27 July 2007

Prague, along with Budapest, has become a destination popular for homosexual tourists, Czech analyst Jaromir Beranek says, adding that more than 600,000 tourists annually visit Prague to use services aimed at their minority sexual orientation.

Although some world travel agents have focused on homosexual clients since the 1980s already, in Prague this type of tourism started developing in the 1990s only, Beranek told journalists.

Prague has quickly acquired the reputaion of a friendly town among homosexuals from all over the world.

"Czech society have always been quite tolerant where it comes for sex and sexuality-related issues, compared with the neighbouring countries," Beranek said.

Local businesspeople have quickly adapted themselves to the demand, therefore Prague now offers a broad range of services related to homosexual orientation and night life, such as gay clubs, wine bars, hotels, saunas, trips and sightseeing tours.

A large number of Prague tours for homosexuals are presented as get-together ones.

The book entitled "Gay Tourist Guideline Round Prague" assesses the Czech capital as a European centre with a variable offer of homosexual tourist services.

Prague has become the world's first destination to offer honeymoon stays to homosexual clients through the Gay Travel and Accommodation Company firms.

Nevertheless, despite all tolerance, this type of tourism still remains veiled with certain secrecy. The companies CTK addressed mostly declined to comment on their business activities or requested anonymity.

The owner of one of them has confirmed that the number of homosexual clients has annually increased.

The main centre of homosexual tourists in Europe is Amsterdam. Further popular destinations are, apart from Prague, Barcelona, Munich, Zurich, Stockholm, the Spanish islands Gran Canaria and Ibiza and the Mykonos island in Greece.