Tourism scholars have called for critical engagement with transformational co-creative methodologies. Within this call, there is a need for researchers to be positioned as facilitators and co-creators; rather than lone experts. We provide a critical review of the Ketso method. Ketso is a facilitated ‘workshop in a bag’; a toolkit that enables people to think and work together. Ketso can be used for data collection and as a supplementary analysis tool. Critical reflections on Ketso are provided to illustrate how it co-creates knowledge and collaborative solutions for transformational tourism. As a data collection tool, Ketso provides an innovative and authentic approach to stakeholder collaboration and decision making. As a supplementary data analysis tool, it provides an opportunity to address some of the limitations of thematic analysis such as simplicity and lack of coherence. In providing critical reflections on Ketso, we contribute to future thinking for the adoption of this co-creative method for tourism research.