How Miami’s tourist board is championing and defending the LGBTQ+ community (EXCLUSIVE)
LGBTQ marketing director Dan Rios says the city fiercely supports drag venues and elevates the community to stand out from the rest of Florida
Dan Rios, the director of LGBTQ marketing for the Miami tourist board, has been promoting the city as a queer destination for over seven years, though he’s worked for the organisation for nearly 25 years.
On a recent trip to London, he sat down with Attitude to discuss why Miami is an ideal holiday destination for LGBTQ+ travellers.
Attitude: Locals often say Miami isn’t Florida, it’s Miami. How does the tourist board actively protect and champion the city’s liberal, inclusive bubble on a day-to-day basis?
Dan Rios: By shining a light on the community, we really use the community as a foundation for the message. We shine a light on them. They are the ambassadors to the community and that’s how we elevate and differentiate us from the rest of Florida and the rest of the country.
Venues like R House Wynwood and Palace on Ocean Drive have had to fiercely defend their rights to host drag events in recent years. How is the Miami tourism board supporting these iconic venues, and how vital is drag culture to the city’s identity?
You just named two of the pillars of our community and our messaging. They are at the forefront of who we promote and support. We always bring media, influencers and travel trade to shine a light on them. They were challenged, but we love that they won.
If an Attitude reader is stopping over in Miami for just a couple of days before hitting the Florida Keys or jumping on a cruise, what are the three absolute non-negotiable queer experiences they need to have?
That is a great question and a really hard question because there’s a lot more than a few. But I would say Palace is one of them. Palace has been an institution for 30 years in South Beach, and it’s really helped shape everything about the destination. Without a doubt, South Beach. I would go to Little Havana as well. Little Havana is home to the Calle Ocho Music Festival. So there is that traditional resident that embraces difference, because we all come as a melting pot, and they really welcome the community. There’s also a lot of nightclubs and music clubs in Little Havana that are queer-centric and queer-friendly in Wynwood. I think the colour in Wynwood is just representative of the destination and the festivities.
How does the Miami tourist board work with mainstream, non-gay-specific businesses like restaurants, boat tours, and boutique hotels to ensure they maintain a high standard of LGBTQ+ hospitality?
We’ve developed a training programme for our 1,300 partners, including restaurants, hotels, transportation companies. It’s called Miami Begins With Me, and within that, there’s a module about LGBTQ, the importance of our market. We are a significant part or percentage of the visitor base, which means a tremendous amount of financial impact for them. So how to welcome us in an authentic way is how we focus to make them aware that they want to welcome the community. They just want to do it right. So I think through the training we empower them to do that.
“We are a significant part or percentage of the visitor base, which means a tremendous amount of financial impact for them.”
Dan Rios
While the 12th Street Beach and Twist are legendary, neighbourhoods like the Design District, Little Havana and Wynwood are booming with queer energy. Where should a British traveller look if they want to experience Miami’s contemporary underground queer scene?
I think they can start in Wynwood, for sure. With Wynwood, there’s a lot going on. That is the home of Wynwood Pride. It’s more of a music fest. They celebrate drag. They partner with a lot of hotels to have pool parties – the Arlo hotel is a great example. They’re recently closed [the bar] Willy’s, but they’re looking for a new home also in Wynwood. And moving a little bit west toward the next neighbourhood, Alapattah, there is a couple of nightclubs. that Las Rosas is called, that it’s really very contemporary queer culture, which is absolutely fantastic. And toward the other side, Little Haiti, the Villain Theatre, the comedy there is phenomenal. It is the only queer comedy improv in the state of Florida.
British LGBTQ travellers keep a close eye on US news, and there’s been plenty of talk about state-level legislation in Florida over the last few years. What’s your message to a queer UK tourist who might be feeling hesitant about booking a trip to Miami right now?
Oh, I can understand why you’re being hesitant, but Florida is a very different place than Miami. Even when I was living in New York City, we would joke about needing a passport to get to Miami because it feels like a completely different place. And one of the things that’s special about Miami and sort of shapes who we are is that 58% of the people that live in Miami are born outside of the United States. So, I think that that mixing of people generates tolerance and acceptance and celebration of everyone else. It’s a very different feeling from the day-to-day than what is on the news. We can all get lost in the news, but what we feel as a community day to day is harmonious. And of course, we’re all so freaked out, but we keep moving and we have each other. So, I think that coming and celebrating our community is one of the reasons why they should have come.
“One of the things that’s special about Miami and sort of shapes who we are is that 58% of the people that live in Miami are born outside of the United States”
Dan Rios
What’s coming up in Miami?
We are getting ready to roll out the rainbow carpet for IGLTA next September. And leading up to it, we’ll be making some announcements of who will be joining us and some of the events that we’re having. We can’t wait to welcome the world. But there’s something to do for a queer traveller throughout the year. Because the community is so large, South Florida is the third largest LGBTQ community in the United States. So, there’s a lot of us there, whether it’s a small, more intimate experiences like run clubs or yoga around the rainbow lifeguard stand, whatever it is, there’s always something people do, so keep that open, because sometimes an off-season visit can generate a lot more experiences.