Bangkok.
Bangkok has one of the best gay scenes on the continent with an array of gay-friendly hotels, bars, clubs and other attractions.
LGBTQ+ tour specialists TravelGay.com have released information detailing the most popular destinations for gay travellers, with Asia dominating the top 10.
Sales data from the specialist gay travel operators has revealed that Thailand was the most popular LGBT travel destination over the last year. The Asian country had almost three times as many bookings, as any other destination. With the country having legalised homosexuality back in 1956, Thailand is often viewed as one of the most welcoming countries in Asia for LGBT travellers.
Bangkok has one of the best gay scenes on the continent with an array of gay-friendly hotels, bars, clubs and other attractions. Silom Soi 4 is a staple for gay travellers with a number of gay bars facing each other providing a great place for a night out. The infamous street is a great place for LGBTQ people to go dancing, eat authentic Thai street food and sing at karaoke bars. Furthermore, their high-profile transgender community also helps the country have an open-minded outset.
Elsewhere, Japan was found to be the second most booked destination for LGBT travellers over the past year. The country has a strong gay scene from Shinjuki Ni-Chome in Tokyo which has the highest density of gay bars of any neighbourhood in the world to the Doyama, Osaka’s self-proclaimed LGBT District.
The country also has a number of festivals and events that celebrate LGBTQ+ people including the Tokyo Rainbow Pride which runs for an entire week in early May, Kansai Rainbow Parade based in Osaka and Rainbow Reel Tokyo which is a celebration of international LGBT films.
Outside of Asia, Spain was the third most popular destination with a 70% increase in bookings from 2018 to 2019. As a European country, Spain is incredibly open to LGBTQ+ people with homosexuality and same-sex marriage legal and many laws protecting them from discrimination.
The country is home to Madrid’s pride festival, the biggest in Europe that attracts millions of people over the celebratory weekend. The festival usually begins on the Wednesday afternoon where there are announcements at Chueca Square by notorious public figures and runs on until Sunday.
Both Barcelona and Sitges are great destinations for gay travellers and create the ideal pairing for a holiday. LGBT travellers can visit Barcelona where there is a large LGBT community, a vibrant nightlife and stunning weather that all marry up to provide an exciting holiday destination, Sitges, just a half an hour train ride south of Barcelona, is known as being one of Spain’s most popular towns for LGBT travellers. The town has a thriving gay nightlife with bars lining the streets, not hidden down back streets and open nudist beaches to relax during the day.
TravelGay.com has also recently launched the USA as a destination which has proven to be very popular with gay travellers. In the first two months of 2020 there has been 100 bookings to the country which puts it on track to overtake the previous years’ sales.
Darren Burn, CEO of TravelGay.com and OutOfOffice.com says, "We hold the most data globally when it comes to LGBTQ+ traveller trends and so our index of the most popular cities makes for interesting reading. It shows that it's not always the obvious choices that the LGBTQ+ traveller chooses to visit. It also shows that many destinations are improving their credentials and laws in order to attract new demographics.
The statistics show that LGBTQ+ people travel more frequently each year and spend more in resort than their heterosexual counterparts. Not only does it make sense to welcome everyone regardless of their sexual orientation because it's the right thing to do, but there's also good commercial sense in doing so.”
OutOfOffice.com offer unique luxury group trips for gay travellers, providing an exclusive high-end travel option for LGBTQ+ holidaymakers.
TravelGay.com is the world's most visited LGBT travel platform featuring a comprehensive guide to the best gay-friendly hotels, bars, clubs and other venues.
Tatiana is the news coordinator for TravelDailyNews Media Network (traveldailynews.gr, traveldailynews.com and traveldailynews.asia). Her role includes monitoring the hundreds of news sources of TravelDailyNews Media Network and skimming the most important according to our strategy.
She holds a Bachelor's degree in Communication & Mass Media from Panteion University of Political & Social Studies of Athens and she has been editor and editor-in-chief in various economic magazines and newspapers.
