Three travel groups will hold a meeting June 21-22 in Brussels to discuss the current state and future of LGBTQ travel across Europe. The European Travel Commission (ETC), the Flemish tourist board VISITFLANDERS and the International Gay & Lesbian Travel Association (IGLTA) will host the event.
The event’s goals will be to gather information on LGBTQ tourism, talk about to what degree is Europe currently a safe and welcoming space for LGBTQ tourists, consider new strategies for making Europe a more attractive destination for LGBTQ travelers and assessing how LGBTQ travel will develop in the future.
The groups hope to create a space for those in the industry to share knowledge and best practices. They plan for the forum to help destinations and companies better understand and cater to LGBTQ travelers.
The event will present an opportunity to discuss the result of a joint research project conducted by ETC and IGLTA. The research focused on the present and future of LGBTQ travel in Europe by looking at worldwide trends and how they are expected to develop. Peter Jordan, author of the report will present the findings and provide a framework for the forum conversation.
Robert Davershot will host the event, taking place at the Hilton Brussels Grand Place. The event will bring together tourism businesses, destination tourism boards on all levels, human rights NGOs, global organizations and EU policy makers. Speakers will include Piet De Bruyn from the Council of Europe, Peter De Wilde, president of ETC and CEO of VISITFLANDERS, Thomas Bachinger of the Vienna Tourism Board, Mattej Valencic of Pink Week Slovenia, Mateo Asensio of Turisme de Barcelona and others.
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