Backed by independent research from leading LGBTQ+ travel authorities, Royal Grand Resorts enters the market purpose-built for a segment that spends more, travels more, and expects more — with Costa Rica emerging as a standout destination that aligns perfectly with what today’s gay traveler is seeking.
NEW YORK, July 7, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Royal Grand Resorts officially opens its doors this month, entering the hospitality market with a focused purpose: delivering premium resort experiences designed for gay male travelers. The brand offers upscale, welcoming environments that prioritize authenticity, community, and quality — without the exclusivity of ultra-luxury price points — making elevated gay travel more accessible than ever.
The brand’s vision is grounded in a growing body of independent research from Community Marketing & Insights (CMI), the International LGBTQ+ Travel Association (IGLTA), Out Now Global, MMGY Global, and the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) — all pointing to a market that is large, loyal, underserved, and evolving rapidly.
TREND #1 — MARKET SCALE: A $218 BILLION OPPORTUNITY
The global LGBTQ+ travel market is one of the most significant and consistently underpenetrated segments in hospitality:
- The global LGBTQ+ travel market was valued at approximately $218 billion in 2021 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of over 15% through 2030.
Source: Coherent Market Insights / UNWTO, 2022
- Gay and bisexual men represent the highest-spending sub-segment within LGBTQ+ travel, with research consistently showing above-average trip frequency and per-trip spend compared to both heterosexual travelers and other LGBTQ+ sub-groups.
Source: Community Marketing & Insights (CMI), Annual LGBTQ+ Tourism & Hospitality Report, 2023
- LGBTQ+ travelers take more international trips per year on average than non-LGBTQ+ travelers in the same income bracket — a pattern that has held consistent across CMI’s annual research for over a decade.
Source: CMI, 18th Annual LGBTQ+ Tourism & Hospitality Report, 2023
- The United States alone accounts for an estimated $100+ billion in LGBTQ+ travel spending annually, with gay men representing the largest share of that spend.
Source: National LGBTQ Task Force / Out Now Global estimates, 2022–2023
TREND #2 — TRAVELER PREFERENCES: INCLUSION IS NON-NEGOTIABLE
Gay male travelers hold brands to a high and specific standard of authentic inclusion — and they make decisions accordingly:
- Over 80% of LGBTQ+ travelers say that a destination’s LGBTQ+-friendliness is a significant factor in their travel decisions.
Source: IGLTA / UNWTO, LGBTQ+ Travel Research Report, 2021
- 72% of LGBTQ+ travelers research a destination’s legal protections and social climate before booking — a figure that rises among older and higher-income travelers.
Source: CMI Annual LGBTQ+ Tourism & Hospitality Report, 2023
- Gay travelers strongly prefer destinations and properties with visible, year-round LGBTQ+ inclusion. Properties perceived as engaging only during Pride events are consistently rated lower on trust and loyalty metrics.
Source: Out Now Global, LGBT2020 Research Programme
- Word-of-mouth and community reviews are the primary booking influence for gay male travelers, outranking traditional advertising and brand marketing.
Source: CMI Annual Report, 2022–2023
TREND #3 — WELLNESS TRAVEL: A DEFINING PRIORITY
Wellness is among the fastest-growing categories in gay travel, driven by demand for experiences that support mental health, community connection, and holistic self-care:
- The global wellness tourism market was valued at $814 billion in 2022 and is projected to reach $1.4 trillion by 2027. LGBTQ+ travelers are a disproportionately high-value segment within this market.
Source: Global Wellness Institute, Global Wellness Economy Monitor, 2023
- Mental health and stress recovery consistently rank as top wellness motivators for gay male travelers — above physical fitness or beauty treatments — reflecting documented higher rates of minority stress within the gay male community.
Source: CMI Annual LGBTQ+ Tourism Report; American Psychological Association minority stress research
- Gay-specific retreat programming — including wellness weeks, community connection retreats, and mindfulness experiences curated for gay men — is an underserved and rapidly growing niche within the broader wellness travel market.
Source: IGLTA Market Intelligence, 2023; Out Now Global LGBT2020
- Access to LGBTQ+-affirming health services near or at properties is an emerging expectation among younger gay male travelers, particularly in markets with established LGBTQ+ health infrastructure.
Source: IGLTA Foundation research notes, 2022–2023
TREND #4 — SUSTAINABILITY: VALUES-DRIVEN SPENDING
Gay male travelers over-index on sustainable and community-conscious travel behavior, connecting environmental values to broader principles of equity and social responsibility:
- LGBTQ+ travelers consistently over-index on sustainable travel behavior relative to the general travel population — including preference for eco-certified properties, locally owned businesses, and community-reinvestment-focused brands.
Source: Out Now Global, LGBT2020 Research Programme; Booking.com Sustainable Travel Report, 2023
- 76% of global travelers intend to travel more sustainably, a figure that skews higher among LGBTQ+ respondents, who also report greater willingness to pay a premium for verified sustainable practices.
Source: Booking.com Sustainable Travel Report, 2023
- Gay travelers place particular emphasis on brands that actively support local LGBTQ+ communities in destination markets — through employment, partnerships with LGBTQ+-owned businesses, and support for local advocacy organizations.
Source: Out Now Global LGBT2020; CMI 2023 Annual Report
TREND #5 — DESTINATION INSIGHTS: ESTABLISHED FAVORITES, AND WHY COSTA RICA IS DIFFERENT
Destination selection among gay male travelers follows a clear hierarchy — led by legal safety and social visibility — while an exciting new tier of values-aligned destinations is gaining serious momentum:
- Legal protections for gay men are the single most cited factor in destination selection across all major LGBTQ+ travel surveys — consistently outranking price, climate, and cuisine.
Source: IGLTA / UNWTO LGBTQ+ Travel Research Report, 2021; CMI Annual Report, 2023
- Top established gay travel destinations globally, based on booking volume and traveler surveys, include: Puerto Vallarta (Mexico), Mykonos (Greece), Sitges (Spain), Lisbon (Portugal), Amsterdam (Netherlands), and Bangkok (Thailand).
Source: IGLTA Destination Reports; CMI Annual LGBTQ+ Tourism & Hospitality Report, 2023
- Circuit travel events — including White Party, Matinee Barcelona, XLSIOR Mykonos, and Black Party NYC — continue to anchor high-value gay travel itineraries, with many attendees extending into multi-night premium resort stays before or after events.
Source: Industry reporting; IGLTA event impact assessments
- Private villa rentals and boutique resort experiences are the fastest-growing accommodation preference among higher-income gay male travelers, reflecting a broader shift toward privacy, exclusivity, and curated group travel.
Source: Out Now Global; Airbnb Luxe and villa rental market trend data, 2023–2024
Spotlight: Costa Rica as a Strategic Emerging Destination for Gay Travelers
While established circuit destinations dominate booking volume, Costa Rica represents a uniquely compelling opportunity — and one that aligns directly with where gay traveler values are heading:
- Costa Rica became the first Central American country to legalize same-sex marriage in May 2020, signaling a meaningful shift in legal protections and social climate that directly affects gay traveler confidence in the destination.
Source: Human Rights Watch; IGLTA Destination Updates, 2020
- Manuel Antonio, on Costa Rica’s Pacific coast, has an established reputation as one of Central America’s most gay-welcoming destinations, with a visible and long-standing gay hospitality scene that has grown steadily over the past decade.
Source: IGLTA member destination reports; Out Now Global destination intelligence
- Costa Rica’s world-leading eco-tourism infrastructure — it generates over 99% of its electricity from renewable sources and has committed to carbon neutrality — makes it an exceptional fit for the sustainability values that gay travelers consistently report prioritizing.
Source: Costa Rica Tourism Board (ICT); National Geographic Geotourism data
- The destination offers premium-quality nature, adventure, and wellness experiences at accessible price points compared to European and Southeast Asian circuit destinations — making it well-suited for Royal Grand Resorts’ upscale, non-ultra-luxury positioning.
Source: Costa Rica Tourism Board market positioning data; IGLTA market intelligence
- Costa Rica is seeing growing interest from the North American gay travel market specifically, driven by direct flight access from major US cities, short travel time, and the combination of natural beauty, legal safety, and established gay-welcoming infrastructure.
Source: IGLTA Americas region market updates; Google Trends LGBTQ+ travel search data, 2023–2024
“The research is unambiguous: gay male travelers are among the most valuable, most loyal, and most underserved guests in hospitality. Royal Grand Resorts was built in direct response to that gap — to create welcoming, high-quality spaces where gay men feel genuinely centered, not just accommodated. Costa Rica exemplifies exactly the kind of destination we had in mind: safe, breathtakingly beautiful, deeply sustainable, and ready for a new generation of gay travelers discovering it.“
— Stanley Kania, Owner, Royal Grand Resorts
ABOUT ROYAL GRAND RESORTS
Royal Grand Resorts is a newly launched hospitality brand offering premium, welcoming resort experiences for gay male travelers in destinations that are safe, affirming, and exceptional. Designed to sit between mainstream hotels and ultra-luxury resorts, Royal Grand Resorts delivers elevated experiences — curated programming, thoughtful design, community-focused amenities, and genuine inclusion — at price points that make quality gay travel accessible to more people. Royal Grand Resorts opens 2026. Learn more at www.royalgrandresorts.com.
KEY SOURCES
Community Marketing & Insights (CMI) — Annual LGBTQ+ Tourism & Hospitality Report (2022, 2023): communitymarketinginc.com
International LGBTQ+ Travel Association (IGLTA) — LGBTQ+ Travel Research Reports: iglta.org
IGLTA / UNWTO — LGBTQ+ Travel Research Report, 2021: unwto.org
Out Now Global — LGBT2020 Research Programme: outnowconsulting.com
Global Wellness Institute — Global Wellness Economy Monitor, 2023: globalwellnessinstitute.org
Booking.com — Sustainable Travel Report, 2023: booking.com
Costa Rica Tourism Board (ICT): visitcostarica.com
Human Rights Watch — Costa Rica same-sex marriage reporting: hrw.org
Coherent Market Insights / UNWTO — LGBTQ+ Travel Market Size Projections, 2022
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SOURCE Royal Grand Resorts
