Introduction Cultural tourism with community involvement can serve as a sustainable driver of local economic improvement. However, despite the growing recognition of its potential, there remains a limited empirical understanding of how sustainable tourism governance can be operationalized to strengthen the empowerment of traditional arts communities, which face unique challenges in balancing cultural preservation and economic viability. This research aims to explore the empowerment of local Reog arts communities and develop a governance-based empowerment model for sustainable cultural tourism. Methods A qualitative approach using an interactive analytical model was employed. Primary data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 20 informants, complemented by participatory observation and document analysis. Results The results indicate that the empowerment of local arts communities remains suboptimal due to limited access to information, uneven participation, and low organizational capacity. Discussion Sustainable tourism governance characterized by clear policies, multi-stakeholder collaboration, integrity, and communication platforms is necessary to enhance information flow, community participation, and institutional capacity. The study proposes an empowerment model demonstrating that robust governance mechanisms can strengthen local arts communities as cultural tourism actors.
Kinasih et al. (2026) studied this question.