Chasing the rainbow: why Australia can't afford to ignore queer travellers

The Mardi Gras means different things to different people. For many, it's just a party, an excuse to dress up (or dress down) and have fun with friends. For others, it's still an important political event and a chance to advocate for greater acceptance. And for tourism marketers, it's an opportunity to welcome gay travellers and show them the city and the country more broadly.

Travel is not always glitter and glam, though. Any kind of tourism has its challenges, but for those who don't identify as heterosexual, those risks are often amplified. One of the most obvious issues is that more than 70 countries still deem homosexuality to be illegal (and it's punishable by death in seven of them), but the reality is that a blind eye is usually turned when it comes to international tourists. Often the more hurtful experiences are the smaller ones that LGBT travellers constantly face in interactions throughout a holiday - feeling the need to pretend to be someone you're not, being given two single beds even though you requested one double, getting a frosty reception from a tour guide, having a booking cancelled, or being separated by a gender you don't identify with.

"All travellers are united by the desire to take a holiday where they will feel welcome and safe and, while equality continues to evolve, there are still places that are not as welcoming or safe for LGBTQ+ travellers, who can face discrimination, intimidation and even aggression in some countries," says Gay & Lesbian Tourism Australia president Louise Terry .

You might think that Australia would be a safe and welcoming country. Certainly our laws make most types of discrimination against gay travellers illegal, and Tourism Australia actively promotes its "Essential LGBTQI guide to visiting Australia", with suggestions for queer-friendly neighbourhoods, festivals, and even some tips for getting married here. But it does note that "attitudes towards queer people can be less positive in some regional and remote areas than in the big cities", although it makes a notable exception for Broken Hill, which hosts the much-celebrated Broken Heel drag festival each year.

"Clearly Australia's vote for marriage equality in 2017 was a positive step forward for the community," Ms Terry tells me. "But it also revealed a divide, which was hurtful to many. There is still work to be done in creating a more unified and proactive national landscape in terms of inclusive tourism."

Even purely from a financial perspective, Australia's tourism industry would be wise to focus more on this segment. In 2018, consulting firm Out Now compiled data that found the total tourism spend by LGBT travellers to be about $300 billion worldwide. Breaking down that figure further reveals that four of the five highest-spending nationalities are also key markets for Australia - the USA, Japan, Germany, and the UK (in order).

Ms Terry believes there's still a lot of room for improvement in how Australia presents itself to gay travellers. Yes, things may be relatively safe here, but are we actually engaging with potential visitors?

"Very few destinations in Australia market directly and consistently to LGBTQ+ travellers," she explains.

"If they do, images tend to be of just pride events, for example, rather than representing the spectrum of travellers through targeted imagery or conscious messaging."

I think this is a key point, and certainly one where there's potential to do better. Most of the marketing material you see involves parties, buff bodies, and drag queens. But LGBT travellers are as diverse as the overall tourism market. Many gay tourists simply want to see the sights and eat local food - they just want to be able to do it knowing that they'll be safe and accepted.

"As with marketing to any audience, LGBTQ+ travellers want to see themselves represented in marketing, to know that they are understood, supported, and valued," Ms Terry says.

Australia is poised at the edge of an opportunity to reap the rewards of embracing gay travellers, and to show the world how it can be done. This time next year, Sydney will be hosting WorldPride, the biennial international LGBT festival that'll coincide with the 45th anniversary of the first Mardi Gras Parade. The fortnight of events is expected to attract about 1.5 million visitors to the Harbour City.

Does the whole tourism industry appreciate the potential this enormous event offers? Will destinations shift their marketing to be more inclusive and show LGBT tourists that they are understood and supported? Will small businesses provide training to staff or bring in policies that ensure that everyone, regardless of sexuality, feels safe and is treated the same way at their accommodations, restaurants, and tours?

The protestors who marched along Oxford Street in 1978, in what would become the first Mardi Gras Parade, could only dream of a day when revellers would come from across the world for a huge party to celebrate their diversity. But some of the rights they were fighting for have still not been realised. We've come a long way, but even in something as relaxed as tourism, there are still issues to be addressed.

You can see more on Michael Turtle's Time Travel Turtle website.