The Commodification of the Community. Ethical Problems of Community-Based Tourism

The objective of this research is to analyse the ethical problems of Community-Based Tourism (CBT). CBT is a novel form of tourism that has appeared in recent decades in different parts of the world, especially in areas with large indigenous populations. The investigations until now have primarily highlighted the virtues of this type of tourism, and the few criticisms that have appeared against CBT were related to its functional shortcomings and the benefits that sometimes do not reach the communities. While the ethical complications associated with the CBT have not gone unnoticed, in this article we address some ethical problems of the CBT that have not received as much attention so far -such as those related to the field of indigenous ethics-, that demand a deep reflection on the commercial use of communities.