Exploring the Role of Community Tourism in Sustainable Destination Development - the Case of Římov

Growing concerns in the tourism industry have brought community tourism to the forefront as a potential solution. Community tourism emerges as one of the possibilities for mitigation of tourisms negative externalities: mitigation of poverty by creating local jobs and income, cultural degradation by enabling communities to preserve and showcase local traditions, environmental damage by placing residents as stewards of their environment, and the economic imbalance of mass tourism by ensuring benefits stay within the community. This approach offers a framework for local communities to take ownership and control of their tourism development. By empowering residents, community-based tourism seeks to ensure that the benefits of tourism remain within the local area. This study includes a preliminary analysis of a small-town community tourism potential based on three semi-structured interviews with community leaders in mov, followed by a review of existing literature on community tourism to establish a foundation for future research.