Sascha

We were invited tonight to sit on a panel at the FYI Radio show at The Edge in Soho Square, London. Participants were, besides the moderator Ryan Haynes (gaypedia and FYI Radio), Darren Cooper (UK Sales Ambassador for IGLTA - the International Gay & Lesbian Travel Association), Andrew Jones (Group Sales & Marketing Director mantrav - a travel agency specialized for gay travel) and myself. The topic of the night was "Talking travel and pride festivals".   

A few findings:

- gay travel is not always about sex. There is a strong desire to also book vacations in areas where sex is not the main focus but cultural and local experiences

- when travelling, it is important for the gay community to come to a place that is "gay friendly" and provides security and freedom to be gay.

- Many destinations worlwide still have a bad reputation for being gay hostile although often this is not the case. The press reporting on a few occassions have let to the misperception. More research is required

- Cypress is slowly developing a gay community, something gaypedia will explore and write about

- In islamic countries gay life is still very much underground although much more liberal than it used to be. Inform yourself before you go and you can have a great time.

- In some countries, like India, gay is still prohibited. Often this is left over from colonialisation and needs more work over time.

- Other countries, like Indonesia, have completely opened to the gay community. Being gay there is not a problem at all

- The average gay income is often overestimated and based on either incomplete or not representative studies originated in the US. There is not reliable information available to really prove this point.

These are some of the topics I remember. It was a very interesting evening with lots of knowledge being shared. Andrew and Darren know lots about gay travel and have shared quite some insight.

Check out more details on FYI Radio......

Comments (1)

ryan 01-06-2009

Check out the podcast here: http://fyiradio.podomatic.com/

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