5. LGBTQIA+ travel specialists know that their queer clients are much like any other client: in search of a good trip
All that said, even with the concerns that queer travelers might have, the bottom line is that we want to be welcomed and treated equally as any other tourists in a destination—and an LGBTQIA+ travel specialist knows that implicitly. “At the end of the day, most travelers are looking for the same things: great experiences, good value, comfort, and peace of mind,” says John Oberacker of Eden for Your World. “The conversations with clients may include additional considerations around inclusivity or destination safety, but otherwise their travel goals and expectations are very similar to any other client’s.”
Nicola Butler of NoteWorthy, which specializes in travel throughout the United Kingdom, says that her clients do not wish to be pigeonholed but rather that their needs, just like anyone else’s, are met: “I brief hotels and guides to be sensitive to any subjects, just like I would any other client based on their religion, gender, age, ability, and neurodiversity.”
Perhaps most importantly, the decision to work with a travel advisor—LGBTQIA+ or otherwise—makes evident a prioritization of something that feels ever so elusive in the age of technology and artificial intelligence: that special flair of human touch. Clifford of International Travel Management asserts that we are living through turbulent political climates, economic crises, shifting border policies, and devastating global conflicts, and says that “the travel industry has tried to respond with automation—flooding the market with AI trip planners and algorithmic itineraries. But an algorithm cannot understand human anxiety.”
In the context of LGBTQIA+ travel, Clifford adds, “AI cannot feel the subtle shift in a destination’s cultural temperature, nor can it look a queer traveler in the eye and say, ‘I have vetted this property myself, and you are completely safe here.’ The true luxury of travel in 2026 cannot be automated. Now more than ever, there is a profound, non-negotiable need for genuine human interaction in travel planning.”
For the current list of Condé Nast Traveler Top Travel Specialists, visit cntraveler.com/travel-specialists.
