Pride Month: June 27 webinar on advancing LGBTQIA+ travel. Free to attend

WeTravel will conclude Pride month by hosting a free Advancing LGBTQIA+ Travel webinar for the travel industry to learn how to operate their business all year for a more inclusive industry.

The one-hour webinar on June 27 at Noon EST features panellists from Peru’s tourism board, PromPeru, IGLTA and Out Adventures and will dive into how tour operators, travel pros, tourism boards and DMCs can immediately action change within their business through marketing, operations, and stakeholder relations in support of the global LGBTQIA+ travel community.

“Although Pride month is a time to celebrate with intention the LGBTQIA+ community, we remember that Pride is rooted in protest and rebellion and, while many strides have been made for inclusivity, some travel experiences are still unavailable to the LGBTQIA+ travel community,” said Keri Pfeiffer, WeTravel’s head of account management and webinar host. “As we join together—showing our allyship with the LGBTQIA+ community—we recognize that more must be done for inclusivity, this isn’t a month-long commitment, but a systematic change to how we operate travel.”

Pent-up demand

A study on post-COVID travel from the IGLTA found that, among those surveyed, there is a pent-up demand from the LGBTQIA+ travel community, with 73 per cent of respondents stating they booked an adventure in 2021.

The LGBTQIA+ travel community accounts for $3.9 trillion in purchasing power worldwide, each year, according to LGBT Capital.

READ MORE: Almost half of LGBTQ+ travellers report discrimination while travelling, study says

However, nearly 70 countries, including Middle East and some Caribbean countries, still criminalize homosexuality and transphobia is still prevalent, according to Human Rights Watch.

“There is a strong demand from LGBTQIA+ travellers to see the world, yet there are still some destinations and activities that are more challenging for the community to experience,” said Pfeiffer. “As an industry, we have to be more intentional in change, the purpose of this webinar is to learn from businesses that have made incredible change in the industry.”

To join the conversation, with Santiago Aguirre-Montoya (he/they) from IGLTA, Cecilia Berrocal (she/her), PromPeru, and Scott Marquardt (he/his) from Out Adventures, click here.

The hour will consist of three presentations from the panellists, with an open-forum question and answer to follow. All registrants will receive to their inbox a recording after the webinar.

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