What do you picture when you think of Thailand? Is it the pristine white sand beaches and crystal-clear waters fringed with tropical palm trees of the south? Or perhaps the lush jungles and misty mountains of the north? Maybe it’s the bustling markets, tasty street food and vibrant lights amidst the skyscrapers of Bangkok?
Yet, there’s a side of Thailand that many travellers aren’t aware of: where vibrant, self-sustaining local communities offer authentic cultural experiences through community-based tourism (CBT). On a recent trip to Thailand, I had the privilege of exploring a lesser-touristed side of Thailand, discovering a type of travel unlike any I had experienced before.
Community-based tourism allows travellers to immerse themselves in local culture, support sustainable practices, and directly contribute to the well-being of the communities they visit. It’s a win-win for both tourists and locals, providing an experience that’s often far more meaningful than the typical tourist trail. This form of travel has so much potential for those of us seeking genuine, off-the-beaten-path adventures away from overcrowded and commercialised attractions.
However, despite the best intentions, finding truly authentic community-led experiences as a foreign tourist can be challenging. Potential visitors may face other hurdles such as language barriers or transportation issues in rural areas where many of these communities are based.
In this guide, I’ll share what exactly CBT is, its benefits and what to expect from these authentic travel experiences in Thailand.
What is Community-Based Tourism?
Let’s first explore what community-based tourism is, as I didn’t fully appreciate the nuances before my trip.
Essentially, CBT is a form of tourism where the money earned directly benefits the entire community. The community could be a village, cooperative or collective, with the goal being the community controls and decides how to use the financial gains.
CBT involves the active participation of community members in creating and managing tourism activities, ensuring that tourism development is sustainable. The types of activities often include cooking local food, visiting local markets, engaging with traditional artisans, participating in community activities, or staying in local homestays.
Unlike typical tourism, where such activities might simply occur within a community, CBT ensures they are managed by and for the benefit of the community itself. Ultimately, the money spent by tourists stays within the community, rather than going to large, and often international, companies. This financial independence helps protect local people from exploitative situations that can arise from over-tourism.
The benefits of CBT go beyond the obvious direct financial gain, with other benefits including:
- Cultural Preservation: Supporting and preserving local culture for future generations
- Community Empowerment: Empowering communities to make business decisions that benefit their people
- Discourages Over-Tourism: Providing alternative destinations for tourists and reducing pressure on popular tourist spots
- Cultural Awareness: Increases tourists’ awareness and knowledge of other cultures
- Environmental Sustainability: Promoting environmentally friendly and sustainable activities
By seeking out CBT, travellers can enjoy authentic cultural experiences while contributing positively to the communities they visit, making their trips more meaningful and impactful.
What to Expect from Community-Based Tourism Experiences in Thailand
Over three days, I visited three different tourism communities in the lesser-known Samut Songkhram and Phetchaburi provinces, about 1.5 and 2 hours south of Bangkok respectively.
While each community had their own unique offerings, there was a common theme of engaging in hands-on cultural activities, often involving cooking – as one might expect in a country renowned for its incredible foodie offerings!
Here’s a quick summary of what we experienced at each destination to give you a flavour of what to expect:
Baan Rim Klong Homestay
My first foray into CBT was at Baan Rim Klong Homestay. Located on a peaceful riverbank in the Samut Songkhram province, it is easily visitable on a day trip from Bangkok.
After a refreshing coconut, we dove right into our first activity: making Khanom Tom, a tasty coconut ball dessert. But the cooking didn’t end there, as we prepared what I am claiming as the best Pad Thai I have ever tasted, whipped up over a sizzling hot wok.
Shifting to crafts, we wove snazzy grass hats and grass animals before trying our hand at natural tie-dye using coconut palm. We rounded out the visit with a farm tour, where over 80 litres of coconut sap are collected daily and used to make candy and other products.
Most of the community members didn’t speak English, except for the lady owner, who mentioned that they accept bookings through their Facebook page or through local travel agents in Bangkok for those interested in a day trip or overnight immersion. We also got a peek at the homestay accommodation available on the property.
For 800 baht (about 20 USD or 30 AUD), you can stay in a solar-powered riverside bungalow equipped with air conditioning and a small private bathroom, with breakfast included. For 2500 baht, an all-inclusive booking includes five cultural activities and all home-cooked meals, for a deeper cultural immersion.
Baan Tham Suea Homestay
The following day took us to the furthest homestay on our list, about 2.5 hours from Bangkok. Driving through the countryside, I felt like we were heading to the middle of nowhere until we reached the lush green banks of the winding Phetchaburi River and arrived at the bustling Baan Tham Suea Homestay.
Translating to Tiger Cave Homestay, we learned from the community leader that the homestay was initially set up 12 years ago with a 40 million baht loan from the government through the Thailand Tree Bank – an innovative system where the trees on the property are used as collateral for the loan. Encompassing over 1,200 acres of farmland, no chemicals are used on the crops, and the property supports over 170 families from the village.
Cultural activities on offer include learning to make crispy coconut rolls (Thong Muan), pandan-coated salted eggs, river rafting, and my personal favourite, making seed bombs for reforestation. After assembling the tree seeds in clay, we were transported to another part of the property, armed with slingshots, and shot our seed bombs into the forest.
Another highlight was meeting a lively 72-year-old coconut roll master who taught us her craft. She demonstrated how to make the pancake-like mixture of rice flour, coconut milk, sugar, and eggs, with coriander added for a savoury touch. She expertly cooked the mixture on metal pans over an open charcoal flame, inspecting them with trained precision before deftly rolling the hot pancake around a stick and beckoning us to taste the hot, fresh treat.
Guests can camp on the peaceful riverbanks at Baan Tham Suea Homestay or stay in nearby accommodations. We saw beautiful villas and tree houses nestled on the banks of the river while rafting downstream, offering more luxurious options while still appreciating the cultural experiences and peaceful natural environment.
The homestay appeared popular with weekend travellers from Bangkok and nearby towns, with many locals relaxing under trees, reading books or tucking into fresh food from the weekend market stalls manned by friendly locals.
Baan Rai Krang Tourism Community
We wrapped up our cultural adventures with a visit to the Baan Rai Krang Tourism Community.
The community offers experiences centred around the humble toddy palm and its fruit. In the fields beneath a canopy of palms, we baked Khanom Tan (Toddy Palm cake), extracting thick orange syrup from the crushed palm before making cute turtle sculptures from leftover palm shell remains, an initiative created in the pursuit of reducing wastage from the palm.
In the community hall, we donned aprons and prepared Miang Kham (Betel Leaf Wrap) – a traditional Thai street food combining fresh ingredients like dried shrimp, ginger, shallots, and coriander for a spicy and tangy flavour explosion.
Tips for Travellers
It’s important to understand that the community-based tourism industry is still developing in Thailand (and globally). Many of the homestays and community villages we visited are still building their offerings for Western tourists.
Remoteness & Language Barriers
Most importantly, these destinations aren’t the easiest to reach. Little English is spoken, if at all, making a guide is essential for non-Thai speakers. You’ll likely need to organise your own transport as well. Some of the places we visited weren’t even listed on Google Maps – a rarity in this digital age!
However, for travellers interested in eco-tourism and cultural immersion, and who are up for an adventure, participating in community-based tourism in Thailand is a rewarding and unique adventure. Some places, like Baan Rim Klong Homestay, offer accommodation, or you could easily visit on a day trip from Bangkok.
The experiences outlined above would also make a great stop for travellers on the journey between Bangkok and the family-friendly beachside town of Hua Hin. All the activities we participated in would be well suited for families with children.
How to Organise
Baan Rim Klong is the only experience that can be booked online, by contacting them on Facebook. For the others, connecting with a local tour guide who can also provide transport is the most practical option for most travellers.
I recommend the tour agency we used, Absolutely Fantastic Holidays, who specialise in special interest tours and authentic cultural travel experiences. Our guide, Nam, took excellent care of us, had a wealth of knowledge about all the places we experienced and was an excellent translator for our homestay visits.
Nutty’s Adventures are also a notable leader in facilitating CBT experiences across Thailand. One of their core goals is to promote sustainable tourism throughout the region and come recommended by the Thailand tourism board.
Other Regions
It’s worth noting that other regions of Thailand offer their own CBT experiences. In Chiang Rai, Chiang Saen Social Tourism Community Enterprise and Ban Tha Khan Thong Homestay have both won awards in the Thailand Tourism Awards.
In the south, the Bang Rong village in Phuket offers a laidback cultural nature escape that feels worlds apart from the developed beachfront and bustling nightlife of the popular tourist destination.
Final Thoughts
As we made our way back to the skyscrapers and busy city streets of Bangkok, I reflected on our experiences of the last few days. From these three visits, we all gained a deeper understanding and appreciation of the culture and community of the destinations we visited.
Community-based tourism is a growing form of tourism worldwide, presenting a truly impactful opportunity for tourists seeking more authentic and sustainable travel experiences. While it can be more challenging and complex to organise than a “typical” tourist activity, CBT offers a deeper and more meaningful way for tourists to connect with a destination, its local inhabitants and their culture.
I’ll be seeking more of these experiences in my future travels across the world, and look forward to seeing the industry develop further, providing more tourists with opportunities to more readily access these authentic travel experiences that impart lasting memories of a destination.
I travelled to Thailand as a guest of the Tourism Authority of Thailand as part of their Eco-Discovery in Amazing Thailand showcase, to experience and promote responsible tourism and Thailand’s sustainable tourism offerings.