RAINBOW TOURISM

According to the Danish newspaper Copenhagen Post, a survey indicated that each dollar invested in economic activities relating to gay tourism generates $153 in revenue. As reported by the French Agence France-Presse (AFP), 15 percent of world tourism is gay friendly and gay tourists spend 47 percent more than heterosexual tourists. Is this trend an opportunity to be seized ?

In many countries, international tourism accounts for a significant part of their gross domestic product – more than 15 percent in Jamaica and Croatia according to the World Development Indicator of the World Bank.

Although France has been the leading world destination for more than a decade, competition is harsh on this market and the number of tourists is not proportionate to the tourism revenue. In its press release of 11 May 2011, the World Tourism Organisation indicated that last year both South America and South Asia recorded a growth rate of 15 percent and China ranked as the fourth tourist destination in terms of revenue.

If Western countries want to definitely regain the upper hand, they will have to focus either on their tourist attractions – which would imply disproportionate costs – or on the most profitable customers. Now, what kind of individuals earn higher average incomes and are notoriously more prone to travelling? As a result, the homosexual community perfectly meet these criteria.

Gay tourists...

According to an American survey, they travel four times more than the rest of the population and more than 80 percent are passport holders. Moreover, they can financially afford to travel everywhere : the average homosexual tourist earns a twice higher income than his heterosexual counterpart.

The International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association (IGLTA) and the gay and lesbian travel magazine Passport Magazine available everywhere through iPad are the main supporters of the global trend logically considered by some governments as a good source of income.

...and gay travel destinations

No wonder that an increasing number of cities are officially less and less hostile to homosexuals. Last year in Europe, Cannes, Bruxelles and La Réunion signed gay-friendly charters and specialised agencies were set up. The traditional gay rendezvous such as Mykonos or San Fransisco will face the competitiveness of other cities who clearly understood how being attractive to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people (LGBT or GLBT) may be a valuable asset.

It is all the more interesting as being able to welcome the LGBT community doesn't necessarily imply an abrupt cultural transition. For example, in 2009, Tel Aviv chose to boost gay tourism by hosting the Euro pride, « the largest annual gay parade » according to the Israeli news website Ynetnews. Thanks to this single significant event, Israel's Ministry of Tourism managed to turn its second most populous city into an international gay travel destination. It is no accident that a record number of 3.45 million tourists visited Israel in 2010 and Tel Aviv has been considered by the IGLTA as « one of the most attractive destinations for GLBT tourists ».

In the tourist sector, other gay friendly areas such as Spain and Australia will maybe tell the difference economically by profiting from a market whose dynamism is based on a way of life that about 80 countries in the world still consider to be a crime.

Baptiste CHAUVIN