LONDON (17 July 2017)—London-based John Bridge steps in this month as the International Gay & Lesbian Travel Association’s ambassador to the United Kingdom, a volunteer role that assists with membership support and development throughout the region. Bridge is a director at TravelBeat, a sales and marketing company specialising in tourism and hospitality.

“IGLTA has a longstanding relationship with Visit Britain and a number of excellent UK-based businesses committed to LGBTQ-friendly tourism, so we’re pleased to keep close ties to the region through our ambassador program,” said IGLTA President/CEO John Tanzella. “We’ve enjoyed working with John as an IGLTA member for a number of years and look forward to collaborating with him on our UK membership development.”

Bridge takes over the position from longtime UK ambassador Jonathan Mountford, who will remain active with IGLTA. Prior to settling in London in 2012, Bridge worked on event promotion in his native Liverpool and helped to launch the city’s first Pride festival. Through TravelBeat, he works with organisations based in the United States, France, Belgium, Greece, Italy, and the United Kingdom to increase awareness, sales and market share within the tourism sphere.

“I'm delighted to have been appointed as UK Ambassador for IGLTA. The organisation does such incredible work around the world to create awareness and promote acceptance of LGBTQ+ travel and I'm proud to be a small part of it,” Bridge said. “There is a huge opportunity in the UK to highlight the power and the economics behind inbound and outbound LGBTQ+ travel from the market and I'm looking forward to working with a range of partners to realise its potential.”

IGLTA's program of global volunteer ambassadors allows the association to better serve its member businesses in 70 countries. If you’d like to connect with Bridge, please email uk@iglta.org.

 

About IGLTA

IGLTA, the International LGBTQ+ Travel Association is the leading member-based global organisation dedicated to LGBTQ+ tourism and a proud Affiliate Member of the United Nations World Tourism Organization. IGLTA’s mission is to provide information and resources for LGBTQ+ travelers and expand LGBTQ+ tourism globally by demonstrating its significant social and economic impact. The association also is a proud supporter of ECPAT’s Tourism Child Protection Code of Conduct to prevent child exploitation. IGLTA membership includes LGBTQ+ and LGBTQ- friendly accommodations, destinations, service providers, travel agents, tour operators, events and travel media in approximately 70 countries. For more information: iglta.org and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @iglta.