IGLTA Welcomes Booking.com as Newest Global Partner

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands (19 September 2023)—The International LGBTQ+ Travel Association (IGLTA) announced today its exciting new global partnership with leading digital travel platform Booking.com. As a Platnium-level Global Partner, Booking.com will be positioned alongside top global destinations and brands committed to year-round support of IGLTA and LGBTQ+ welcoming travel.

Booking.com has long been an active ally of the LGBTQ+ community, dedicated to fostering a safe and inclusive environment for all travelers, regardless of where they come from, who they love or how they identify. Through the company’s Travel Proud program, publicly launched in 2021, Booking.com provides free inclusive hospitality training, tailor-made for the company’s accommodation partners together with HospitableMe. The aim of the training is to help accommodations gain a better understanding of the specific challenges faced by LGBTQ+ travelers, as well as what can be done to make every guest feel more welcomed. The training is available in English, Italian, French, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese and German, and there are now more than 47,000 certified properties globally, offering Travel Proud stays in 120+ countries and territories and over 9,500 cities. 

Booking.com was also an official sponsor for IGLTA’s historic Global Convention in Milan last year, hosting the annual Women in Leadership Networking event. This event allows women attending the convention to have an opportunity to connect with other women entrepreneurs to share ideas, best practices, and discuss the unique challenges that women in business face.

"We are excited to welcome Booking.com as our newest Global Partner and are looking forward to expanding our collaborations with them to support inclusive travel," said IGLTA President/CEO John Tanzella (he/him). "Booking.com has consistently demonstrated incredible support to IGLTA, and their commitment to promoting safe and inclusive travel for all is evident."

“Our mission at Booking.com is to make it easier for everyone to experience the world, and with that we really do mean everyone,” said Arjan Dijk (he/him), Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer at Booking.com. “We are delighted to be deepening our partnership with IGLTA and look forward to exploring additional opportunities for enhanced collaboration with destinations and other companies throughout the travel industry to ensure a future where we can all truly Travel Proud.”

During Booking.com's Click. 2023 event in Miami, IGLTA President/CEO John Tanzella (he/him) participated in a panel discussion focused on sharing best practices for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), as well as the importance of creating diverse spaces. Additionally, IGLTA's VP of Global Partnerships, Clark Massad (he/him), attended Click. 2023 in Amsterdam where he joined a panel discussion on brand authenticity. More content from this annual event can be found here. 

Booking.com is a Presenting Partner for the 40th Anniversary IGLTA Global Convention in San Juan, Puerto Rico, including for the exclusive B.O.N. Voyage fundraising event for the IGLTA Foundation. Keep an eye on the website for more information about the lineup of speakers, entertainment and special guests, with more details to be announced over the coming weeks.