In partnership with
2019 registration now closed.
2019's supporting sponsors
75 GLOBAL LGBT+ BUYERS & MEDIA
In partnership with the Tourism Authority of Thailand, The LGBT+ Travel Symposium will bring in 75 of the world’s leading LGBT+ buyers and media into Bangkok for the event. Our VIPs are hand-selected by TAT offices and will come from the USA, UK, Canada, Germany, Scandinavia, Israel, Italy, Spain, France, Australia and South East Asia among many other regions. This is your opportunity to meet these top buyers and influencers all in one place.
INSPIRING, EXPERT SPEAKERS
Our speakers and panelists are among the world’s leading LGBT+ experts, in marketing, sales, media, operations and sensitivity training. Our educational programme gives you the opportunity to learn from the very best in the industry and those who have seen great success from engaging with LGBT+ audiences. Plus our half-day deep-dive sessions will mean you’ll walk away with top tips on how to better attract, service and retain guests from this profitable segment.
CONNECT, NETWORK, DO BUSINESS
Delegates from our symposiums will tell you that the most powerful benefit arising from attending is the networking opportunity that The LGBT+ Travel Symposium gives. Beyond learning and doing business, each symposium is a chance to meet and form relationships with likeminded, LGBT+ welcoming travel brands and their representatives, forming a network of those truly passionate about diversity and inclusion in travel.
The second edition of this landmark event will not just promote diversity and inclusion among the Thai travel industry, but forge strong, new, unique, commercial and reputational links – through educational, networking and business opportunities – between Thailand’s travel providers and the rest of the world. We are proud to continue our partnership with OutThere after a truly successful inaugural event in 2018.
Guaranteed
meetings
at our Buyer/Seller marketplace
Our exclusive 1-on-1 buyer/media-seller marketplace is a fantastic opportunity to present your brand in tailored 5 minute pitches to each attending buyer. These guaranteed and qualified meetings are positioned to generate business, raise awareness, grow knowledge for your product and build long-lasting relationships.
2019 registration now closed.
Why engage with LGBT+ travelers?The statistics speak for themselves
LGBT+ TRAVEL IS WORTH OVER US$200BILLION & CONTINUES TO GROW.
The market for LGBT+ travel continues to grow year-on-year by an average of 8%. This is 40% more than that of the travel spend of Germany.
LGBT+ TRAVELERS SPEND 55% MORE PER ARRIVAL THAN THE AVERAGE TRAVELER.
The LGBT+ community, that consists of between just 6-10% of the global population is worth 16% of the total global value.
60% OF LGBT+ PEOPLE ARE MORE LIKELY TO BUY FROM LGBT+ WELCOMING BRANDS
Today, this message resonates with heterosexual consumers too, with 37% feeling positive about destinations that promotes diversity and inclusion.
SpeakersA selection of high-profile speakers, more to be showcased soon
Chattan Kunjara Na Ayudhya
Deputy Governor for International Marketing (Asia and the South Pacific), Khun Chattan is key to the development of marketing campaigns and activities for the region, a crucial market for LGBT+ travellers to Thailand.
Vuthithorn “Woody” Milintachinda
Khun Woody is a leading figure on the front line of the Thai entertainment industry – a TV personality and chat show host, content creator and entertainment producer. He made headlines when he married his same-sex partner back in 2014.
Joseph Sampermans
General Manager at the Peninsula Bangkok, a luxury hospitality pedigree and respected member of the Peninsula family for over 15 years.
Steve Johnson-Stevenson
Marketing Manager for the Tourism Authority of Thailand New York Office, Steve has pioneered LGBT+ engagement for Thailand as a destination for close to a decade, including founding the Go Thai Be Free campaign that we know today.
LoAnn Halden
LoAnn Halden is Vice President-Communications for the International LGBTQ+ Travel Association (IGLTA), the global leader in advancing LGBTQ+ travel.
Julie Vu
Julie Vu is a transgender Creator on YouTube/Instagram with over half a million subscribers. She documented her whole transition in front of the world and is an advocate for the LGBTQ+ community. Julie represented Canada in the Miss International Queen 2019 Pageant in Thailand.
Calum Evans
Founder of The Gay Passport, an online travel guide for gay men. Since 2013 the Gay Passport has been creating unique travel content featuring our network of 450 leading gay influencers from across the world.
Maartje Hensen & Roxanne Weijer
Maartje and Roxanne are a travel blogger couple and photographers who tell stories of their magical journeys through their online platform and through their awe-inspiring photography on Instagram. They feature in TAT’s Go Thai Be Free campaign.
Al Ramsay
Head of TD Bank’s LGBTQ2+ Business Development (Canada), responsible for the development and growth of TD’s LGBTQ2+ customer segment. He sits on the boards of the Canadian Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce and The Rainbow Railroad.
Dirk Baumgartl
Tom Ho
Born in Taipei, raised in Los Angeles, and now living in Chicago, Tom brings fresh outlook to the luxury travel industry, running his own travel business in partnership with Protravel International and was recently awarded the agency’s ‘Rising Star’ award.
Meredith O’Neil
Experienced travel counselor with a long experience in the hospitality industry and helping people make their travel dreams come true, both from her desk and by acting as a host on the ground.
Shintaro Koizumi
Principal at Tokyo based tour operator Out Asia Travel, Shintaro offers a variety of tour packages in Asia specifically for LGBT+travellers and is an experienced and exceptional LGBT travel coordinator creating memorable trips across the continent.
MasterclassesTwo amazing deep-dive masterclasses
Jesse Desjardins
A leading advisor to the travel industry, Jesse is the creator of the Guest Experience Map® and leads a consultancy that develops communities, strategies and products for travel brands. He was previously Global Manager, Social & Content at Tourism Australia.
DESIGNING EXPERIENCES YOUR LGBT+ GUESTS WILL LOVE
Thursday 05 September 2019
Introduction
This session will look at how 5 leading hotels and experiences design peak moments for their LGBT+ guests. By using Guest Experience Map cards, the audience will learn how to use a powerful tool to assess their current experience moments and design new ones and create moments that are truly special and remarkable for our LGBT+ guests.
Masterclass
Predictably attract the perfect guests, design remarkable experiences and earn lifetime fans. This insights-packed, half-day masterclass will teach you the latest principles and mindsets that create big strategic breakthroughs in your Guest Experience Map (GEM).
The GEM is about breaking your marketing into three units; the BEFORE unit, which gets guests to the point of booking; the DURING unit, which provides peak experience moments and incremental revenue generation; and the AFTER unit, which focuses on developing relationships to increase repeat bookings and referrals.
We’ll focus on using social media as a tool to uncover emotional and social needs your LGBT+ guests might have.
Designing experiences that meet these needs are what creates significant competitive advantage. You’ll learn how to:
- You’ll learn how to create a Guest Experience Map (GEM)
- 7 Profit Activators that are universally present in everyone’s experience
- Best in class examples for the LGBT+ market
- Create alignment and collaboration amongst your teams
- How to use social media to understand what guests love and hate about your current experience
EVERYBODY’S WELCOME: LGBT+ SENSITIVITY TRAINING
Friday 06 September 2019
Introduction
You can’t provide personalized, authentic service to LGBT+ guests if you don’t understand who we are and feel comfortable talking with and about us. These educational seminars and bespoke training programs from HospitableMe offer you and your team the knowledge and tools you need to respect, welcome, surprise and delight LGBT+ guests.
Masterclass
This half-day seminar teaches the foundational knowledge necessary to welcome all LGBT+ guests warmly and respectfully.
By looking at the social, historical and evolving circumstances faced by LGBT+ travelers, we convey a foundational understanding of who they are: how they are different from mainstream travelers and how they’re the same, how to make them feel welcome, and how to empower consumer-facing staff to deliver more authentic, personalized to diverse customers.
- Gain a solid understanding of the different LGBT+ identities
- Learn how to respect, surprise and delight LGBT+ travelers with simple service guidelines
- Acquire best practices for speaking to and about LGBT+ guests
- Discover how to make LGBT+ guests feel like they belong
- Explore how traditional service standards impact LGBT+ guests
- Review Service Recovery best practices related to LGBT+ issues
2019 registration now closed.
Registration
REGISTRATION CLOSED – SYMPOSIUM REGISTRATION
US$899
Registration is by company for ONE representative only and can only be purchased by companies and travel brands with products in Thailand.
Registration gains you access to two full days symposium programme on 5 and 6th September:
Opening session
2 x Networking lunches
2 x Evening events
Media/influencer networking session
Guest experience workshop
Sensitivity training workshop
Buyer/Seller marketplace
For companies who would like to send more than one delegate, a charge of US$349 per additional delegate is chargeable.
Companies may purchase as many tickets as they like for the main sessions and events, but are limited to a maximum of TWO representatives attending the Buyer/Supplier marketplace.
HOSTED BUYER PROGRAMME
Our international hosted buyer programme is now closed.
MEDIA/INFLUENCERS
Our international hosted media/influencer programme is now closed.
ACCOMMODATION
Our host hotel, the Peninsula Bangkok has kindly extended a special rate of THB7,500++ per night to delegates of The LGBT+ Travel Symposium: Thailand 2019.
ONE-DAY NETWORKING TICKETS
US$549
We may have a small number of one day tickets available for Thursday 5th September only; those interested in finding out more about the LGBT+ travel symposium and the industry.
Sales of these tickets are at the discretion of the organiser and will only be released once full symposium registration is sold out.
This does not provide access to the buyer-supplier marketplace.
The LGBT+ Agenda
Welcome from the organiser and Founder of the LGBT+ Travel Symposium series and an update on the key facts and figures driving the LGBT+ travel market
, Al Ramsay
, Dirk Baumgartl
An update on the Tourism Authority of Thailand’s global LGBT+ campaign
In a one-to-one with TV personality Khun Woody, we talk about LGBT+ life in Thailand and his part as a role model for the community.
, Uwern JongThe IGLTA talks about building a community for LGBT+ travel
A panel of influencers, content creators and media representatives from around the world discuss the issues facing LGBT+ media, particularly with regard to travel
, Julie Vu
, Calum Evans
, Maartje Hensen & Roxanne Weijer
Panel of selected buyer VIPs from different geographical locations share their experiences on engaging with the LGBT+ traveller
, Tom Ho
, Shintaro Koizumi
, Meredith O’Neil
Designing experiences your LGBT+ guests will love
5 minute 1-2-1 introductory meetings
Everybody’s welcome: LGBT+ sensitivity training
