Although empowerment plays an essential role in sustainable tourism development, most empowerment research in the tourism literature has been focused on the non-economic dimensions. Building on the typology of power (i.e., Power over, Power to, Power within, and Power with), this study explored and accessed economic empowerment in the context of tourism development in rural communities. Specifically, we investigated how economic empowerment or disempowerment occurred among individuals and communities. The four dimensions of power were presented as a process of change that transformed the lives of rural community members through tourism development. The findings indicated that tourism development can facilitate/hinder the process whereby tourism stakeholders in rural communities are transformed from having limited access and power to experiencing economic advancement and enhanced power. Also, the findings revealed that collaboration within the community can facilitate attaining the power of community members in the economic domain. Discussion and implementation are also presented.