Fonte: ROTUR. Revista de Ocio y Turismo; Vol. 15 No. 2 (2021); 146-167
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Resumo: Community-based tourism reinforces the practice of sustainable tourism within traditional communities as an innovative, socio-productive local arrangement. The aim of this study is to identify the potential and limitations of tourism development in two communities in Barreirinhas (Maranhão), classed as community-based experiences by the official tourism body in the region. The article also examines how communities are marketed by the local tourism sector and whether the experiences in question are actually governed by the principles of community-based tourism. The research uses an exploratory-descriptive qualitative (categorical) approach. The potential of the area includes the proximity of the national park, the professional development of young people and tradespeople, the persistence of traditional subsistence practices, and income diversification. The limiting factors are the rapid influx of tourists, the disorderly construction of hotels, the expropriation of native people, and decreased fishing activity, among others. Greater collaboration between communities and more sustainable tourism management are needed in order to create genuinely community-based experiences, maximise the area’s potential, and minimise its limitations.
