“I’ve made it my mission to encourage more Black LGBTQ travelers like me to explore the world,” says Michael Henderson. After years of being the go-to trip planner for his family and friends, Henderson launched his own agency, B.A.G. Travel, in 2021. Today, he’s coordinating group departures to countries including South Africa and Thailand, with an eye to helping his queer clients navigate issues like when and where it’s considered appropriate to show affection.
He’s also representative of a booming ecosystem of specialist advisors and niche tour operators that are helping specific segments of the queer community find the perfect trip.
For Brand G Vacations, which organizes cruises for gay men, group trips are about more than just a good time. “I’m not saying we don’t have fun, but the community and the destination are the driving factors for us,” says Brian Van Wey, cofounder of the tour operator, which collaborates with lines such as Atlas Ocean Voyages. The company also arranges land tours to destinations such as India and Mongolia, which some queer travelers may be skeptical of visiting. “Traveling together gives us the opportunity to bring awareness and acceptance to those destinations,” Van Wey says.
One long-established player is Olivia, which has coordinated cruises and retreats for queer women since 1990. Over the years, Olivia has hosted more than 350,000 guests on full-ship buyouts, resort takeovers, and other journeys, in destinations from the Maldives to Morocco.
Mainstream brands are following the lead of these specialists. Though Lindblad Expeditions doesn’t advertise this fact, captains of the line’s U.S.-flagged vessels can legally officiate same-sex ceremonies. One particularly memorable union took place in 2018, says Noah Brodsky, the company’s chief commercial officer. Lucho Verdesoto, a marine biologist, and Javier Cotin, an ornithologist, met while working for Lindblad and decided to tie the knot aboard the National Geographic Explorer.
More Brands Making Strides
Preferred Hotels & Resorts launched its Preferred Pride program in 2011 to spotlight properties that commit to diversity training for their staff.
Virgin Atlantic updated its gender identity policy in 2022; airport and flight crews can now choose any uniform. Travelers, meanwhile, can select the gender-neutral title Mx. or list their gender as U (Undisclosed) or X (Unspecified).
Delta Air Lines also offers a broader choice of identifiers, including Mx., U, and X.
Lindblad Expeditions seeks out LGBTQ guest speakers, such as an Inuit researcher who talks not only about her climate-change research but also about growing up queer in Greenland.
A version of this story first appeared in the June 2024 issue of Travel + Leisure under the headline “The Champions.”
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