Are The Islands of Tahiti (TIOT) and its welcoming nature truly inclusive of all travellers? The idyllic South Pacific destination checked its hospitality credentials with real couples from the LGBTQIA+ community to see if they felt treasured and welcomed in its new ‘The Treasured Test’ campaign.
Tahiti Tourisme conducted a global casting call to find three queer couples to travel to the island paradise for a week and see if they felt truly welcomed and treasured during their visit.
For LGBTQIA+ travellers seeking a tropical getaway, there’s always a concern for authenticity and safety. Cultural differences can pose challenges, leaving travellers feeling uneasy or vulnerable.
While TIOT has long been recognised as a romantic retreat for LGBTQIA+ couples, the depth of experiences and the culture of acceptance were not widely acknowledged.
The campaign, produced in partnership with Sydney-based Circul8 agency and shot by a Tahitian LGBTQIA+ director and director of photography, is telling in its results.
The Treasured Test
US lesbian married couple Jen and Jess, French gay couple Seb and Diego and two Japanese friends Yuma and Mizuki, both transgender men, shared their unfiltered experiences in TIOT.
The film crew followed the group for 10 days as they experienced all the holiday highlights in The Islands of Tahiti, from learning traditional dance to snorkelling in the lagoon of Bora Bora.
The group shared their travel impressions through candid interviews, unanimously expressing heartfelt gratitude for the warmth and acceptance extended by the locals.
“The local people of Tahiti were so surprisingly genuinely friendly – it didn’t feel forced,” Jen says in the video.
They all emphasised feeling completely at ease and liberated from the need to mask any aspect of their identity.
“You can be yourself here and enjoy love and be what you are without hiding something in your attitude or the way you talk, so it’s freedom to be yourself,” Seb said.
The Treasured Test campaign and assets will be shared among key global markets throughout 2024.
Australia is now the fifth-largest source market for TIOT, and visitation is already projected to increase by 8.8 per cent in the first half of 2025.
For more info, head to tahititourisme.com/lgbt
