~From the New York Times ~What do gay travelers want? According to two recent surveys, pretty much one thing. As Aretha Franklin might put it: R-E-S-P-E-C-T. Nearly half of all gay men and lesbians surveyed by the Travel Industry Association — in conjunction with Harris Interactive and Witeck-Combs Communications, a gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (G.L.B.T.) strategic marketing and communications agency — said a destination’s “gay friendliness” was the key factor in planning a vacation.
Also high on their list — safety, specifically a place where they will not feel intimidated or threatened if they publicly hold their partner’s hand. The online study also revealed they want places that are “culturally welcoming” and “support diversity and G.L.B.T. civil rights.” Given those results, it was hardly surprising that panelists named San Francisco; Key West, Fla.; New York; Fire Island, N.Y.; and Provincetown, Mass., as their top five “gay friendly” United States destinations.
More interesting, perhaps, are the results of a second study, conducted by Community Marketing in its 11th Annual Gay and Lesbian Travel Survey. While favorite destinations included Las Vegas, London, Palm Springs, Calif., Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and even China and South America, interest in the Caribbean, the survey reports, “appears to be waning.” While the study points to the bad reputation some Caribbean islands have received after isolated gay-bashing incidents in the last few years, one company specializing in gay travel, Atlantis Events, thinks it may have more to do with the fact that the Caribbean has a “been there, done that” feeling for many high-end travelers.
“A lot of our clients have been to the Caribbean and are looking for a new experience,” said Stephan Roth, director of guest relations for Atlantis, adding that the group’s Baltic cruise, scheduled for this summer, sold out in a week and a half.
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