Foc on LGBTQ+ travel: The gay cise of age: Travel Weekly

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Don’t miss the boat on makg lifelong iends durg an epic vatn. Here are 12 of the bt gay cis g up 2023 and 2024. 

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12 TOP GAY CIS YOU DON’T WANT TO MISS 2023 AND 2024

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When to gay cisg, gone are the days of discreet "Friends of Dorothy" meetups.

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 trip.When planng a cise, vatners should first nsir what their ial sailg looks like.

THE GAY CISE OF AGE

Here's why I chose vatn pany Vaya to book my first gay cise, a seven-day Caribbean cise on the Celebry Millennium ship." emprop="scriptn * cruise gay ship *

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. Meanwhile, other pani like VACAYA and Olivia look to provi a more diverse selectn of activi, rangg om "T-danc" (LGBTQ parti that, historilly, clud tea service) to wrg class to immersive on-shore experienc.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."Each and every LGBTQIAPK person has a different level of fortabily their 'outns,' " says Patrick Gunn, -founr and chief marketg officer of LGBTQ vatn pany VACAYA.

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.

"The all-gay cis were liberatg, empowerg, and fun, but limed to a small spectm of people. 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 staff.Virg 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. In Augt 2023, nsir a seven-night sailg aboard Rilient Lady (Virg's newt cise ship butg May 2023) through Athens, Santori and Mykonos, Greece, wh special mil guts and LGBTQ edians.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.

'GAY SUMMER MP': HOW CIS CREATE SPACE FOR LGBTQ+ TRAVELERS AT SEA

Gay Cis Croatia, Galapagos, Italy and more on luxur small ships, wh new statns released every year and no more than 40 fellow guts. * cruise gay ship *

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 experience.On 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. "One of the bt cise [l] for gay cisg is Atlantis, sce you'll be able to meet hundreds of attractive men and party all day and night on the ship." Atlantis hosts primarily gay men; women make up about 5% to 10% of bookgs, acrdg to the Atlantis webse.

Cisers will also enjoy performanc by drag queens, gay Broadway stars and more, pl more typil river cise perks like sightseeg and lavish meals.

I WENT ON MY FIRST GAY CISE — HERE'S WHAT IT WAS LIKE

Pl, cisers n feel good about their trip knowg that Brand g partners wh LGBTQ anizatns like the Elton John AIDS Foundatn.In 2023, Brand g sails through unique waterways around the world, cludg the Amazon, the See, the Rhe, the Danube and more.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.

GAY CIS

After night one, there are other social events for gay cisers to party and hang out together. Addnally, Celebry was the first cise le to legally marry a uple at sea 2018, and ntu to perform same-sex marriag on s ships.Past cisers enjoyed their voyag wh Celebry, notg that the le was welg, the food was lic and there were plenty of areas to hang out as a group wh fellow LGBTQ passengers or other panns throughout the ship.Although all erari are gay-iendly, nsir bookg a Pri Party at Sea sailg (which tak place each June) for an extra special experience. Private travel pani like VACAYA also charter Celebry ships for all-gay voyag throughout the year.Olivia(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.

The popular cise le equently partners wh Atlantis Events to offer all-gay voyag throughout the year, but even the standard sailgs earn praise.Highlights clu the ships' entertament optns (cludg a Cele Dn tribute show) and attentive staff, acrdg to past cisers. Iterari typilly feature LGBTQ meetups at the begng of each cise for gay travelers to meet likemd passengers. 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 2016.In 2023, nsir a Royal Caribbean voyage that sails to gay-iendly statns.

"Puerto Vallarta, Mexi, [is] full of gay bars, clubs and gay beach," says Martez.

ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT GAY CIS

News.]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.

Powered by a popular gay nightclub Bssels wh the same name, La Demence – French for "the madns" – primarily ters to a European crowd. 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 ns.La Demence sails every summer to statns like Rome; Athens and Mykonos, Greece; Kotor, Montenegro; Dubrovnik, Croatia; and more. For s, the thought of an LGBTQ+ cise brought to md one thg: a mega ship full of shirtls gay men — mostly cis, whe, buff and tanned — plyg the waters of the Caribbean to seemgly endls club mic.

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Atlantis Events - Gay Cis & LGBT+ Vatns .

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