Japan's 'love hotels' acced of anti-gay discrimatn | Japan | The Guardian

Contents:

• JAPAN GAY CULTURAL TOUR
• LGBTQ+ TRAVEL IN JAPAN – THE ULTIMATE GAY TRAVEL GUI
• JAPAN'S 'LOVE HOTELS' ACCED OF ANTI-GAY DISCRIMATN
• THIS IS WHAT IT'S LIKE TO TRAVEL AS A GAY ASIAN MAN
• TOKYO GAY SNAS
• TOKYO GAY CISE CLUBS
• TOKYO GAY NIGHT TOURS WH TOKYO HANDSOME BOYS
• GAY ASIA TRAVEL GUI
• JAPAN GAY TRAVEL

JAPAN GAY CULTURAL TOUR

Japan’s cultural norms and s attus around homosexualy are difficult to terpret. LGBTQ+ travel expert Ed Salvato shows around the gayborhood and shar his safety tips.

LGBTQ+ TRAVEL IN JAPAN – THE ULTIMATE GAY TRAVEL GUI

Sexualy – homo or hetero – is nsired a private matter; It’s not flnted public displays of affectn or discsed.

Bee of this, much of lol gay life is not jt hidn – ’s accsible. That said, homosexualy is legal Japan, wh small protectns for gays, lbians and even transgenr people enacted mostly on a lol level.

Japane travel provirs are also startg to regnise the gay travel market.

JAPAN'S 'LOVE HOTELS' ACCED OF ANTI-GAY DISCRIMATN

Tokyo has hundreds of gay bars, but only a handful wele foreigners.

THIS IS WHAT IT'S LIKE TO TRAVEL AS A GAY ASIAN MAN

As openly gay travelers (who ed the word hband, but didn’t hold hands public), we felt pletely fortable and wele.

Tokyo gayborhood.

This is where you’ll fd the gay neighbourhood and the most ncentrated dose of queer travel Japan offers. Near the seedy red-light district is Ni-chome district, a clter of olr low-rise buildgs wh hundreds of tablishments oriented towards gay men.

TOKYO GAY SNAS

Dpe the hundreds of gay bars Tokyo, there are only a few optns for non-Japane speakg ctomers. OutAsia Travel offers night tours of Shju — basilly a gay gui to brg you to two or three of the bars that wele foreigners, and generally show you around. Dancg was banned Shju’s gay clubs startg Augt of 2012, wh signs and tabl stalled on the dance floor to ter dancg.

TOKYO GAY CISE CLUBS

For the most extensive and up-to-date bar, club and sna listgs, the bt reference is A prtout of their gay map is also very eful. Full-erary planng assistance: In our search for assistance and rmatn, all gay roads Tokyo led to Shtaro, the owner of OutAsia Travel. Adam* said was dangero to e out as gay his home untry and feared beg forced to an arranged marriage wh a said he was "so lucky" to wed his soulmate, Ray, Manchter and wish everyone uld marry who they love.

There are more than 60 untri wh laws that crimalise same-sex sexual acts acrdg to the Internatnal Lbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Associatn, cludg Sdi Arabia.

TOKYO GAY NIGHT TOURS WH TOKYO HANDSOME BOYS

'Authentilly myself'Ray said he had also stggled growg up gay the 1970s and 80s England, which was "tough" said his relig school "dmmed to you, 'you are gog to hell'" Adam returned home to Sdi Arabia, spe beg more than 3, 000 apart and later rtricted by the Covid-19 panmic, they kept touch daily and the romance years ago, Ray proposed on a vio ll and after succsfully applyg for a UK fiancé visa, Adam moved to Manchter December 2022. Adam said he had been aaid to even wear lours his home untry so the first thg he did when he moved was start to "grow my mullet, got my ears pierced and booked appotments for tattoos" relled how, ntrast, one of his gay iends Sdi had been forced to marry a woman, addg: "It has ed not only his life but the life of his wife. The uple, who live London, said a "really betiful memory" was on the way home when one of their sons shouted out of the black b wdow to Trafalgar Square, "My dads jt got married" and cheered "Yay, gay marriage".

GAY ASIA TRAVEL GUI

A Gay Travel Japan Cultural Tour. Our gay Japan tour starts morn Tokyo, then spends two nights the Japane Alps. It was ma famo the book Temple of the Goln Paviln by gay Japane wrer Y Mishima.

JAPAN GAY TRAVEL

When upl do jo , ’s ually bee they’re lookg forward to teractg wh a gay group; if they wanted a holiday by themselv, they wouldn’t have signed up to travel wh . Shju Ni-Chõme is where the cy’s gay bars and clubs n be found.

It is famo for havg the world’s hight ncentratn, wh over 300 ty gay bars crammed together unassumg, unremarkable blocks. Doyama, a gay district send size only to Tokyo's Ni-Chome, cements Osaka's stat as the downtown of Japan, wh other lorful nightlife districts sttered throughout the cy.

Takayama self is an old town, wh a range of gay-iendly Japane ns lled ryokans. It helps to be rpectful and be ut about public displays of affectn—the Japane rarely do so, whether straight or gay.