Gay tours of the U.K.
LGBT tours of Great Britain
Though there are tours for gays and lesbians in Britain, most gay tour operators run trips to destinations that are, well, somehwat more exotic than the United Kingdom.
However, you will sometimes find gay tours in Great Britain, along with specially sceduled gay transatlantic Queen Mary cruises (which has to be one of the first completely natural quadruple-entendres I've ever encountered).
If nothing else, the specialist gay tour operators listed below may be able to help arrange a bespoke gay tour for you, even if they have few group tours on their schedule.
Gay tours
- Davidtours.com - Large selection of trips all across the globe. Based in Corona del Mar, CA.
- Hetravel.com - Gay trips around the world.
- Black-kilt-tours.org - Scottish tour company with a focus on gay and lesbian travel, as well as mini-guides.
- Tototours.com - Tours and cruises all over the world, as well as personal travel itineraries. Based in Chicago (not Kansas?)
- Rfamilyvacations.com - Tour company co-founded by Kelli O'Donnell (a.k.a. Kelli Carpenter, most famous as the ex-Mrs. Rosie O'Donnell). Tours, trips, and cruises for the entire GLBT community—gays, lesbians, and their families.
- Abovebeyondtours.com - Mainly Australia, but plenty of Europe as well. Based in Palm Springs.
- Brandgvacations.com - Mostly river cruises.
- Olivia.com - The famous lesbian travel company does more than just cruises—though that's what they're most famous for (they're not an actual cruise line; they charter ships from various companies to resell as their own lesbian cruises).
Gay resources
- iglta.org - The International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association is the best all-around resource, with Members ($100 to join, plus $150 a year) get a newsletter, advice on specialist travel agencies (you can search for local ones on the Website), and a membership directory.
- Outtraveler.com - The permier gay travel magazine, part of The Advocate family of publications.
- Gaycities.com - Crowdsourced guides to cities like London, Liverpool, Manchester, Blackpool, Cardiff, and Glasgow.
- Purpleroofs.com - Loads of gay-friendly lodgings around the world—and, amazingly enough, the listings actually link you directly to the hotel's own Website (most travel sites out there, especially accommodations ones, try their darndest never to give you the opportunity to click off their site).
- Spartacus International Gay Guides - You gotta take the whole world at once with this thick tome (couldn't they do separate Europe, USA, Asia, etc. editions?), but it is the industry standard of gay guidebooks. They also have editions devoted just to hotels, restaurant, and saunas.
- Travelgayeurope.com - Lots of good intel on Britian's major cities, inlcuding hotels, bars, club, saunas, and more.
- Lghei.org -
Stay in a gay-friendly home for free. 500 listings in 30 countries.
Membership: €25. No fee, donation, or gratuity for hosts.
Requirements: It doesn't say you have to be gay, but I assume that's a bit of a given.
- Gaytway.eu - Gay travel blog
- Bestgaytravelguide.com - Gay travel blog. Sadly, not indexed—so you just have to scroll through seraching for handy stuff.
- Womentravel.info - Travel blog aimed at women in general, but with a strong lesbian presence as well.
- Outsavvy.com - Gay events, clubs, and ticketing guide (and app), focused on the U.K.
- Gaytimes.co.uk - British gay monthly magazine; the website has some good tips in what's going on in the Culture section (the Travel section is more aimed at international travel, though there are some local British articles in there as well).
More on Gay or lesbian
Advice, resources, & tours for gay, lesbian, transgender, bisexual, and queer travelers in the U.K.
Information and concerns for gay, lesbian, transgender, and bisexual travelers in the U.K.
