{"id":47933,"date":"2014-09-24T23:05:28","date_gmt":"2014-09-24T23:05:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/?guid=ce20195a5192b0282a22adee709bef8c"},"modified":"2014-09-24T23:05:28","modified_gmt":"2014-09-24T23:05:28","slug":"press-release-lesbian-gay-bisexual-and-transgender-couples-urged-to-research-honeymoon-destinations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/?p=47933","title":{"rendered":"Press release: Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender couples urged to research honeymoon destinations"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"govspeak\">\n<p>The Foreign &amp; Commonwealth Office (<abbr title=\"Foreign &amp; Commonwealth Office\">FCO<\/abbr>) is encouraging <abbr title=\"Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender\">LGB&amp;T<\/abbr> couples going on honeymoons overseas to choose their destination with care after new research suggested that less than half (46%) of <abbr title=\"Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender\">LGB&amp;T<\/abbr> people investigate whether an area is <abbr title=\"Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender\">LGB&amp;T<\/abbr>-friendly when planning a honeymoon abroad.  <\/p>\n<p>The survey, which comes just six months after the introduction of marriage for same-sex couples in England and Wales, also found that one in five <abbr title=\"Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender\">LGB&amp;T<\/abbr> people planning their honeymoon did not research their destination at all before booking.<\/p>\n<p>Laws and attitudes relating to <abbr title=\"Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender\">LGB&amp;T<\/abbr> people vary significantly around the world and can be very different to those in the UK.  In some countries same sex relationships may be punishable by a long imprisonment or the death penalty.  <\/p>\n<p>Although most same-sex newlyweds have positive and happy memories of their honeymoon, nearly a third of respondents to the survey (30%) said their experience had been affected by negative local attitudes towards gay people.  Taking the time to research thoroughly can help couples to ensure their honeymoon is the trip of a lifetime they hoped for.  <\/p>\n<p>The survey findings also revealed that:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>more than half (52%) didn\u2019t feel confident in selecting a destination overseas that is <abbr title=\"Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender\">LGB&amp;T<\/abbr>-friendly<\/li>\n<li>sources of information used for researching destinations included <abbr title=\"Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender\">LGB&amp;T<\/abbr> media and organisations (46%) and family and friends (30%)<\/li>\n<li>the youngest group surveyed (18-24 years old) were most likely to research attitudes towards <abbr title=\"Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender\">LGB&amp;T<\/abbr> people abroad, while those aged 55 years and older were least likely<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>John Heppenstall, Head of Consular Campaigns at the Foreign &amp; Commonwealth Office, said: <\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"last-child\">All couples looking to book and travel abroad for their honeymoon have an abundance of great destinations to choose from.  But it\u2019s important for same-sex couples to be aware that attitudes towards lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender travellers vary considerably around the world and can be very different from those in the UK.  Our most important piece of advice is to always fully research your destination before booking.  It could be the difference between the trip of a lifetime and one you\u2019d both much rather forget.  Visit our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/lesbian-gay-bisexual-and-transgender-foreign-travel-advice\">lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender foreign travel advice page<\/a> for more information.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Martin Iversen Christensen, European Member of the Board of <abbr title=\"The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association\">ILGA<\/abbr> (The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association), said:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"last-child\">It\u2019s easy to get caught up in the excitement of booking a holiday abroad, especially for a special occasion like a honeymoon.  But finding out how suitable a destination is should be a priority, so we welcome the initiative by the <abbr title=\"Foreign &amp; Commonwealth Office\">FCO<\/abbr> to publish travel advice for <abbr title=\"lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people\">LGBTI-people<\/abbr>.  The <abbr title=\"The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association\">ILGA<\/abbr> monitors the legislation concerning <abbr title=\"lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people\">LGBTI-people<\/abbr> closely and our <a rel=\"external\" href=\"http:\/\/www.ilga.org\">website<\/a> can give an indication if, for instance, same sex marriage is recognised, or if, on the contrary, being gay or lesbian is considered a crime.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Earlier this year, <a rel=\"external\" href=\"http:\/\/www.thegayweddingguide.co.uk\">TheGayWeddingGuide.co.uk<\/a> created an <a rel=\"external\" href=\"http:\/\/thegayweddingguide.co.uk\/know-before-you-go\/\">infographic<\/a> highlighting their recommendations for <abbr title=\"Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender\">LGB&amp;T<\/abbr>-friendly honeymoon destinations overseas.  Same sex couples travelling abroad can also visit our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/lesbian-gay-bisexual-and-transgender-foreign-travel-advice\"><abbr title=\"Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender\">LGB&amp;T<\/abbr> foreign travel advice page<\/a> for more information and advice on travelling abroad.<\/p>\n<p>If you would like further information please contact 0207 781 2342 or <a href=\"mailto:fcoteam@consolidatedpr.com\">fcoteam@consolidatedpr.com<\/a><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"further-information\">Further information<\/h2>\n<p>The \u2018Know Before You Go\u2019 campaign targets a number of audiences, from gap year students to package holidaymakers; sports fans to older travellers and people visiting friends and family abroad.  The campaign works with more than 300 travel industry partners to communicate its messages.  For more information visit our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/knowbeforeyougo\">Know Before You Go page<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>If you have any enquiries for <abbr title=\"Foreign &amp; Commonwealth Office\">FCO<\/abbr> consular staff before you go or while abroad you can use the <abbr title=\"Foreign &amp; Commonwealth Office\">FCO<\/abbr>\u2019s Twitter service <a rel=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.twitter.com\/fcotravel\">@FCOtravel<\/a>.  Questions are answered 9am-6pm BST, Monday to Friday and <abbr title=\"Foreign &amp; Commonwealth Office\">FCO<\/abbr> staff aim to respond within 30 minutes. This service adds to the ways that British people travelling or living overseas can already get in touch with the <abbr title=\"Foreign &amp; Commonwealth Office\">FCO<\/abbr>: by emailing our travel advice team or contacting local consular staff.<\/p>\n<p>You can also keep up-to-date with the latest <abbr title=\"Foreign &amp; Commonwealth Office\">FCO<\/abbr> travel advice by signing up to the <abbr title=\"Foreign &amp; Commonwealth Office\">FCO<\/abbr>\u2019s <a rel=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/fcotravel\">Facebook<\/a> and <a rel=\"external\" href=\"https:\/\/www.twitter.com\/fcotravel\">Twitter<\/a> feeds.<\/p>\n<p>Information about how the <abbr title=\"Foreign &amp; Commonwealth Office\">FCO<\/abbr> can help British nationals abroad:<\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>The <abbr title=\"Foreign &amp; Commonwealth Office\">FCO<\/abbr> can:<\/th>\n<th>The <abbr title=\"Foreign &amp; Commonwealth Office\">FCO<\/abbr> cannot:<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>Issue you with an emergency travel document<\/td>\n<td>Help you enter a country if you do not have a valid passport or necessary visas<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Provide information about transferring money<\/td>\n<td>Give you legal advice or translate documents<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Provide help if you have suffered rape or serious sexual or physical assault, are a victim of crime, are ill or in hospital<\/td>\n<td>Investigate crimes or get you out of prison<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Give you a list of local lawyers, interpreters, doctors or funeral directors<\/td>\n<td>Get you better treatment in hospital or prison than is given to local people, but we will raise concerns if treatment falls below internationally recognised standards<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Contact you if you are detained abroad<\/td>\n<td>Pay any bills or give you money<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Contact friends and family back home for you if you wish<\/td>\n<td>Make travel arrangements for you<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Provide help in cases of forced marriage<\/td>\n<td>\u00a0<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Assist people affected by parental child abduction<\/td>\n<td>\u00a0<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>New research suggests fewer than half of LGB&amp;T couples research whether a destination is LGB&amp;T-friendly before travelling overseas<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47933"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=47933"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47933\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=47933"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=47933"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=47933"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}