study draws on an ethnography of a long-standing community festival in a post-industrial Scottish town, combining netnography, ethnographic observation, and 46 interviews with community stakeholders. Findings Findings identify three processes of community responsibilisation – enduring discontent, enforced responsibility and embedded responsibility – that community stakeholders negotiate during transitioning from community-based to community-led tourism. These processes are driven by conditions of institutional withdrawal that trigger reactive and proactive approaches to co-producing community festivals. Research limitations/implications The study is based on a single case of a specific cultural festival within a single geographical context, which may limit transferability to other forms of community tourism or governance arrangements. Practical implications The findings highlight how institutional withdrawal reshapes event-related responsibilities and may overburden communities. Monitoring fatigue, declining volunteer capacity, funding fragility and sustained discontent can help mitigate risks and support the sustainability of community-led events. Originality/value This study theorises the transition from community-based to community-led tourism as a process of community responsibilisation. This transitional perspective advances understanding of how institutional withdrawal redistributes responsibility to community stakeholders. It contributes to community tourism research by rebalancing celebratory narratives of community tourism to reveal a darker side of how responsibilisation empowers yet constrains communities.