That was the headline finding of a new study, in which 89% of Advantage members said the LGBT+ traveller was already important to their business, although nearly 55% said they do not currently “actively” promote themselves as an LGBT+ -friendly travel agent.

Of the 11% of Advantage agents who said LGBT+ holidaymakers were not currently important for their business, the majority (86%) believed this could change in the future.

The LGBT+ leisure travel agency survey was carried out by Advantage and the Malta Tourism Authority.

David Forder, head of marketing at The Advantage Travel Partnership, said: “We are encouraged by the level of response, and how important our members believe the LGBT+ traveller already is to their businesses. It is important we continually look for ways we can support members in growing their business, and the survey has helped us do exactly that.”

Of those agents not currently promoting their services to this market, 90% said they would now consider marketing themselves as being LGBT+ friendly, as they “know the value of the market”.

Advantage members said they wanted marketing support to target LGBT+ consumers, including specific content for destinations (64%).

Nearly 80% of agents also said they wanted to see increased awareness of LGBT+ destinations plus lists of festivals and events (73%), while more than 50% asked for information on LGBT+ laws in destinations.

Despite seeking more detailed information, most agents (89%) said they were already “comfortable” recommending destinations to LGBT+ clients.

“We are now looking forward to seeing how we can further develop our LGBT+ strategy to directly support members in this area,” added Forder.

Malta also won strong backing as an LGBT+ destination from Advantage members with 86% ranking it highly for being LGBT+-friendly, including 42% who said the island was “very friendly”.