For the first time ever, the annual Spartacus Gay Travel Index has a five-way tie for top place in 2024 with more than one country ranking as the most gay-friendly holiday destination for LGBTQIA+ travellers.
The latest 2024 Gay Travel Index of 213 countries shows Canada, Malta, New Zealand, Portugal and Spain are the world’s most queer-friendly places.
They’re followed closely by Australia, Switzerland, Denmark, Germany, Iceland, Norway and Uruguay.
Australia and New Zealand consistently rank among the top 10 LGBTQIA+ travel destinations worldwide, recognised for public acceptance, legalisation and legal rights for same-sex couples.
Sydney hosted WorldPride in 2023 and Washington, DC is gearing up to fly the rainbow flag for the international event in 2025.
At the bottom of the list, the most hostile destinations are still Saudi Arabia, Iran, Chechnya and Afghanistan, which practice the death penalty for homosexuality.
The USA only clocked in at 41, down from a ranking of 35, due to religious influence and hostile locals.
However, on an individual basis, states such as New York State (at number one) and California, Colorado, Nevada and Oregon (tied at number two) were recognised as gay-friendly destinations for LGBTQIA+ holidaymakers.
Likewise, the UK also lost ground as a gay-friendly country, dropping from ninth place to 21 for a lack of LGBTQIA+ marketing and infrastructure efforts and hostile locals.
Russia also dropped to 205 on the list due to increased prosecutions of the queer community.
Notably, Norway and Estonia rose in the rankings, thanks to a reversal of conversion therapy and the legalisation of same-sex marriage, respectively.
The 2024 Gay Travel Index
Since 2012, the annual Spartacus Gay Travel Index ranks countries based on safety and inclusivity for LGBTQIA+ travellers, using 18 criteria to measure progress and improvement.
It provides an important context for leisure and business travellers as a recent report found only 19 per cent of companies provide information on LGBTQIA+ rights to employees before overseas work trips.
Read the full report here.
