How safe do queer people feel while traveling? Where is acceptance most tangible? And what does the legal landscape look like? For the first time, the International Tourism Exchange Berlin (ITB Berlin), together with Diversity Tourism and A3M Global Monitoring, conducted a survey among queer travelers. While Canada and Spain are consistently perceived as safe, Germany, despite legal equality, experiences a more restrained level of societal acceptance.
Accompanying this, A3M published the updated “LGBTQ+ Risk Map 2025,” which documents developments worldwide (image above). The color scale runs from “very high risk” (dark red) to low risk (dark green). The annually released map serves as a guide for travelers, organizers, and authorities and captures current trends. Positive developments include Dominica and Namibia (decriminalization of homosexual acts by courts), Germany (Self-Determination Act), and Thailand (legalization of same-sex marriages).
Negative evaluations included (re-)criminalizations in Mali, Iraq, and Trinidad and Tobago, as well as anti-queer legislation in Georgia and the culture-war era under Trump, especially targeted at transgender people. The entire map is available as a PDF, and the website offers additional information. According to the map, Malta, Iceland, the Netherlands, Canada, Spain, Norway, Denmark, Uruguay, Germany, and Andorra are among the safest countries. Iran is the most dangerous, followed by Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Yemen, Uganda, Afghanistan, the United Arab Emirates, Tanzania, Malaysia, and Pakistan.
Survey on Real-World Experiences
At the same time, ITB conducted for the first time an online survey of queer travelers. The study, titled “Perceptions and Experiences of LGBTQ+ Travellers,” ran from December 2024 to April 2025, delivered via newsletters, social media, the website, and the LGBTQ+-travel portal Tomontour.de, and comprised 16 questions — including personal perceptions of societal acceptance, legal equality, safety in dealings with authorities, experiences with police, health care systems, and the use of social networks.
The linked map website also contains many details about the survey, which, however, due to the small number of participants (123 assessments across 36 countries, with 18 of the countries contributing only a single opinion) provides only a limited cross-country overview.
Canada and Spain top the list of destinations perceived as safe. In both countries, 100 percent of participants report that LGBTQ+ individuals are treated with respect. Also, showing affection in public is viewed as unproblematic in Spain (90 percent) and Canada (71 percent). The police are perceived as supportive by the majority in both countries.
By contrast, the assessment of the United States is mixed: only about one-third agree that queer couples can openly display affection or that the police act in LGBTQ+-friendly ways. Significant regional differences are evident between progressive urban centers and more conservative regions. Germany is seen as ambivalent: despite progressive legislation, societal acceptance is perceived as only moderately high. Only about half of respondents feel comfortable being openly LGBTQ+ or experience equal treatment by authorities. The situation for transgender people is notably worse in many countries.
Findings to Inform Trade-Fair Programming
In addition, in-depth interviews with LGBTQ+-travel industry experts and frequent travelers revealed further details for certain countries, such as a distinction between high tolerance and restrictive legal frameworks, or a “pragmatic” approach by authorities, “as long as queer travelers behave discreetly.” Yet travelers themselves also vary: “Younger queer travelers from Western societies respond more sensitively to restrictions on visibility, while older generations who grew up facing discrimination are more willing to adapt while traveling.”
“The safety landscape for queer travelers is currently changing rapidly — not only legally, but also socially,” summarizes Thomas Bömkes, managing director of Diversity Tourism and ITB Berlin’s LGBTQ+ Tourism Advisor. “Many LGBTQ+ people today live with more confidence and openness — and with that comes a greater need for orientation concerning safety. Legal frameworks alone are often not enough: what matters is how safely people can actually feel on-site.” The survey is planned to be repeated annually, and the results will also feed into the content planning for the upcoming ITB Berlin from March 3 to 5, 2026. (nb/pm)
