The constantly growing tourism sector does not only bring economic well-being to host communities but also raises environmental and social questions. Communities increasingly experience negative impacts that strain their social, cultural, and ecological living environments. We investigate the potential of a more relational, action-oriented research approach for tourism: Participatory Action Research (PAR). Results show that PAR has the potential to actively involve tourism-affected communities in the decision-making processes that impact their living environments and facilitate them in co-creating community-specific initiatives for sustainable change. Yet, the current role of conventional research approaches hinders PAR in developing its full potential.