When it comes to choosing your next vacation destination there are a number of criteria related to what we value most that influence this decision making. Now, for heterosexuals, one of these criteria is rarely the ability to express themselves freely and safely, a right they take for granted. For the LGBTI community, however, it carries great weight! Unfortunately not all countries have yet adopted laws that ensure the rights of this particular community. Therefore, it is still important to talk about LGBTI tourism since this traveler will look for a destination where he or she will not feel discriminated against, especially if traveling as a couple.
Tourism in Portugal
According to INE, Portugal received, in 2019, 24.6 million tourists. This sector is, therefore, a key industry for the economy and for Portugal to position itself in the market, as opposed to other countries in Europe, as a destination of sun and sea, culture and leisure, known for welcoming, regardless of the sexual orientation of those who visit.
Spartacus, an International Gay Guide, publishes the Gay Travel Index every year, which assigns a score to each country after analyzing its legal situation and the living conditions of members of the queer community. At the moment, the index evaluates 17 categories, from gay marriage to the death penalty for homosexuals.
In 2019, along with Canada and Sweden, Portugal ranked 1st among LGBTI-friendly countries. In 2020, with the addition of three new categories (Intersex/ 3rd Option; “Conversion Therapy” and LGBT Marketing), it dropped to 10th place. Canada and Sweden remained at the top of the ranking, and were joined by Malta.
Also the 2019 LGBTQ+ Danger Index study by Asher & Lyric, known for creating lists and rankings based on data they collect or have available at the moment, assigned the 4th place of safest countries to Portugal. In a list of the 150 most visited countries in the world, our country was only surpassed by Sweden, Canada and Norway. At the bottom of the list are countries where sharia (Islamic law) still applies, such as Nigeria, Qatar, Yemen, and Saudi Arabia.
The index evaluates eight categories, these being legalization/illegalization of same-sex marriage, worker protection, protection from discrimination, criminalization of violence, recognition of adoption, living conditions in the country, and moral laws/propaganda against. Each category was analyzed according to data from ILGA, an organization for the rights of the LGBTI+ community, and Human Rights Watch, a non-governmental organization whose mission is to denounce human rights abuses.
LGBTI-friendly Business
These studies are quite encouraging for Portugal tourism, which in December 2019 supported the first international campaign for LGBTI tourists, Proudly Portugal. The initiative is from Variações – LGBTI Tourism and Trade Association of Portugal which states in its official website that “in the national market alone there are at least one million LGBTI consumers. If we add the LGBTI tourism sector, there are more than two million LGBTI people who visit us annually”.
Under the slogan “Travelling to feel”, inspired by Álvaro de Campos’ verse “after all, the best way to travel is to feel”, the project “presents the countless possibilities that our country has to offer as a LGBTI destination, with memorable experiences immersed in a typically Portuguese spirit”, says the explanation available on the official website. This translates into an online directory of hotels, programs, real estate agencies and other businesses that match what the community is looking for and what each region of the country has to offer. There are gay city breaks in resorts in the middle of Lisbon, programs in Madeira with travel agencies, recommendations from real estate agencies (like Lisboapride), businesses founded by LGBTI people or that are gay-friendly, among others.
There are already a number of sites aimed at this public, such as Lisbon Gay Circuit and Porto Gay Circuit that highlight accommodation, restaurants, bars and clubs in these two cities. Even, similar to Airbnb, there is Misterb&b, an online platform for LGBTI-friendly private rooms, apartments and hotels.
The country’s cultural agenda is also full of inclusive events – see the success of the Arraial Lisboa Pride, organized by ILGA, in partnership with the Lisbon City Hall, EGEAC and the Parish Councils of Santa Maria Maior and Misericórdia. The largest LGBTI festival in Portugal received 70,000 visitors in 2018 and the 2019 edition has surpassed that number. Queer Lisbon and Porto are film festivals, which want to make queer-themed films accessible to the general public.
Portugal is on its way to establishing itself internationally as a reference destination in this segment. In fact, this is even the intention of the Portuguese Tourism Board that, in its Estratégia de Turismo para 2027 (sorry we could only find it in portuguese), intends to promote “tourism for all”, in an inclusive perspective, which welcomes the LGBTI segment.
How to make your business LGBTI-friendly?
- Change starts from the inside out: whatever your business, if it involves contact with the public, then your employees represent your brand. So invest in an orientation and training manual that sets out how to treat the LGBTI customer. On the other hand, you should also address the issue internally, if your employees are part of that community, through an inclusive corporate culture. The key is to convey internally and externally a message of respect for the LGBTI community;
- Share and support: you don’t have to be part of the community to support its causes. In fact, if you want to position yourself in this segment, then give visibility to the causes/events you value and create an association between your brand and the LGBTI community;
- Be inserted in the tourist guides: if you want to reach this segment, then try to have your business referenced in the already mentioned guides, as well as in the Variações association network.
