UK ranked 9th best place for LGBT+ travel in Spartacus Gay Travel Index
The Spartacus Gay Travel Index has ranked 203 countries and regions for LGBT+ travellers.
If you’re of a certain age, you will remember the chunky Spartacus International Gay Guides. First published in 1970 Spartacus later modernised the guides into an app in 2011.
This authority of gay travel has released its annual Spartacus Gay Travel Index, which rates the LGBT+ situation, both for locals and visitors, in a total of 203 countries and regions.
The index currently has 17 categories ranging from gender and marriage rights to anti-LGBT+ laws and religious influence.
In 2023 Malta was the clear winner for the first time, which proves it was the right choice for this year’s EuroPride in September.
Canada and Switzerland tied for second place, with Switzerland making the biggest leap from seven to twelve points because of the introduction of equal marriage and a progressive gender self-determination law for individuals over the age of 16.
Also gaining traction was Israel and Vietnam for banning ‘conversion therapy’. Currently, only 23 countries have banned the outdated and debunked practice. The UK’s Conservative government is dragging its feet on its promise to ban it throughout Britain.
The UK neither lost nor gained any points this year and tied for ninth place alongside Germany, Iceland, and Spain.
Indonesia saw the biggest slip from 117th to 159th place, because of a new law influenced by fundamentalism. Meanwhile, Afghanistan, Chechnya, Iran, and Saudi Arabia tie for the hardest places to be part of the LGBT+ community.
The hosts of the FIFA 2022 World Cup, Qatar, is ranked 191st by Spartacus.
Similarly, the US-Index provides information about each of the 50 federal states of the United States.
You can view the full interactive colour map here.