Italy has a long history of being a friendly destination for the LGBTQ community. And the community is expected to be a big part of Italy’s tourism recovery.

The Italian Government Tourist Board (ENIT) held a webinar on Wednesday that focused on LGBTQ travel, which is a $25 billion USD industry around the world. Italy makes up roughly 11% of that spending, officials said.

Roughly seven per cent of the world identifies as LGBTQ, said Robert Peaslee, senior manager at Sonders and Beach. It’s a significant market in absolute size, but it’s also important because LGBTQ couples have an average income that’s roughly 38% higher than other couples.

Peaslee said LGBTQ travellers are more willing to try new places and be trendsetters, and that they may be the first travellers to seriously engage in international travel as the COVID-19 pandemic eases around the world.

Peaslee’s company runs an outfit in Italy called Quiiky, which runs LGBTQ friendly tours in one of the world’s most popular countries for international visitors.

Giovanna Ceccherino, who’s a sales manager with Quiiky, said the company was the first Italian tour operator focused on the LGBTQ market and was formed 13 years ago. They do tours based on LGBTQ interests, such as history, culture or food and wine, always with safety in mind, she said.

Peaslee said tours talk about untold history or current events surrounding the LGBTQ community in destinations such as Rome, Milan, Florence, Naples and more. Tours have titles such as “The Vatican Museums in a Gay Light," “Homosexuality in Ancient Rome,” and “Michelangelo and Gay Florence.”

There’s also a “Call Me By Your Name” movie tour; a one-day bike, car and walking tour in the town of Crema and surrounding areas where visitors can see movie filming locations.

Weddings also can be arranged in Milan, Rome, Sorrento and other Italian cities, officials said.

Titti De Simone, who works with tourism in the Apulia area, said LGBTQ travellers are warmly welcomed in her area of southern Italy. Communities such as Salento and Gallipoli are the most established, but she also said there’s a growing network of lesbian-owned travel businesses in the Itria Valley, north of Brindisi.

Peaslee said the IGLTA (International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association) conference was to take place in Milan last month but was cancelled due to the corona virus. That convention now is slated for May 2022, with dates to be announced soon.

“The conference is a great chance to relaunch Italy as a great gay destination,” he said.