Tours for rainbow people

NAMIBIA is a tourist haven for niche markets because its sensitive ecology is not able to handle mass tourism.

Tour operators have already started specialising in trips through our country for physically challenged people or for couples who want to get married in the bush, on the sand dunes of the Namib Desert or listening to the cry of the Fish Eagle along the mighty Zambezi River in the Caprivi Region during their wedding ceremony. Now a new kid is on the block organising tours for rainbow people: gay and lesbians.Namibia JJ Tours is a registered Gay Travel Agency in Namibia and is run by an Austrian national, Joe Gerstmair, and a Namibian, Jaco Burger. ‘We do bush trips with off-road vehicles, backpacking, camping tours and even motorcycle tours for gay and lesbian people and those who are gay friendly,’ their brochure says.’We are the pink tour and safari operator for the worldwide gay community.’Going out in the open in this bold way was not an easy decision, says Annie Smit, a co-organiser for JJ Tours. ‘We saw the opportunity to create the service for this niche market and the first tours showed it was right. We already have bookings until 2012.’Gay and lesbians still have to endure side glances, embarrassing remarks and jokes worldwide at their expense, despite their rights being made legal in many countries. Even South Africa has legalised gay and lesbian marriages. The pink or rainbow community in Namibia has grown over the past few years and with IT technology like the Internet and Twitter, networking on the international platform has increased.Gay or lesbian travel tours have become the new buzzword. The company works together with the Rainbow Project and Sister Namibia, an NGO for women’s rights. The company also organises group trips to special events for gay and lesbian people in South Africa, like the Cape Town Gay Pride 2010, the Pink Festival, which is held in February next year in Cape Town, the Knysna Pink Loerie Gay Mardi Gras in July 2010 and the annual Johannesburg Gay Pride 2010 next year in October.’The tour company will arrange all transport needs from Namibia or South Africa to these events. We can further arrange gay-owned or gay-friendly accommodation depending on availability,’ says Smit.