How to plan a perfect gay road trip - HomoCulture

Contents:

• YOUR ULTIMATE EAST COAST GAY ROAD TRIP GUI
• HOW TO PLAN A PERFECT GAY ROAD TRIP
• GAY TRAVEL JOURNAL: ROAD TRIPS
• 7 ESSENTIAL TIPS FOR YOUR NEXT GREAT GAY ROAD TRIP
• THE ULTIMATE GAY MEXIN ROAD TRIP
• GAY ROAD TRIP RPGS ARE A THG NOW, AND I'M INTO IT
• THIS IS THE ULTIMATE GAY ROAD TRIP
• THE GREAT GAY AMERIN ROAD TRIP
• PRI RI 2019: THE ULTIMATE CALIFORNIA GAY ROAD TRIP ITERARY

YOUR ULTIMATE EAST COAST GAY ROAD TRIP GUI

In the early 1960s, Bob Damron began creatg pocket-sized addrs books to help gay men fd queer spac while travelg around the natn. But eedom wasn’t always a given for queer people, leadg LGBTQ travelers to favor well-known gayborhoods liberal ci near the US astl.

Marshall’s Beach, a clothg-optnal queer hang beneath the Goln Gate Bridge, is the perfect place to dip your rriere the Pacific; Dolor Park’s southwt rner is a land-locked “gay beach” that attracts crowds on sunny days.

One of the untry’s earlit gay anizatns, the Mattache Society, was found Silver Lake 1950, and historic queer protts agast police btaly at Coopers Donuts (1959) and the Black Cat (1967) led up to NYC’s Stonewall Uprisg and the Gay Liberatn Movement that followed.

HOW TO PLAN A PERFECT GAY ROAD TRIP

Today, LGBTQ life revolv around Wt Hollywood (WeHo), where you’ll fd the hight ncentratn of LGBTQ tablishments, cludg the Abbey, LA’s go-to gay bar, and Micky’s, the bt spot to see RuPl’s army of glamazons. You’re most likely to fd queer crowds around the Pri Flag Lifeguard Tower or at Roosterfish, a gay bar that also hocks lol art. This inic Amerin roadway, mythologized by Stebeck as the “Mother Road” The Grap of Wrath, slic eastward through LA’s gayborhood as enters Ameri’s wtern wilrns.

GAY TRAVEL JOURNAL: ROAD TRIPS

Phoenix might be Arizona’s gayt cy, but LGBTQ-iendly Flagstaff sports an abundance of outdoor activi where weary travelers n stretch their legs. For a gay daytime hang, drive 30 mut to Lake Travis where you’ll fd iendly queer folx sunbathg at Hippie Hollow — the Lone Star State’s only legal nu beach.

On top of holdg the state’s largt LGBTQ Pri celebratn, Fayetteville is also the first cy Arkansas to jo the Internatnal Gay and Lbian Travel Associatn. If you want to keep queer, prs play on Spotify’s Orville Peck statn and drive to hip ‘hoods like East Nashville (the Williamsburg of the South) and the Gulch, an area for eatg and shoppg, while gettg serenad by the gay in of untry mic. The cy has more LGBTQ rints per pa than Chigo, two gayborhoods, Short North and German Village, and a iendly rnfed vibe that mak everyone feel wele.

Short North Arts District, home to gay hnts Axis Nightclub and Unn Cafe, is packed wh ntemporary art galleri, lolly owned rtrants, and chic boutiqu.

7 ESSENTIAL TIPS FOR YOUR NEXT GREAT GAY ROAD TRIP

For a crash urse on LGBTQ history, vis Christopher Park and the Llie-Lohman Mm of Gay and Lbian Art, a pact art space wh famo and lser-known queer talents.

Central Park’s Sheep Meadow transforms to a DIY gay bar for “Send Sundays” — a ee shdig that attracts shirtls boys to the grassy field between May and September. For LGBTQ shops, check out Kirr Fch (menswear for women), Park and Ronen (classy signs for gay sophistit), Leather Man (kky cloth and acuterment), and the Bure of General Servic — Queer Divisn, an all-volunteer LGBTQ bookstore.

If you want to unwd after a long day spent the r, head to the gay-owned Dun Rort, which has an on-se rtrant and gay nightclub. Loted jt 70 om San Francis, this small town surround by idyllic hikg and mpg lol is home to several gay bars, stylish shops, rtrants, and queer-owned hotels and rorts.

THE ULTIMATE GAY MEXIN ROAD TRIP

Ls than 30 mut away om queer-iendly Portland, Ogunqu is also iendly to the LGBTQ traveler, known to many as the “New England gay rort town.

” Asi om beg credibly gay-iendly, the town of Ogunqu offers many queer-owned nightclubs and bars, as well as a number of seasi rtrants and shops that n make any weary traveler feel right at home — a tranquil and idyllic paradise. Durg your stay Asheville, be sure to go dancg at Sndals, the most popular gay bar Asheville, and then, the next morng, head to the Biltmore Estate for a great Instagrammable experience. While you’re passg through Astoria, make sure to pay a vis to one of s many lol breweri and ffee shops, cludg gay-owned Astoria Coffee Hoe & Bistro.

GAY ROAD TRIP RPGS ARE A THG NOW, AND I'M INTO IT

It’s really the bt of both worlds, meang you n kick off your road trip wh a round of pool at Blackston, the olst gay bar town, and follow wh chic cktails at Jewel Box, a sparkly cktail bar that seems perpetually drsed for prom — f wh twkly lights and pops of pk. We suggt gay sports bar Cathedral Statn for peapple martis and fish; and chips or swordfish rice and torched hamachi cdo at LGBTQIA-owned Tiger Mama.

Or there's always a chee tray and rosé all day at Rebel Rebel, a Bow Market we bar whose webse perfectly and proudly proclaims: “Leave your misogyny, your homophobia, your racism, your classism, your ableism, your patriarchy, your genr bias, and all your other bullsh at the door, 'e that sh will get you kicked out real quick. ”Pair queer history and happy hour New York CyHome to p gay bars, LGBTQIA-owned rtrants, queer galleri, and gayborhoods so wispread that the entire metropolis is one big rabow-hued blur, New York Cy is a mt-vis mec on any gay pilgrimage.

If you’re passg through and scratchg the surface, your queer agenda might clu a stop at SoHo’s Llie-Lohman Mm, a stimulatg showse for queer artists and blatantly gay artwork, while bnch uld clu New Mexin burros at queer-owned Ursula, a vibrant Brooklyn fe known for hostg queer bnch events.

THIS IS THE ULTIMATE GAY ROAD TRIP

For an afternoon snack, satisfy your sweet tooth wh a key lime pie-spired mermaid sundae om Big Gay Ice Cream before takg some important history at the New York Cy AIDS Memorial and Stonewall Natnal Monument — the latter of which is a stone’s throw om Cubbyhole, a “straight-iendly” lbian bar wh a bang’ happy hour.

Like Boston and NYC, Philly is a cy steeped history and rich wh progrsive LGBTQIA-iendly polics, nightlife, bs, and gayborhoods, like s most famo enclave, Washgton Square Wt. While most of the cy is stnchly liberal and queer-iendly, a brief sojourn the Cy of Brotherly Love should foc on downtown’s gayt alve, where you n relax the six-acre Washgton Square Park or admire the magnolias on the lh grounds outsi the historic Pe Buildg.

When all that leisurely strollg has built up an appete, wd down at any number of Washgton Square Wt rtrants, like Double Knot for Japane small plat and cktails, or wood-oven pizza at LGBTQIA-owned outsi wh pri Richmond, VirgiaKeepg the theme of historic Amerin ci led wh brick buildgs and cute bbltone streets, Richmond is more of an unrrated gem — pecially as a gay statn. This is the kd of cy that offers somethg for everyone, be shoppg for rabow prts and lbian stickers at Lady Street Studs; drkg the history (and the Poe-spired cktails) at historic Ln Row Inn, a former Edgar Allen Poe hnt-turned-LGBTQIA-iendly mastay; eatg “Gay-Fil-A” chicken sandwich om Cobra Cabana, wh proceeds gog to support Virgia’s queer youth; or takg the outdoorsy route wh a tranquil hike on the Butterk Trail and a dip the Jam River.

THE GREAT GAY AMERIN ROAD TRIP

Nowadays, ’s home to gay-iendly hotels like the Raleigh Marrtt Cy Center, which offers Pri and Joy upl packag, and inic queer shops, like The Green Monkey, a quirky queer-owned store wh kschy war, beer on tap, and drag shows. ” Then dance off the pimiento wh a night unr the dis ball at Legends Nightclub, the cy’s olst gay dner a pk mansn Savannah, GeiaDraped Spanish moss and filled wh historic archecture, bbltone streets, and astal cuise, Savannah is a sgular Amerin cy oozg nate romance and charm.

Along wh the larger Geian metropolis of Atlanta, this is a cy that’s been at the foreont of progrs and cln the Deep South, and while lacks the multu of gay bars found ATL (save for the mt-vis Club One), what you’ll fd is a more wispread and hive sense of warmth and wele.

Orlando is the ultimate road trip stopover, wh endls gay-iendly thgs to do Disney World, a global pneer of clivy and merriment that’s been champng LGBTQIA+ rights for s by hostg events like Gay Days Orlando and overloadg s gift shops wh Pri merch. Today, Orlando is filled wh gay bars and clubs for dancg — Southern Nights and SAVOY are star attractns — or you n keep quat wh a romantic scenic boat cise through Wter Park’s nals, and bnch at LGBTQIA-owned Se7en B where the pearl sugar waffl may not be Mickey-shaped, but they’re still Miami-style wh drag shows, art, and clubs1, 600 later, there’s no better place to p off an epic road trip than Miami, a verable Oz of gay bars and drag queens.

PRI RI 2019: THE ULTIMATE CALIFORNIA GAY ROAD TRIP ITERARY

The Magic Cy, all s vibrant queerns and omniprent art, is the perfect end pot, and an ial settg which to ret and recharge — assumg your method of rettg volv over-the-top drag bnch, pool parti, and gay nightclubs that stay pumpg until 5 am. For somethg a b lmer, Miami’s sheer size ensur you’ll fd fort and cln anywhere, om the queer artist murals at Wynwood Walls to the immersive and lorful photo ops at Superblue and the Lat beats at gay nightclub Azur near Coral Gabl. It's a gay road trip wrapped up believ everyone should be able to travel eely, no matter who you are, who you love, or where you’re gog.

Most famo for s nightlife (and many gay bars and clubs), Wt Hollywood is one of the most fun and energetic areas of Los Angel County. The Elan Hotel (Beverly Hills) is jt a 20-mute walk (or 2-mute Uber) om Santa Moni Boulevard and the famo Wt Hollywood gay bars, and equally close to the picturque Beverly Hills.

From the gay-iendly hotels throughout the state, to the open road, Southern California mak for a fantastic gay road trip statn. More California Travel Tips & Guis:California Travel GuiLos Angel Travel GuiSan Diego Travel GuiOrange County Travel GuiBt Gay Bars Los AngelHow to Spoil Yourself Los Angel.