That was the warning of Ed Salvato, editor-in-chief of LGBT travel publication, ManAboutWorld, speaking at the Proud Experiences conference taking place in London this week.
Salvato said he believed current hospitality procedures, such as using the description “ladies and gentlemen” to greet hotel guests, were “primitive” when considering the changing attitudes of society surrounding traditional gender labels.
He also told delegates that he saw staff “freezing” when it came to delivering personable and effective service to LGBT customers because they were too worried of upsetting guests or making a mistake with their use of language.
“The attitude in travel – especially in the luxury market – is to know your customer completely, but with LGBT customers it does feel like there is a big disconnect," he said.
“It feels as if today’s standard for some hotel staff, when they interact with an LGBT couple, is ‘don’t freak out, cause no harm’… instead of engaging, your staff are retreating.”
He argued that diversity was about “being invited to the dance” but inclusivity was “actually being asked to dance once you’re there".
“Staff have to put themselves out there. How else are you going to get to know your guest as well as you want to?”
Salvato also hit-out at areas of travel such as airline ticketing and hotel booking forms, which ask travellers to state their gender as either male or female.
He said he believed the process was “forcing people into boxes” and called for more countries to offer a third gender or “other” option.
