Co-Creating Experiential Tourism in Community Contexts: A Participatory Approach to Designing Professional Skill Development Toolkits for Local Interpreters

Experience-based tourism has grown in importance within the current tourism environment, with a focus on providing meaningful, authentic and immersive experiences that are jointly created by visitors and the destinations in question. In this regard, local interpretation plays a vital role in turning the resources of the community into engaging and memorable experiences. However, limited research has systematically connected community identity, co-creation processes, and the skills required by local interpreters, particularly in community-based tourism. The present study has two aims: (1) to examine the assets associated with community-based experiential tourism and (2) to develop a prototype competency-development toolkit for local interpreters based on the qualitative findings. A qualitative research approach was employed, involving in-depth interviews, participant observation, and participatory workshops with key parties including local interpreters, community leaders and practitioners. The data were analyzed using content, thematic, and interpretive analysis to identify recurring patterns, themes, and context-specific meanings. The results revealed three main findings. First, seven dimensions of destination identity were identified: natural resources, organic agricultural production systems, community lifestyles, local wisdom, community culture, experiential activities, and community products and economy. These dimensions contribute to the formation of community identity. Second, the findings identified stakeholder participation, knowledge exchange, and experience design as central components of the co-creation process within the community context. Third, these findings informed the development of a prototype competency-development toolkit comprising five modules: understanding local identity, introduction to local interpreters, storytelling techniques, experience design, and communication tools and skills. Theoretically, the study contributes a context-specific explanation of how community identity, co-creation, and interpretation competencies can be integrated within community-based experiential tourism. Practically, the study provides a context-specific prototype toolkit intended to support future capacity-building for local interpreters and the development of community-based experiential tourism. Its effectiveness and longer-term contributions to visitor outcomes and sustainability require further empirical investigation.