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Feature - Altitude and attitudes

Gay and lesbian travel business my be the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow for Whistler

Thomas Dolan loves to travel. Last year he went to Amsterdam, Sydney and New York.

And this year won't be any different.

"I just got back from Montreal," he said from his Vancouver home. He is already planning a trip to Singapore, where he hopes to catch up with some students he used to teach at the University of Calgary and an old friend from his college days.

For Dolan, who takes four to six trips a year, travel is part of his life.

"In all of history there hasn't been a niche market with more disposable income and more desire to travel all over the world," he said.

"Travel is enormously important. My motivation for travel is my desire to see the world. But my desire is to see it the way that I am as opposed to a desire to show up and see the world pretending not to be who I really am."

All over the world and right here in Whistler there is a growing realization by those in the travel industry that the gay and lesbian travel segment needs to be recognized and catered to.

The average gay or lesbian traveller takes seven pleasure trips a year and according to the most recent statistics was worth $54 billion to the travel industry in North America and $140 billion worldwide. That's about 10 per cent of the travel market.

"It is a very robust and ever growing market," said New York-based Ed Salvado, editor of Out and About magazine, which caters to gay and lesbian travellers and travel agents who serve the gay/lesbian market.

In the last issue of Out and About Vancouver was chosen as one of the top 10 emerging destinations worldwide for the gay traveller. And this May the city will host more than 1,000 tour operators and travel agents at the International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association's annual convention.

Indeed many in the travel industry see this segment as the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, as gay travellers take more trips and have more disposable income than other vacationers.

And gay and lesbian travellers haven't been put off by the threat of terrorism, SARS, mad cow, the strong Canadian dollar or just about anything else, which makes them even more attractive.

"A lot of marketers took note of that," said Salvado.

"We did poll after poll that showed people weren't changing their travel plans and in fact were travelling a little bit more after September 11th.

"My personal belief is that gay people have put up with a lot worse that the vague threat of a shoe bomber: being taunted in school or being discriminated against, or being gay-bashed, having AIDS, or being HIV positive. We are tough and we have been doing it on our own for long enough that nothing is going to scare us."

Altitude

This is not a secret to Whistler, which has been on the map internationally for the gay and lesbian traveller for over a decade thanks to Altitude, a ski and entertainment extravaganza aimed at that segment. This year Altitude takes place Feb. 1-9.

"Certainly it has put Whistler and Vancouver on the international gay and lesbian map as a desired destination," said Rodney Plante a consultant to Vancouver based Out on the Slopes Productions, which founded Altitude 12 years ago.

Next week more than 4,000 gay and lesbian travellers will arrive in Whistler from all over the world for the week-long event which features internationally acclaimed entertainment, the signature Snow Ball Twelve, fine dining, fun on the slopes, a beach and skating party at the local recreation centre and much more.

There is no doubt Altitude has evolved over the last dozen years. And it has forced Whistler to evolve with it.

"Whistler has done an amazing job of embracing the gay and lesbian clientele in tumultuous times when there has been any number of contentious social and sometimes religious and moral issues confronting our particular populations," said Plante.

"So I think what gay ski week has done is, for lack of a better word, normalized the gay and lesbian population.

"Certainly the community of Whistler has gone out of its way to welcome the event and not just solely from a monetary and business sense but also to say, 'Hey, we are a welcoming community. We value diversity and we will do whatever we can to support the diverse populations that come to Whistler.'"

To capture the gay and lesbian market it is not enough just to hang a rainbow flag, the symbol which internationally designates a gay-friendly place. Travel destinations need to embrace gay culture.

"The gay traveller wants to feel not just tolerated but invited," said Salvado.

And that means markets such as Whistler and Vancouver need to advertise to the gay and lesbian market for the long term.

"You can't just advertise once and expect the dollars to come rolling in," said Angus Praught of Gayvan.com Travel Marketing.

"You have to have consistent presence in this market and you have to be at the events, you have to be in the publications, give back to the community, and show that you are sincere in wanting to attract this market."

That's something Tourism Whistler embraces. This year the organization will co-host an event at the IGLTA conference in Vancouver.

And Tourism Whistler has developed part of its Web site for the gay and lesbian traveller.

"They are very in tune with those destinations that are just going after the gay dollar," said Jill Greenwood, director of Brand Marketing for Tourism Whistler, an IGLTA member.

"They want to be absolutely accepted and they want to know that their culture is welcomed and embraced in the destinations that they go to.

"We have certainly identified the gay market as a very important market for the resort.

"It is a very lucrative market and it is in sync with what our resort product offerings are. They are adventure travellers, they like to try new things, go to new places, they are food and wine enthusiasts, they are culture and arts enthusiasts, so Whistler is a really nice product offering for them."

Same-sex weddings

And now Whistler and B.C have something else to offer the gay and lesbian traveller: same sex weddings.

This week B.C. Liberal backbencher, former mayor of Whistler, and long time local Ted Nebbeling announced that he had married his partner of 32 years, Jan Holmberg, in a November ceremony.

"Now that it is a public issue I hope to see two things happening," said Nebbeling from Victoria.

"I hope it strengthens other gay people to do what the right thing is for them, as Jan and I did, and I also hope that those who are opposed to gay marriages think a little more about it.

"I hope they will say, 'hey, these guys have given a lot, they are hard working, they have 32 years commitment, those are values we would like to see in any married couple.' So hopefully people will get more comfortable with it."

At the time of the small intimate wedding held at the couple's Vancouver Coal Harbour apartment Nebbeling was a cabinet minister. It's believed that he is the highest-ranking politician to have a same sex wedding.

Nebbeling was mayor when Altitude founder Brent Benaschak first came to Whistler with his idea of hosting a gay and lesbian ski week.

He recalled the bumpy start - it only had a few hundred visitors the first year and the second year it was hit with a hate campaign by outsiders - and its growth into something unique and powerful.

"Being exposed to what gay people really are rather than they are sometimes made out to be by certain groups has made people feel more comfortable with the fact that we have the same rights as everyone else," said Nebbeling.

"I think that is a huge coup for B.C. and for Canada," said Greenwood.

"With same sex marriages now available in British Columbia that has really opened the door for the whole province, including Whistler, to attract that market and to set us apart from the rest of North America."

Chris Ford and her partner of eight years, Sandra Hernadez, heard about B.C. legalizing gay nuptials while listening to the radio at their San Diego home last summer.

"In our hearts we have been married for years," said Ford who had already planned to come to Altitude with her partner when she learned about B.C.'s marriage laws.

"But the idea of being able to have a ceremony and get legal and have it as recognized as anyone else's marriage was really appealing to us."

The plan is for the two avid snowboarders to meet on top of Whistler Mountain and, along with another couple, exchange their vows. Friends and family can't attend but Ford said they will be taking lots of pictures which they plan to share at a reception when they get home.

The 32-year-old graphic artist and Web page designer hopes that B.C. and Canada will set an example for the Unites States.

But it may be a faint hope. Indeed in last week's State of the Union address President George W. Bush once again proclaimed his belief that marriage was the union of a man and a woman and he chastised some of the U.S.'s top judges for finding that limiting marriage to heterosexuals violated human rights.

"My hope is the same as the Republican national convention's fear: As other countries recognize marriage it is going to be harder and harder to deny us that right, and if not I am learning the words to O'Canada," said Ford.

"We have argued for years that we should be allowed that right and how amazing it is that some place so close saw that and granted us that right, so hopefully it does do well.

"Fifty years ago you could still be thrown in jail for being a homosexual and now a three hour plane ride from here you can get married. It is just an amazing thing."

Ford had hoped to be part of a giant group wedding held in Whistler as part of Altitude. But the event had to be cancelled after the sudden death of the event's founder threw plans into chaos.

However Paula Mohamed of Whistler Gay Weddings said the cancellation of the big event hasn't stopped gays and lesbians, like Ford, from calling her.

"It seems that people are taking the opportunity while they are here so I think there is definitely potential for a lot of interest," she said.

"Our goal though is to make sure it doesn't get commercialized."

The new president of Altitude, Lee Bergeron, hopes to reinstate the event next year.

"We will probably spend some time promoting that to the right outlets and see if we can get some international attention on that and maybe next year have the world largest gay wedding," he said.

When B.C. legalized same-sex marriages last summer it took only days before gay and lesbian travellers wanted to find out more information.

Gayvan.com put an extra page on its Web site (www.gayvan.com) to offer information and suggestions for those who wanted to come to B.C. and get married.

"It has definitely created a lot of interest because we have been so public in the market place," said Praught of Gayvan.com .

"When this first became legal I was inundated by media from all over. Television stations, and publications called - everything from the New York Times to ABC News, and it created a lot of awareness in the market place.

"I think it really does have a potential to grow. But it all depends on how you approach it and how you produce it.

"What I have found is a lot of individuals coming up on their own, say for the weekend, and then going ahead with it."

However it is done, many in the travel industry are keeping their fingers crossed that this new trend will help offset some of the challenges B.C. and Canada have faced in the last couple of years in tourism.

Indeed spending on same-sex marriage travel could add as much as $1 billion to the slumping Canadian travel industry over the next three years, according to Community Marketing Inc. and Travel Alternatives Group, a San-Francisco based consulting firm.

And the number of same sex marriages being performed continues to go up. The most recent statistics available in B.C. show that from July, when they became legal, until the end of December 1,400 gay and lesbians were married. Of those 766 came from the U.S., mainly California, Oregon and Washington. Another 613 were Canadian and the rest were from other countries.(Canadians for Equal Marriage)

Ontario does not keep these types of statistics but Toronto does. It's records show that 14,700 gay and lesbians got married. Of those 6,800 were not Canadians.

The future

In the short term Whistler businesses and locals need to recognize how important the gay and lesbian traveller is. Tourism Whistler estimates that Altitude brings in $1 million to the resort.

And, say both Praught and Out and About's Salvado, the resort should keep in mind that if a gay traveller has a good time they will tell all their friends and they will come back.

"Word of mouth is very powerful in this market so by nurturing it and being involved and active in the market that creates loyalty," said Praught.

Added Salvado: "And another thing that influences gay people in purchase decisions, and that includes travel or anything, is brand loyalty.

"For example Absolute Vodka got into the market really early and now Absolute is the gay vodka of choice, and Subaru is the lesbian vehicle of choice because they got into the market early.

"But gay people also like to know that when they spend money a portion of that money goes to a gay or lesbian charity, that is huge."

An easy way to let gays and lesbians know that your business is happy to look after them is to put a rainbow sticker or flag in your window. And keep it there all year, said Praught.

"After all," he said, "gay people are travelling all the time and they will come back if they are treated well."

New trends are also emerging in the gay and lesbian travel market. There are now several niche markets within it and one of the fastest growing ones is gay family travel.

This year Hollywood talk show star Rosie O'Donell and her partner are organizing a cruise for 2,000 gay family travellers.

"There is a proliferation of niches within niches," said Salvado.

"So marketers have to be sensitive to the different niches within the broad segment, so one message may or may not work."

For Whistler, Altitude carries its strongest message to date. In fact so important is the event to the resort that when its future looked in doubt a couple of weeks ago, after the death of founder and organizer Benaschak, Tourism Whistler offered to help so the celebration could go ahead.

However a buyer came forward for Out on the Slopes and the event appears to have a strong future.

"It is a wonderful event and I think it is something that needs to continue," said new owner and president Bergeron, who owns a vitamin business in San Diego.

"It has had such a huge international draw that it would be a shame for it to falter at this point."

Despite Whistler's success in hosting Altitude the learning curve continues.

For years there have been issues surrounding the time parties have to shut down during the event.

For a large segment of gay and lesbian travellers, staying up dancing and partying until the sun comes up is all part of the experience. But for Whistler, in general that's a no, no.

However accommodations have been made.

"A lot of the people who will come to these events come because they know that they can dance and have a good time until early in the morning," said Plante of Altitude.

"When you go to other international events for the gay and lesbian population that is the way it is and people are less likely to come if they know the party closes at 2 a.m .

"This is not a disruptive group.. We are mature professionals. We are not screaming or getting into fights or throwing beer bottles at the end of the night.

"It has been a learning curve for Whistler. But it has been very open to the discussions and changing some of their policies and recognizing that not everything applies to every set of people."

This year's event promises to be exciting, with world-class calibre entertainment.

It will also be a testament to the work of Benaschak, who worked to make his dream come true. Donations will be accepted at the event for a foundation to be set up in his memory and it's likely many glasses will be raised in memory of his vision, which was to unite people and communities and offer a fun event.

"Bringing communities together. was always one of his main focus(es)," said Plante.

"It was to show that there is really not that much difference between gay and lesbian populations and the mainstream population. We all like the same things, we all enjoy the same activities, and we all like to have fun, so why can't we all have fun together?"



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