The Gay European Tourism Association (GETA) has teamed up with the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office to offer travel advice to LGBT travelers in Europe.
In a new travel advice section on its Web site, GETA explains the difference in legal and social attitudes to homosexuality across Western, Central and Eastern Europe.
“Most countries in Europe welcome LGBT tourists” said GETA’s Executive Director Carlos Kytka, “but there are a few simple tips to make sure your trip is safe”.
GETA’s new advice page forms part of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s “Know Before You Go” campaign which provides advice to Britons traveling abroad.
GETA’s five top tips for LGBT travelers in Europe are –
* Check the legal position of the countries you are planning to visit using ILGA’s Rainbow Europe guide. (http://www.geta-europe.org/PDFs/Rainbow-Europe-Map-5-14.pdf)
* Remember that legal recognition and social acceptance may not be at the same level, particularly as you move east.
* Be particularly careful in the former Soviet Union states where actions that could be construed as being overtly homosexual (e.g. holding hands, kissing in public, and insisting on double beds in a hotel) may bring you to the attention of the authorities and anti-gay vigilantes.
* Be careful when using social media hook-up sites which may be used for entrapment.
* Cities tend to be more gay friendly than the countryside so adapt your behavior accordingly.
You can visit GETA’s travel advice page and link to the FCO’s “Know Before You Go” campaign at http://www.geta-europe.org/gay-travel-advice-europe.php#.VB1eoPl_t8E
