Travel firms find a new niche in gay tourist market.

High-income gays give firms a new source of income

Los Angeles County travel agencies are discovering a new and growing source of income -- booking specialized travel for gay men and lesbian women.

By most counts, there are at least 10 agencies in the county that do nothing but book travel for gays and lesbians, and there may be another dozen retailers that have agents who specialize in the market.

As an indication of the growing local travel market for homosexuals, the International Gay Travel Association will hold its annual convention in West Hollywood next month. The 600-member association expects that at least 250 travel agents and other industry people who specialize in the market will attend the conference, which will be headquartered at the Hyatt Hotel.

As another sign of the burgeoning market, the desert community of Palm Springs is now actively promoting itself as a gay-friendly resort destination. In a recent edition of the "Advocate," a national publication for the gay and lesbian community, there were three pages of ads promoting Palm Springs' hotels and attractions that cater to homosexuals.

Murrell Foster, executive director of tourism for Palm Springs, said it is the first time the city has been promoting itself to the gay market.

Los Angeles County travel agents said they have become more active in pursuing the market largely because of the recession.

"People in the travel industry, including airlines, hotels and attractions, have begun to realize that a lot of gay people have a lot of discretionary income and like to spend it on travel," said Harlan Godes, who owns Firstworld Travel Express in West Los Angeles. "The recession has forced the industry to look for new markets and this is one of them."

He said between 30 percent and 40 percent of the agency's $2 million in annual travel bookings are now made for gays and lesbians.

Godes and other agents in the county also attributed the growth in the market to a more open attitude towards homosexuals.

"I think since Clinton was elected, there is more openness and a liberalization of a lot of attitudes that has extended to many businesses," said Rob Appel, who is president of Mantours USA in Mid-Wilshire.

"Gay people have always been traveling but now it's much more open and a lot of people in the industry are seeing the huge potential of the market," added Appel, who is coordinating the IGTA convention in West Hollywood.

Appel and others said hosting the convention is significant for the local tourism industry because it will showcase the area as a gay-friendly destination.

Appel said local hotels, restaurants and attractions have cooperated with convention organizers. "There has been no negative reaction at all to the convention," he said.

John Heilman, a member of the West Hollywood City Council, said the community actively sought the convention, which will be the IGTA's 10th annual meeting.

"People and businesses in Los Angeles are pretty sophisticated," he said. "I haven't heard any grumbling about this. The way we see it is that this market has almost unlimited potential and area businesses are thrilled to have the opportunity to promote the area to this group."

The IGTA, which is headquartered in Key West, Fla., could not estimate how much the convention may bring to the area in future bookings but a spokesman said gay travel in the United States is now at least a $1.5 billion-a-year business.

Most of the travel agents interviewed said they have not had any resistance or negative feedback from businesses in the travel industry.

The exception was Rand Wiseman Curtright, manager of Select Travel in West Hollywood. He said "a couple" of major airlines have not cooperated with his agency in booking seats for the April 25 gay and lesbian march and demonstration in Washington, D.C.

The travel agents said homosexuals are interested in going to retailers that specialize in the market because they know what hotels, cruise lines, airlines, attractions and destinations welcome gays and lesbians.

"It seems that they are all starting to market to gays because gays have money. Many gays are in two-income households with no children, which gives them a lot of disposable income," said Godes.