Black Travel Organization Has Lofty Goals to Even the Tourism Playing Field

This article was originally published on BLAC® Finance.

Until the pandemic, Black tourism, especially Black international tourism, saw record growth numbers.  But now that the pandemic is waning in most of the world, Black travelers have also admitted that racial unrest also played a part in when and where they would visit, instead of settling for majority Black nations or destinations significant to the Black travel review site, Green Book Global. 

The site released a survey of Black tourists that found most want to support Black businesses – including 67% who preferred culturally responsible activities within the destination’s local community.

Blacks in Travel & Tourism (BTT) founder Stephanie Jones originally created her organization amid the pandemic in March 2020 with an initial goal of addressing a lack of representation in meetings discussing the pandemic recovery. Now in 2022,  BTT has turned into a global conglomerate promoting the advancement of Blacks in the travel and tourism industry. 

BTT has developed multiple partnerships with groups such as Brand USA, US Travel Association, and Northstar Travel Group and relationships with various trade associations and destination marketing organizations. 

She told Travel Noire  “BTT has introduced several innovative programs and initiatives such as the Diversity Tourism Academy, Black Tourism Talent Directory, DEI Deep Dive Masterclass, and The Black Cultural Heritage Tours Collection. These programs are designed to level the playing field for Blacks in travel and tourism and sustain diversity, equity, and inclusion in the industry.”

BTT now has alliances with 13 Black travel and tourism-related organizations and access to over a half-million travelers, with more than 1,300 minority suppliers. The organization equips more travel professionals to create safe and friend travel opportunities for Black travelers. They are also implementing initiatives and creating programs that level the playing field for Blacks in travel by providing them with access to job opportunities, media exposure, and consulting.