A report om Human Rights Watch lls on the ernment of St. Vcent to overturn lonial-era anti-gay laws that have led to a recent wave of vlence and genr discrimatn on the small Caribbean island.
Contents:
- THE BT CARIBBEAN DTATNS FOR GAY AND LBIAN TRAVELERS
- TIPS FOR GAY AND LBIAN TRAVELERS CARIBBEAN
- 5 SAFT PLAC FOR GAY TRAVELERS IN 2019 (AND THE MOST DANGERO)
- THE 8 TOP GAY CIS FOR 2023
- GAY ST. MART/ST MAARTEN TRAVEL GUI
- HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH: ANTI-GAY LAWS PROMOTE VLENCE, DISCRIMATN ST. VCENT
- GAY TRAVEL THE CARIBBEAN
- ACTIVISTS NMN VLENCE AGAST LGBTQ MUNY ST. VCENT, WHERE GAY SEX IS ILLEGAL
- I'M A GAY TRAVEL WRER AND THK THE ARE THE 5 SAFT, MOST QUEER-IENDLY CARIBBEAN TRAVEL STATNS
- GAY CARIBBEAN
- GAY BAHAMAS TRAVEL GUI
- 'WTERN UNN DADDI' AND THEIR QUT FOR THENTICY: AN ETHNOGRAPHIC STUDY OF THE DOMIN GAY SEX TOURISM DTRY
THE BT CARIBBEAN DTATNS FOR GAY AND LBIAN TRAVELERS
Here's a gui to tips for gay and lbian travelers Caribbean - everythg you need to know. * gay tourism caribbean *
It’s those latter islands where gay and lbian travelers ually feel more at ease sce lol laws around homosexualy and same-sex marriage match those of their parent untri. But rather than plan vatns to one of the dozen Caribbean islands where homosexualy is crimalized (surprisg, but te), most travelers simply prefer to vatn where they’ll feel fortable. In the beachont neighborhood of Condado, the Atlantic Beach Hotel and Oasis Lounge are regular gay hotspots, both jt steps away om the low-key gay-beach area.
But to wele gay and lbian Caribbean visors, this small island go the extra e by beg an active member of the Internatnal Gay & Lbian Travel Associatn (IGLTA). Floris Sue Hotel Spa and Beach Club Curaçao is the go-to gay hotel Willemstad, where adult guts n enjoy luxury, privacy, and views of the island’s famoly-blue waters. Among Curao’s flirtier spots is MooMba Beach Club, perched on the island’s most gay-iendly beach and servg up cktails, live mic, h seafood, and weekend barbequ.
LGBT travelers n take their pick of gay-centric beach to swim, sunbathe, and snorkel, pecially Happy Bay Beach and the clothg-optnal Orient Bay Beach (both on the French si), and Cupey Beach (Dutch si) where nu sunbathg is mon. The anizatn’s motto is “the most gay iendly island the Caribbean, ” and based on s long roster of lol hosts and sponsors, ’s clear how clive the statn really is. Kts and Nevis, Barbados, and Antigua and Barbuda – have overturned anti-gay sex laws (buggery laws) that once ma sexual relatns between men a crimal offense and punishable by ath.
TIPS FOR GAY AND LBIAN TRAVELERS CARIBBEAN
The gay cis promise fun activi, excellent entertament and erari to tertg statns around the world. * gay tourism caribbean *
There’s somethg for every type of traveler here – om m-tastg tours to hikg through Jard Balata or up Mount Pelée to relaxg on gay-iendly beach Plage s Sal and Grand Anse s Sal. Condado Beach is San Juan’s top spot to experience Puerto Ri’s gay scene, and for a ep dive to the surroundg culture, there are no better acmodatns than those at La Concha Renaissance Rort. Quick beach accs, two hwater pools, and plimentary breakfast are jt a few of the perks awag guts at Sand Castle on the Beach, a charmg gay-owned abo found on the island of St.
5 SAFT PLAC FOR GAY TRAVELERS IN 2019 (AND THE MOST DANGERO)
* gay tourism caribbean *
Jt 90 mut outsi of the natn’s pal, the gay-owned Inn at Ltle Washgton has hosted Capol Hill’s most prtig policians sce s lnch 1978 — and all tak is one be to unrstand what keeps the dignari g back year after year. One of Utah’s most gay-iendly statns, Park Cy is known as the home of the Sundance Film Ftival, but this star-studd event is far om the only attractn that keeps tourists flowg .
However, don't let your guard down: Severe attacks and hate crim agast gay men have been Dutch islands of Aba and Bonaire are que nservative, so discretn is suggted.
But a surprise move 2005, their sister island of Curaçao beme the first the Caribbean to announce that was embracg the gay and lbian muny, urgg such travelers to vis the island as a gay-iendly statn, and some hotels have joed the Gay & Lbian Travel Associatn. Even certa nightclubs Willemstad highlight their gay-iendly atmosphere an attempt to attract patrons om this muny of life is fairly secretive many of the sleepy islands of the Caribbean. Homosexualy is actively disuraged plac like the Cayman Islands, but as a rult of prsure om gay advocy groups, past homophobia is slowly givg way to tolerance.
THE 8 TOP GAY CIS FOR 2023
Lbian, Gay and Transgenr travelers to the Caribbean, which islands are iendlit and uniendlit. Here are some optns for gay travel Caribbean. * gay tourism caribbean *
It’s gag a reputatn as a gay party town wh Las Vegas-style drag shows, techno nightclubs, and beachsi pal of Jalis, Guadalajara, is often lled the “Gay Capal of Mexi” due to s embrace of the queer muny. Also worth a vis is the Royal Botanil Garns, the gay Oxford Street LGBTQ+ district, and the Sea Life Aquarium to observe Sphen and Magic (aka Sphengic), the world-famo gay pengu uple. Walk the cliffs outsi Bondi Beach and Manley, where at least 80 gay men were killed the latter portn of the last Queensland the Great Barrier Reef may be the most famo tourist statn, but the state is also home to Datree Rart.
GAY ST. MART/ST MAARTEN TRAVEL GUI
Gay gui to the Caribbean: Reviews, maps and rmatn verg the most popular islands the Caribbean for gay travelers. * gay tourism caribbean *
On the cy’s pestrian-only streets the gayborhood Silom, you’ll fd gay bars cludg Circ, Balny, and Stranger Bar (nsired the epicenter of Bangkok drag culture). The Gay Village’s Rue Sate-Cathere, be a walkg promena durg most summer months and the queers have bted out of the neighborhood, spillg to the surroundg historic district wh addnal LGBTQ-owned shops, spas, and the banks of the Great Lak, Toronto is said to hold the tle for the most diverse metropolis the world, where 230 natnali are reprented and the rints speak over 140 languag. Calgary is also known for s wboys, and the cy hosts the world’s largt gay roo associatn, so visors may be surprised at s metropolan neighborhoods and shocked ’s home to the biggt queer Canadian nightclub wt of Montreal, Twisted Element.
There are two gayborhoods: Davie Village, wh a wi variety of gay bars, rtrants, and stor; and Commercial Drive (also lolly known as The Drive), home to a thrivg lbian muny. The largt Pri celebratn wtern Canada is held Vanuver every Your Se ArticlLGBTQ+ Travel Safety Inx: 150 Countri Ranked Worst to Bt ›The 10 Bt LGBTQ-Inclive Plac to Vis In 2022 ›Europe's 10 Most Romantic Capals Ranked ›What to Do In Alberta, Canada ›Joey Amato’s Gay Gui to South Ai ›. In an attempt to help terme the worst plac for gay travelers, the duo created the 2019 LGBTQ+ Danger Inx, rankg the world’s most dangero—and saft—untri for gay travelers.
The journalists looked at the top 150 most-vised untri the world by the number of g tourists, then ranked them g eight factors, cludg laws agast gay relatnships, legal protectn agast discrimatn and more. “In 2018, India managed to annul Sectn 377, a Brish lonial-era law prohibg ‘unnatural acts, ’ orr to legalize nsensual gay sex, ” says Fergson, who pots out that ancient Indian lerature such as the Mahabharata and Ramayana have many referenc to LGBTQ+ hero cludg transgenr warrrs and two queens who ma love orr for one queen to get pregnant wh an heir for their kgdom. “We found this to be a b ironic as the reason for many of the harsh homophobic laws untri throughout the world is largely leftover om laws created durg Brish le, ” says Fergson.
HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH: ANTI-GAY LAWS PROMOTE VLENCE, DISCRIMATN ST. VCENT
Only 50 off the ast of Florida, the Bahamas is a betiful LGBTQ statn. Wh 700 islands to explore, Gaytravel remends the betiful, seclud, OUT island of South Andros. * gay tourism caribbean *
Ci like Lisbon and Porto have the bt gay scen the untry and Portugal is hopg to host the 2022 Europri, the world's biggt event celebratg gay pri Europe. Wh an overall natnal attu that is relaxed and acceptg towards homosexualy, Belgium is known for havg a vibrant gay and lbian scene, particularly Bssels, ” says Fergson.
GAY TRAVEL THE CARIBBEAN
It was ranked so highly largely due to the extreme penalti for simply beg gay, which clu up to 14 years prison and the ath penalty stat unr Sharia law, ” says Fergson.
“Sdi Arabia is another of the untri on our list which implements the ath penalty for nsensual homosexualy unr their terpretatn of Sharia law, ” says Fergson. “Iran ma #6 on the x, due part to s extreme punishments for homosexualy, which clu 100 lash for homosexual terurse or the ath penalty, and 31 lash for same-sex acts other than terurse, ” says Fergson. “Publicly, homosexualy is a taboo topic, so LGBTQ+ travelers choosg to vis Sudan should proceed wh utn and rema discreet wh regards to their sexualy.
“Historilly, Barbados and some other Caribbean islands have had poor anti-LGBTQ+ legislatn and practic, largely left over om the Brish occupatn which put the laws place and rerced anti-gay attus. Unfortunately, imposed punishment for homosexualy is severe and the existence of gay people Malaysia was nied by their tourism mister as recently as March 2019, ” says Fergson.
ACTIVISTS NMN VLENCE AGAST LGBTQ MUNY ST. VCENT, WHERE GAY SEX IS ILLEGAL
That said, the LGBTQ+ muny is margalized this untry and there are heavy nsequenc for beg homosexual, which clu seven years to life prison for any same-sex act, ” says Fergson. Unfortunately, thgs may soon be gettg even worse for the LGBTQ+ muny, as the Ugandan ernment has recently lled to retroduce an anti-homosexualy bill, which would clu the ath penalty for same-sex acts, the midst of the recent murr of a gay Ugandan activist. “In the Paltian terrori of Gaza and the Wt Bank, the anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment is taken very serly, wh homosexual acts rultg up to 10 years prison, ” says Fergson.
“Groups advotg for LGBTQ+ rights are threatened by the erng thori Palte, who nsir homosexualy to be ‘a blow to, and vlatn of, the ials and valu of Paltian society. Currently, Kenyan law stat that same-sex terurse between mal rults 14 years prison, while all other homosexual acts between mal are punished wh five years imprisonment, ” says Fergson. In fact, Jamai was lled ‘the most homophobic place on Earth’ by Time magaze 2006 and LGBTQ+ people are sadly still the victims of homophobic vlence today.
I'M A GAY TRAVEL WRER AND THK THE ARE THE 5 SAFT, MOST QUEER-IENDLY CARIBBEAN TRAVEL STATNS
The term – a phemism that dat back to the 1950s – was once ed to dite gay social events on daily cise le programs, whout explicly llg out members of the muny on board. As travel on the high seas ntu to bounce back om the COVID-19 panmic, gay and lbian travelers should nsir settg sail on a fun-filled cise vatn as their next planng a cise, vatners should first nsir what their ial sailg looks like. Some cise operators (thk: Atlantis Events and La Demence) are known for their electrifyg, all-night parti, which may be perfect for gay groups of iends.
Cisers should also thk about whether they'd like to travel aboard a gay-iendly mastream le, such as Celebry Cis or Virg Voyag, or opt for an all-gay, full-ship charter wh a third-party vatn pany. Of VACAYA's all-gay charters, he says, "For one magil week, our muny gets to be the majory and live life out loud the blissful utopia VACAYA creat on a gay cise. This le gets the stamp of approval om prev LGBTQ cisers, who praise the ships' genr-ntral bathrooms, onboard shows wh rint drag queens and diverse Voyag offers gay-specific sailgs through travel pani like Atlantis Events, but s more mastream erari still offer a welg, clive atmosphere that attracts LGBTQ cisers year-round.
Atlantis EventsThe world's largt gay and lbian travel brand, Atlantis Events was found 1991 and wel more than 20, 000 travelers annually on LGBTQ vatns. For s all-gay cis, Atlantis charters megaships om popular l like Royal Caribbean Internatnal and Norwegian Cise Le, so cisers will have a fully immersive board, travelers n enjoy all the perks the megaships have to offer (thk: pools, hot tubs, sports urts and plenty of dg choic), pl special events like drag performanc, motivatnal speakers, LGBTQ movi on mand each b and high-energy circu parti across the ship. "As an LGBTQ ciser, you're lookg for a ship wh lots of entertament, cludg dance parti and events, " says Mars Martez, founr of Men Who Bnch, a Black gay liftyle blog.
GAY CARIBBEAN
Celebry Cis(Courty of Celebry Cis)Celebry Cis sets the scene for an excellent vatn for gay travelers, om s extravagant annual Pri parti to s daily LGBTQ programmg throughout the year.
Private travel pani like VACAYA also charter Celebry ships for all-gay voyag throughout the (Getty Imag)Specifilly marketed toward lbians and LGBTQ women, Olivia has hosted more than 350, 000 travelers by land and sea over almost five s. Outsi of the sailg experience, Royal Caribbean has also publicly mted to support the LGBTQ muny throughout the year, and was the first cise le to earn the tle "Gay Traveler Approved" om GayTravel 2023, nsir a Royal Caribbean voyage that sails to gay-iendly statns. ]The Cise Wh La Demence(Courty of The Cise wh La Demence)Acrdg to past cisers, if you're lookg for one of the bt party scen on the open seas, nsir an all-gay cise wh La Demence.
Prev cisers had high praise for the erari – which exclively vis gay-iendly lotns – as well as the uy cktails, themed nights (stum strongly enuraged), glamouro entertament, and unique events like drag bgo and high heel Demence sails every summer to statns like Rome; Athens and Mykonos, Greece; Kotor, Montenegro; Dubrovnik, Croatia; and more. Homosexualy ntu to be crimalized the former Brish lony after many hundreds of years, leavg LGBTQ dividuals wh ltle if any legal protectns while vlent crim were beg mted wh impuny, the report said. Standg crimal s on the island put nsensual gay sex the same tegory as crim like rape, ct, and sexual asslt, although there have been no recent nvictns unr the law.
GAY BAHAMAS TRAVEL GUI
Many of the terviewe said job hirgs and firgs were beg largely termed by sexual orientatn, while other gay people lucky to have jobs faced sexual harassment the workplace.
"The crimalizatn of gay sex giv tac state sanctn to the discrimatn and vlence that LGBT people experience their daily liv and pels many to look abroad to live eely and fulfill their dreams, " said Cristian González Cabrera, gay rights rearcher at Human Rights Watch.
'WTERN UNN DADDI' AND THEIR QUT FOR THENTICY: AN ETHNOGRAPHIC STUDY OF THE DOMIN GAY SEX TOURISM DTRY
Six other Wtern natns -- cludg Domi, Grenada, Guyana, Jamai, and Sat Lucia -- ntue to crimalize gay sex, wh penalti as weighty as a prison for "gross cency wh another person of the same sex.
Gay upl are often still unable to exprs affectn public or act outwardly ‘gay’ an overwhelmg number of untri worldwi, as though the PDA police are on the crackdown and a lovg hand stroke between two people of the same sex is ditive of an ner evil. We’re still enuraged to thk of beg gay as beg different, by televisn advertisements that om gay upl, by policians who advote the crimalizatn of homosexual acts, and by backward-thkg relig zealots who promote ias of ‘unnaturalns’.