Travelling as an LGBTQIA+ person in the 21st century

According to a study carried out by Booking, safety is one of the main concerns of queer travellers. In fact, 80% of them say that they need to consider their safety and well-being as a queer person when choosing their travel destination. A considerable and worrying increase on the 64% of the previous year.

This mistrust does not come from nowhere. According to the study, 6 out of 10 respondents have already experienced discrimination when travelling. These are chilling figures that underline a reality that too many people are unaware of.

19% said they had been stared at, mocked or insulted by other travellers, 17% said they had experienced the same thing but with locals, and 14% had been threatened or intimidated by the local police.

These are all situations that prompt a third of travellers from the LGBTQIA+ community to change their behaviour during their stay. In addition, a quarter of them go so far as to change their appearance so as not to attract attention or be identified with this community.

This is a problem that affects transgender people all the more, as they may fear the reactions of the people in front of them when they present their identity papers, which do not necessarily correspond to the gender, name or appearance used by the person. In fact, 75% of transgender travellers pay particular attention to their appearance.

However, other data from the study are more encouraging and optimistic. Indeed, 83% of LGBTQIA+ travellers worldwide feel safe to take part in all the activities they wish, and 82% say they have experienced positive interactions, particularly when it comes to interactions with accommodation.

In a world of increasing contradictions and instability, it's no surprise that today's LGBTQIA+ travellers are both...