WHere it started
Hello! I'm Sydney Cason (she/her), the founder of Out Front Tours.
The truth is, I didn't set out to build a travel company. After a gut-wrenching heartbreak that left me second-guessing what to do with my life, I set out on a year of solo travel. Part of that healing process was running sporadic group trips around the world with the online community who'd followed my healing journey and wanted in on the fun.
It wasn't until my third trip that I understood that I was building more than just stand alone trips, I was building real community. I started noticing travelers from completely different trips making plans to travel together outside of my tours and becoming honest-to-god support systems for one another. And it wasn't just a feeling. When I later surveyed past travelers, over 60% said they now consider someone they met on a trip a best friend. I was shocked!
Suddenly, this work wasn't a fun side gig anymore. Building this business was a need in our community that I wanted to see flourish. Over the past two years, I've now led more than 250 travelers across 15+ countries with many more on the horizon. I whole-heartedly believe that travel is for everyone and that the LGBTQ+ community deserves to feel safe seeing the world just like our straight counterparts.
With that, Out Front Tours was born! And we’re just getting started.
THE STORY BEHIND OUR Luggage Tags
A few weeks before her very first group trip, Sydney’s dad asked her a simple question. He'd been messing around with creating rainbow luggage tags, each customized with traveler’s names and phone numbers and he wanted to know: “would people actually like these, or would they think they're cheesy?”
She knew they’d be a hit, and said yes! And it goes without saying, every single traveler loves them. Not just because they're useful, but because you know a real person made them by hand, with love, just for your trip.
Now it's become a tradition.
Better yet? Come back for a second trip, and you’ll get something to add: a custom luggage charm that's a nod to the last place you traveled with us. Our tags are meant to be a small, handmade reminder of where you've been with this community, and all the adventures you have waiting for you ahead.