How can you support your LGBTQ+ travelers?

By Daniel Beauchamp , Head of Global Business Consulting, EMEA

WorldPride – one of the biggest LGBTQ+ festivals on the planet and now underway in Sydney – has seen Australia welcome international visitors for a celebration of LGBTQ+ liberation. 

But not every destination is as open and welcoming to LGBTQ+ travelers as Australia. In fact, according to the Equality Index 63 countries around the world criminalize LGBTQ+ people – including popular business and leisure destinations.

We worked with Amex GBT’s LGBTQ+ employee inclusion group – LEAGUE – to understand how companies could better support their LGBTQ+ travelers and help them feel protected. We started by fielding a survey to LEAGUE members asking about their travel experiences and where they saw areas for improvement.[i]

At first sight, what we learned seemed reassuring; most (69%) LEAGUE respondents felt supported when traveling. But many also shared uncomfortable experiences including checking in for flights or hotels, traveling in certain countries or being misgendered and/or excluded from using facilities.

Know before you go

When it came to identifying improvements, LEAGUE travelers wanted more and better information about where they were going. Their top-ranked suggestions, in order, were heat maps showing destinations that were less LGBTQ+ friendly, guidance on local laws on gender expression, and city guides.

To help support LGBTQ+ travelers, GBC has developed a set of best practices for every stage of the travel journey. 

BEFORE BOOKING

• Include questions on LGBTQ+ inclusivity and diversity during sourcing.
• Make it easy for travelers to access your T&E policy.
• Provide travel safety training including cultural awareness.

PRE-TRIP

• Provide information on destinations’ LGBTQ+ friendliness.
• Define an exception process so employees can decline business trips without career repercussions.
• Explore how technology and booking tools can support LGBTQ+ travelers.

DURING THE TRIP

• Ensure medical insurance is suitable for all employees with contingencies if medical provisions are unsuitable.
• Ask if your security / travel alert provider can support with location updates that include LGBTQ+ specific risks.
• Include links to LGBTQ+ resources with emergency contacts in the booking confirmation.

POST-TRIP

• Provide travelers with more opportunities to share feedback.
• Consider a travel focus group so experiences can be continuously improved.

By its nature, our industry helps build understanding and tolerance; it makes sense that travel managers take the lead on inclusivity in their organizations. There’s a lot more to be said and done on this topic – we hope the best practices set out above can help travel managers progress their inclusivity journey.

To learn more about the LEAGUE survey findings and how they can help you support your LGBTQ+ travelers, download the infographic at the Amex GBT Business Travel Resource Hub.

[i] Methodology: GBC and LEAGUE surveyed 84 members of the LEAGUE community in July 2022. 43% were located in North America, 33% in EMEA, 14% in APAC, and 10% in Latin America.