Orbitz Blog

Articles for ‘Gay Travel’ Category

Gay Pride weekend in fabulous Seattle

Tuesday, August 14th, 2012

Sample the sushi at Hotel Max's Red Fin restaurant. Photo: Hotel Max

By Angie Jaime

I love drag queens— that much is a fact. Something about a confident, statuesque man in a sequined dress lip synching a power-pop anthem just tickles me endlessly. But let me back up a bit. If you’re a reality TV fan you may have heard of RuPaul’s Drag Race, a Top Model-like show designed to crown America’s next drag superstar.  In its fourth season sharp-witted goth queen Sharon Needles walked away with top honors. When I found out that I’d be going to Seattle over LGBT Pride weekend to hang out with Miss Needles, I was unabashedly ecstatic. To add to the awesomeness, this would be my first visit to Seattle, so I’d also get the chance to explore the city. (more…)

Side with Pride: Gay Pride events in New York City

Tuesday, May 22nd, 2012

From hard bodies to festivals, it's an all-out party in the streets of Manhattan come Pride Week (June 16-24). Credit: See-Ming.

By Markus Boeker

Why do I celebrate Gay Pride?

Because I live it. I’m a gay male in my 40s living in New York City, which just happens to burst with gay pride year-round, and not just during the March on Sunday, June 24. And for the record: Even if I was a 30-something straight man, I would still celebrate gay pride. (more…)

Darlings of drag: Miss’d America Pageant in Atlantic City

Monday, November 21st, 2011

Here he comes, Miss'd America, that other marquee event in Atlantic City -- this one with drag queens.

By Erin Behan

There’s the Miss American Pageant and then there’s the Miss’d America Pageant. Amazing what a difference one letter makes — and in this context, one chromosome. The Miss’d Pageant, at the Atlantic City Boardwalk Hall Ballroom on Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012 at 8 p.m. (tickets), is a spoof on the original, with drag queens in all their glittery glory competing for the crown, cash and prizes. (more…)

Here, queer & all-inclusive: Gay-friendly beach vacations

Monday, November 7th, 2011

The all-inclusive Paradisus Palma Real Golf & Spa Resort: grand, gorgeous, gay-friendly.

By Amy Drew Thompson

The glee-filled moments leading up to an all-inclusive vacation are universal. Who doesn’t get giddy at the thought of hopping multiple restaurants, indulging in spa treatments and lazing — in your bikini — at a sumptuous swim-up bar? Adonis Tulum Riviera Maya Gay Resort fulfills the fantasy on all counts — and even one more: It’s gay-friendly.

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It’s raining femme: North America’s top lesbian bars

Monday, October 31st, 2011

We rank top 10 lesbian bars in North America, including SF's Lexington Club. Credit: Hannah Cairns.

By Matthew Link

Any traveling woman knows that finding a decent lesbian bar — or any lesbian bar at all — can be like finding a needle in a haystack. Many major cities have merely a token once-weekly “girl’s night” at a gay men’s bar. So after combing the map of the U.S. and Canada, we came up with the indispensable list below — the best of the best, at least in our subjective opinion! (And don’t worry guys, these party-hearty venues are all boy-friendly.) (more…)

Gay Orbitz: Our part in the Atlanta Pride Festival

Thursday, September 29th, 2011

LGBT love: The Orbitz gang at the Atlanta Pride Parade 2010.

By Antoinette Bierman

It’s truly a unique experience to work for a company that champions diversity and equality to the extent that they are active participants in the communities they support. As a first-time volunteer at the Atlanta Pride Festival –to be held this year from Oct. 8 to 9 — I was excited to see firsthand how one of the largest pride festivals in the country would stack up to other great events I had attended. It definitely exceeded my expectations. (more…)

Honeymoon spots where gay marriage is legal

Friday, August 5th, 2011

From New York to the Canary Islands, we showcase honeymoon spots where gay marriage is legal. Credit: Stagedoorjohnny.

By Matthew Link

In June 2011, gays and lesbians and straights jammed the streets of Manhattan for an impromptu street celebration as New York became the sixth U.S. state (in addition to Washington, D.C.) to fully legalize same-sex marriage. It now stands alongside Massachusetts (passed in 2004), Connecticut (in 2008), Iowa (in 2009), Vermont (in 2009), New Hampshire (in 2010), and Washington D.C. (in 2010) as the natural spots for gays and lesbians to plan their weddings and/or honeymoons.

With so much changing month to month in the gay marriage world, we spotlight which states and countries actually have full gay marriage (as opposed to the 50-plus places that just civil unions or domestic partnerships), and what the gay scene is like in each place for travelers. (more…)

5 New York hotels for same-sex honeymooners

Monday, July 25th, 2011

Toast your same-sex marriage on the rooftop bar of the posh Peninsula New York.

By Matthew Link

On June 25, 2011, New York became the largest state in the U.S. to legalize same-sex marriage. It was a real nail-biter until the last minute, with the outcome of the marriage bill far from certain. Impromptu public celebrations erupted in the streets of Manhattan, and the mood was giddy and profound at the same time. (more…)

Mexico’s unknown gay metropolis: Guadalajara

Tuesday, December 7th, 2010
Guadalajara's diversity parade. Credit Eliazar.

Guadalajara is also home to one of the biggest diversity parades in Latin America, Marcha de la diversidad translated as "Parade of the diversity." Credit: Eliazar.

By Matthew Link

Guadalajara is barely a blip on the American travelers’ radar, which is strange. Mexico’s second-largest city is cleaner, safer, friendlier, prettier and easier to navigate than the country’s behemoth, Mexico City. Guadalajara also enjoys a temperate Los Angeles-style climate, and fascinating spots like the nearby town of Tequila, where the famous liquor comes from and elegant tastings are a must.

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Gay pride at Montréal’s Divers/Cité

Wednesday, July 7th, 2010

By Yves Pelletier

The Rainbow Flag, LGBT pride. Credit: dbking.

The Rainbow Flag, LGBT pride. Credit:dbking.

We were not able to make Gay pride last year on the traditional late June dates due to business travels, so a friend instead suggested  Quebec for Montréal Divers/Cite pride event in early August. We decided to pull out our gay passports and headed to the French capital of North America for some of their well known hospitality. This year, Divers/Cite will celebrate it’s “All Together Different” themed-festival from July 27-August 1.

Last year, we stayed in a lovely hotel called Chateau Versailles. It’s not right in the Gay Village – Montreal’s gay-friendly neighborhood of bars, restaurants and services – but only a few subway stops away in an area called the Golden Square Mile, near The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. It is a smaller hotel, which we really like, in an historic building on Sherbrooke Street, and it’s worth it just for the amazing breakfast that is included. (more…)