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Worldwide tourism sector has grown and contributed to the economy and development in many ways. Community-base Tourism (CBT) is the crucial source of community development in Thailand which was hardly impacted by the pandemic. This study aims to understand how CBT in Thailand adjusted themselves to the change in tourism under COVID-19 situation and how they adapted under the impacts of COVID-19 using Sufficiency Economy Philosophy (SEP). This study uses qualitative approach by conducting in-depth interview key stakeholders of successful CBT in 4 regions of Thailand. These CBT communities reveal that the applications and practices of SEP within the context community-based tourism can be conceptualized into 4 Cs Model which include 1 Cooperation and Governance, 2 Communitization for local Development, 3 Coping local Problems and 4 Conservation of Community Resource. For SEP during COVID-19, SEP has helped community to continue their CBT operation in many different ways, such that it helped people to foresee and understand the situation with moderation perspectives so local people could be prepared for the impact of the pandemic. With the hard time, people in communities kept their patience and perseverance in waiting on bounce back to the steady of tourism to the similar or nearby before pandemic. These show their virtue, the awareness of honesty, patience perseverance, and intelligence in leading one’s life, which is the one of SEP condition. This study could provide benefit and understanding in apply SEP into CEP for the level of academic, community and national level.
Keywords: Community-based tourism, sufficiency economy philosophy, resilience, COVID-19