Essential Resources for LGBTQ+ Travellers

Essential Resources for LGBTQ+ Travellers

Find LGBTQ+ city guides, the world’s best Pride events, queer-friendly hotels and hook-up apps, government advice and everything you need to know about rights, safety and seeking out the spaces that are welcoming to all.



In
an ideal world, LGBTQ+ travel
would just be “travel”. Who we sleep with or how we identify
needn’t define the way we explore the world. And indeed, there are
many places where we can do just that.

Nevertheless, if you’re travelling to a less-progressive
destination or perhaps want to seek out people who share the same
interests, this list of resources is a great place to start. Expect
calendars of the world’s best pride
events
, queer-friendly hotels and hook-up apps, and everything
you need to know about rights, safety and seeking out the spaces
that are welcoming to all.


LGBTQ+ travel info, networks and platforms

The
International Gay & Lesbian Travel Association

Founded in 1983, the IGLTA was the first platform to serve as a
voice for LGBTQ+ travellers and a network for queer-travel
operators. Consider this your go-to for calendars of queer events,
a decent safety guide and a lowdown on the most gay-friendly
hotels, airlines and tour operators in the world.

Queering the Map

Imagine Google Maps scattered with community-generated pins that
reveal how we are connected by way of geo-located queer moments,
memories and histories. Taking us way beyond Canal Street or
Greenwich Village, it documents the ephemeral moments, whether
that’s conversations about pronouns on park benches, triumphs of
activism or weekend-long sex parties.

Blogs

One of the best things about the LGBTQ+ community is just that:
community. It turns out, some of us are pretty good at documenting
our travels too. Find a blog/ channel/ social account that you vibe
with – perhaps Vanwives, Couple of Men, 2TravelDads or Bani
Amor
.

Government advice

The gov.uk site breaks down its foreign
travel advice
into 226 countries or territories. Simply find
your destination and click “local laws and customs” for regularly
updated, country-specific info or have a browse through the general
LGBTQ+ travel advice, which covers everything
from what to do if you have problems overseas and passport identity
for transgender travellers. The US government has a similar
LGBTQ+ advice page filled with useful
links.


Calendars of LGBTQ+ events

Spartacus Pride Events Calendar

Spartacus has been producing guides geared towards gay and
bisexual men for the best part of 50 years, so it knows a thing or
two about the best Pride events and other such rainbow-striped
affairs. Head here to join Hong Kong’s Virtual Pride, sign up for a
gay ski week in Switzerland or start planning your 2021 trip to
Spain’s Bear Carnival. There are plenty of smaller UK-based parades
listed on here too.

Queer-friendly travel accommodation and operators

MisterBNB

The Airbnb of the queer world, featuring accommodation in more
than 200 countries. Bear in mind, it’s worth shopping around; you
can often find the same listings on mainstream sites for cheaper –
but this is a great place to nail your choice, as are World Rainbow Hotels and Purple Roofs.


Get to know the LGBTQ+ community

Meetup

Sexuality aside, Meetup can be a great tool for anyone who wants
to hang out with like minded people – home or away. It has more
than 2,000 dedicated LGBTQ+ groups primarily in Europe, North
America and Australia. For more of the kind of events you won’t
find in guidebooks, it’s worth scouting out local LGBTQ+ Facebook
groups.

Scruff

Not all dating apps are created equal. When you’ve done
scrolling through Her, Grindr, Feeld et al. click on Scruff’s “Venture” tab to ask
(or answer) questions about a place and get answers from LGBTQ+
locals. Better yet, you can choose to receive push notifications
about your destination featuring the latest information from the
IGLA.

Local LGBTQ+ newspapers & magazines

Wikipedia has a long list of international
LGBTQ+ magazines past and present – they may not always be geared
towards travel, but can serve as a great intro to the local
community without having to meet up with strangers. Want to know
what queers
are reading
in India or Costa Rica? Here’s your answer…

Autostraddle

A “progressively feminist online community for multiple
generations of kickass lesbian, bisexual and otherwise inclined
ladies (and their friends)”. This indie, trans-friendly site gives
us the queer take on everything from news to crafts. Best yet, it’s
travel section is packed with queer city guides, first-person
stories and the best sex toys to bring camping.

OutThere

Consider is the benchmark for gay men who like to experience the
finer things in life. Expect immersive travel inspiration, a
discerning edit of best gay-friendly hotels as well as luxury
lifestyle, menswear, grooming and travel accessories.


Rights and Safety

GeoSure

Needless to say, the desire to travel safe isn’t just a gay
thing. This app provides real-time, hyper-local safety information
for all travellers, which includes a “LGBTQ+ Safety” ratings
category that hones in on more than 30,000 neighbourhoods
worldwide.

Equaldex

This so-called “collaborative LGBT rights knowledge base”
invites users to share news articles and intel related to LGBTQ+
rights around the world. Need the lowdown on a certain destination?
Head to its no-fuss, country-by-country fact sheets.

LGBTQ+ Danger Index

Easy-to-consume safety info that doesn’t involve clicking
around. Weighing up eight (rainbow-coordinated) factors including
marriage rights and protections against discrimination, the index
ranks the 150 countries with the most tourists from most dangerous
to safest for LGBTQ+ travellers. Useful? Take a look at the
Spartacus Gay Travel Index next.

The National Center for Transgender Equality

This American organisation is perhaps one of the most thorough
resources we’ve found for trans travellers, with features on how to
mitigate stress while flying, updates on screening processes and
everything you need to know about your rights at airport
security.

Refuge Restrooms

There are more than 4,500 bathrooms mapped on this site
(and its app) that provide a safe space for
transgender, intersex and gender-nonconforming people. In the grand
scheme of the world, it’s not loads, but we like the idea – and the
more people that use and add to it, the better.

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