The ‘T’ in LGBT travel stands for transgender, but the reality is that the trans men and women are in fact poorly served by our community’s tour operators who focus mainly on gay men. That however may start to change, especially if Stephanie Land has her way. This transgendered woman who has been working in the travel industry since 1995 has combined her professional expertise and personal experience to create Transgender Vacations specifically to cater for the trans community and their friends.
Land has joined forces with Focus Diva a UK LGBT Tour Company to off the world’s first ever ‘All Transgender, Cross-Dresser & Friends” Danube River 7 day cruise aboard the MS Belvedere in October this year. The onboard program will showcase motivational lectures and workshops by transgender leaders, including Kellie Maloney, a former British boxing promoter who underwent gender reassignment in 2014; Alexis Dee, who serves as president of the Southern Comfort Conference, one of the largest gatherings of the transgender community; and Sophie Cook, Premier League football photographer, newspaper editor, motorbike racer and transgender woman.
“Having the entire river cruise ship to ourselves, to enjoy, socialize and have fun is an experience that all members of the Transgender and Cross-Dressing community and our family members who love to travel with us have asked for – we are so happy to finally deliver on this request!” said Land.
There is a wonderful quote from the wise Maya Angelou that Land has chosen to feature on her new company’ website which is as follows : “Perhaps travel cannot prevent bigotry, but by demonstrating that all peoples cry, laugh, eat, worry, and die, it can introduce the idea that if we try and understand each other, we may even become friends.”
queerguru couldn’t agree more, and we applaud Stephanie Land and her contribution to helping maybe a few more of our community have the opportunity to experience the joys of travel in a way that they can really enjoy.
