Best Places For Gay Solo Travelers

I have a ton of rewards points on my credit card, and I need a vacation. It's been 5 years since my last vacation. Budget is $3k for a week. I was thinking about some all-inclusive resort but wasn't sure if any were solo gay traveler friendly.

I'm 43, not really into clubbing, more into a great dinner, and a cocktail at a friendly local bar.

Hit me with your suggestions.

Looking for something similar. Havent gone anywhere in years!

I am 45 not into drugs and clubbing but definitely into beaches, cannabis and cock.

All inclusive resorts sound awful to me. I'd much rather go someplace I'd like to explore and get an Airbnb or something.

THANK YOU, OP, for this thread. Good idea.

Would love DLers' suggestions.

How about a gay nudist vacation? Sometimes one of the gay groups rent out an all=inclusive or a ship and everyone is au naturel.

R7. That guy failed to share other experiences like getting his backpack stolen and the gang surprise anal by the Guardia Civil.

I resent often paying more for rooms, etc. as a solo traveller and I'm not going to stay in any kind of hostel, for god's sake, so I'll be interested to read DL's experiences.

Puerto Vallarta or Palm Springs.

R12 I live 100 miles west in LA. No way I'm spending a week in PS.

R8 Which part of Europe? It's a pretty big continent.

R4 I always thought gay cruises were for couples, or at least groups of friends.

Madrid and Seville, you will not want to come back.

I actually visited Baltimore by myself. I went to a gay bar and just walked around the city. It was pretty nice.

Not the OP, but I’ll be visiting Madrid for the first time this summer. Any recommendations R10 or R14?

[quote][R12] I live 100 miles west in LA. No way I'm spending a week in PS.

You should have said that at first.

Go to Miami.

[quote]Belize

I went there - all I remember is how awful it was.

The Canary Islands. Gran Canaria has amazing nude beaches with these awesome sand dunes. Some say it's the trashy Ibiza but I loved it . They have really nice all gay resorts that are better than Palm Springs.

There are still gay travel agencies that do group tours All Over the World. It would be a wonderful option to meet fellow gay travelers, single or coupled who you are traveling with! Some will pair you up with accomodations so you can reduce single suppliament costs like on cruise ships. A safe and well planned trip where you are not alone and can relax and enjoy new vistas. $3,000. is alot for one week. I would look for 10 day European cruise and see new things away from home! Puerta Vallerta and Palm Springs more like get aways than vacations to people in California. OP check out online gay travel agencies for options, costs and yelp for reliability. There should be some based in Southern CA / Palm Springs areas! Bon Voyage!

I'm still laughing at "the trashy Ibiza" which was the trashiest place I've ever seen.

Gran Canaria is for European oldsters. And yes, the dunes are great, but that’s about it, as the rest is cement, horribly and hastily built resorts from the 70’s.

mexico city!

so much to do and see, the boys are friendly, 2 bdrm apt is 250 a month, great food, $ goes twice as far...

viva la Mexican!

I suggest Stockholm, Helsinki, Tallin and Riga. All lovely cities and you can take a ferry in between (except Tallin to Riga).

Don’t do cruises, and other 🐑 activities. Spend the money on visiting Venice, the most beautiful city in the world. You have also the lido and the gay nudist beach, in case you feel like it. And if you take a gondola and ask the gondoliere to take you behind San Giorgio, with a little smirk, he might accompany you to your hotel later. That’s an old local trick. Of course, two caveats: never visit Venice in extreme cold or warm parts of th year; never play the San Giorgio trick if you are ugly.

Climb Mount Everest so we can bitch about you in the Everest threads!

OP, absolutely nowhere in Europe or Asia.

Since your budget is 3k, hit the gold coast driving through the 101. California has a beautiful coastline and you have many beautiful towns to visit.

Asia of course, especially if you are into Asian boys.

R31 - that's Highway 1, not 101.

R29 I wà in Venice for New Years. Other than light rain and colder than Sept./October, is wonderful and less crowded although still festive!

OP, to be able to enjoy and relax on a more exotic trip outside the U.S., group tours gay or otherwise will remove the stress, anxiety, language barriers and logistical issues. Not only will you save money and have a more well though out trip with experiened travel planners You will be with fellow travelers, Not alone and lonely and will like some and avoid and dislike others.. for a brief time which makes for a memorable vacation. The tours usually know Better restaurants than you will find on youre own as they vetted out to make return trips to same foreign locations. More time to relax vs. Feel like alien in foreign place. If you find a tour company you like (like say Rick Steeves) You would return to them for future destinations and see msore of the World and not feel single and alone as in my earlier life I fellt in foreign locations before group travel.

R29, nothing sexier than a "smirk".

🌍🌍🌍😚👿👿👿👿😈

Ff and block r37. Emoji frau

Has anyone ever been to Israel? I have never been but have always been curious about it (and no I'm not Jewish or in any way religious). Can anyone give a brief rundown who has been there? Is it safe for Americans? And yes I also HATE single supplement payments.

Op check out or call Elite Travel in Palm Springs for travel ideas.

If solo you will want to be somewhere where the locals are friendly and/or there's a multinational gay tourist buzz. This rules out the Nordics. Also, you're not a clubber and it doesn't seem you're a sex pig, so Berlin and Amsterdam are out. You're budget is a bit tight for London, Paris or even quality parts of Italy.

Which really leaves Spain (Sitges, Sevilla, Madrid, Malaga, San Sebastian are best for what you described), Mykonos, Lisbon, or if you're adventurous and speak a little French, Montpellier.

R40: Tel Aviv feels like a small Mediterranean outpost of Los Angeles.

i love jerusalem - the historiic sites plus lots of hot jewish guys and palestines ;)

If you are in LA you should travel to Mexico or Central America.

[quote]Budget is $3k for a week.

That's not a lot - flights, hotels, eating out three times a day....

Stay in the USA.

R40 Israel is far safer than anywhere in the US. Tel Aviv is a big, dirty city, do it for a day or two at the end of your trip. So much to see for a miniscule country. Jerusalem, Eilat, the Golan, Haifa, Nazareth and the entire North, the Dead Sea, Beersheva. There are tours run by the local bus company Egged and well as private tours. Everyone more or less speaks English. There are a wide variety of stayz available from Air B&B to hostels to small hotels to Couchsurfing. Best time to visit is April/May, October/November, unless you have lived in Atlanta or Houston in July and enjoyed it.

If you're already in the neighbourhood, suggest you do the standard 3-day tour of Jordan. You can organise a tour from Haifa or Eilat or you can take a bus to Amman and organise your own tour when you arrive. Must-see places: Jerash, Petra, Wadi Rum, Aqaba, and Irbid.

Who in their right mind wants to go to fucking PALESTINE for their first vacation in 3 years?

R51 Someone with intelligence and a current map.

There's a great gay bar in Madrid called Tíralo Por el Culo.

He's only got seven days. Israel will take at least two days of travel time.

16 and a half hours to fly from LA > Tel Aviv.

Plus the 10 hour time difference.

Then someone suggested 3 days in Jordan as part of that, as well. Doing it all on his own. Jeez! Bad advice. He'd be better off going to Australia.

Pick a European country. I'd go for France, Spain, or Italy. Beautiful men, great food, and welcoming people.

R54 My response was to R40. As far as Jordan, you can organize your own tour either before or when you arrive. The only thing to be very careful about is behaviour. Jordan is a very conservative Muslim country. While homosexuality has been decriminalized, it is socially taboo and abhorrent, so one must be very discrete. That being said, Jordanian men are delicious.

[quote]Pick a European country. I'd go for France, Spain, or Italy.

Still too far for a week and only $3,000 - two days travel, jet lag, time difference.

[quote] Jordanian men are delicious.

Yes.

Keep it real. $3000. 7 days. He's in LA, so ... Mexico, Canada, Florida. Hawaii.

Stockholm, but wait until July or August.

I'd shy away from gay resorts or vacations/cruises...way too cliquey and too much attitude. Plus it's for extroverted types.

I've travelled solo in Europe many times. You can get an airBNB studio in London's Soho or Covent Garden for under $200/night. I just came back from 10 days in Belgium, and 3* hotels in Bruges, Ghent and Brussels were around $100-120/night (and rt airfare from DC-Brussels was $425).

R52 "Someone with a brain..?"

I suppose that excludes you since you cannot choose the proper word definition appropriate to its usage in your sentence.

It is DISCREET, not discrete. I am referring to your second post @R56.

$3000 seems more than enough for nice vacation. You’ll get nice hotel, not 5- but at least 4-stars hotel incl. breakfast, flights are rather cheap. In big cities you eat well with reasonable money. Of course it depends on how much you’ll spend shopping drinking etc.

Mediterranean coast of Spain. Barcelona, for sure, but not for too long as it is hyper expensive. Plan for Sitges 14-18 June during their gay pride. Sitges is about an hour from Barcelona and known for its gay male scene. Rent a car and visit Granada, a college town with a vibrant atmosphere.

How do you pronounces "Sitges?"

OP, go to Barcelona, ive been there 3 times always by myself and had a great time. You can take the train up to Siges if its summer, which is the gay beach area.

R58 Uh, not quite. More like this. Beduin at Petra.

You could easily travel to Budapest and stay at a Airbnb and still not spend all $3000 bucks, Budapest is super affordable, not very gay, but still an interesting city to visit. I was just there for 5 weeks last November.

I travel almost exclusively alone. I prefer it, because I can go where I want to go and don't have to negotiate and compromise. I've traveled everywhere. Russia. China. Australia. Most of Europe. If i were solvent enough to spend $3,000 on a trip right now, I would go to either London or Barcelona. I used to live in London, and wish I could visit an elderly relative who still lives there before she dies, which is soon. I regret I will not be able to afford to do it. But I would love to see her and visit all the museums and the theaters and marvel at some of the architecture. I love London. You might arrange it to travel to Dublin en route. I love Ireland, and the Irish are friendly and good looking. I would go to Barcelona to eat all that wonderful Spanish food and to see the Gaudi buildings. It is not a prime tourist spot right now, but it is becoming increasingly so, so visit before it becomes spoiled. Oh! And Cuba! That is on my list, too. $3,000 might not go very far -- there are few hotels there, apparently, so the good ones charge a to -- but how wonderful to see a country before it becomes totally westernized. Friends have gone and said the food and accommodations left a lot to be desired, but...still. Enjoy your trip, OP. Traveling alone is really great.

If you travel during the off season you could go to Italy for $3000. I did it in December and spent a bit less than $3K for a week.

Go to Spain. A week is enough time. Fly into Madrid and spend three nights, then spend two nights in either Barcelona or Seville.

The country is gorgeous. The people are friendly and sophisticated.

And hear me when I say this — everyone there is STRIKINGLY BEAUTIFUL.

I agree R74 I was in Andalusia the souther province the guys who were digging ditches in the streets could become hi fashion models in NY, London or Paris. They were stunning and unaware of how good looking they were.

Continuing from above, I’m Italian-American so it almost pains me to say this, but the people in Spain are the most beautiful of Europe. If I were traveling solo, this would be an especially important factor for me.

That cracks me up R75 and so true — I’ve been all over Spain a couple times (I love the south) and these people are just stunning. Everywhere I looked, I was just, wow.

Costa del Sol would be great OP. I would reccomend 10 days to 14 days esp.as you have not had a real vacation for a long time. Lots of towns and areas to choose from. If you went shoulder season and got airline ticket with travel miles you could do a great deal, visit museums, awesome beaches and have paella on the beach for lunch or dinner for not a grest deal. Clean and nice cities. Lots of British ex pats in several areas. Visit Gibraltar one day and take the Rock Tour! Views over the Straights of Gibraltar to African Coast. Take 1 day tour to Tanger Morocco by fast boat with hotel pick up and drop off. You will see the Maedina, snake charmers, spice merchants and nice meal in festive restaurant with local dancers. All in one day with no hassle for transportation. Plus near the ocean for entire trip.

R70 almost has it right. The "tg" in Sitges is like the consonant in "judge," so it's pronounced like the English word "sieges."

[quote]I’ve been all over Spain a couple times (I love the south) and these people are just stunning. Everywhere I looked, I was just, wow.

Gays LOVE the dark looks for some reason. So no wonder people keep saying this.

I prefer the Nordics, personally.

I travelled through Vietnam alone for several weeks and found it a very easy country to travel in - excellent food, inexpensive, good beaches. Cambodia and Laos are supposed to be really nice as well.

A one week vaca I'd suggest Iceland. I assume the 3k is spending cash, not to be used for airfare.

Lots of hot guys, country is extremely progressive, much to see in terms of natural beauty, many outdoor activities like hot springs, riding Icelandic ponies, etc.

Quick direct flight.

A week isn’t a whole lot of time if you include traveling time to places like Europe, etc. From LA, I would go to Hawaii. Take an early morning flight, get in early so you have most of that arrival day to enjoy, and have a great time.

For the adventurous, North Africa has a lot to offer.

R81, I'm with you. I really like blondes.

The glory holes in Branson, Missouri are fabulous.

I vote for Greece ..Santorini I and Mykonos

[quote]A one week vaca I'd suggest Iceland. I assume the 3k is spending cash, not to be used for airfare. Lots of hot guys, country is extremely progressive, much to see in terms of natural beauty, many outdoor activities like hot springs, riding Icelandic ponies, etc.Quick direct flight.

9HRS?

Sitges is lovely for Eldergays.

Very friendly. Everything alfresco.

Easy access to Barcelona for culture.

I prefer Madrid to Bcn, but just a little. Beautiful city good looking men and hot horny gay scene.

Inclusive is hell.

Fly to Berlin spend a week then head to the South of Spain.

[quote]Views over the Straights of Gibraltar

Oh, dear.

And we don't want to see straights, anyway.

If you're interested in an all inclusive resort, at least look into a cruise with a group like Pied Piper, which books groups, usually on Celebrity. I'm guessing that there will be a backlash here. Problem is that as a single, you pay double. I've gone the roommate route, but it's a crap shoot. I'm still great friends with two guys from separate trips, but others have not been as lucky. I also like a group called Out Adventures. I've been on a few trips with them. They're pretty active, but they're great for bucket list places like Machu Picchu or Angkor Wat. Again, some really good people.

The only places I've traveled alone-alone are countries where English is commonly spoken, or where I can get by on my rudimentary French and Spanish. I enjoy big cities with all there is to do. But as I get older, I get nervous traveling completely alone. I've never had any really bad experience, but like many others, I've heard stories, and I like having the security of traveling with a like-minded group.

Please don't let this thread drop. Let us know what you decided to do and how it worked out.

Take the train to the Grand Canyon. It’s beautiful!

My ideal is Paris, Amsterdam and maybe even London. Can find budget hotels or good deal on Airbnb - except London. Amsterdam and a side day trip to Delft or Haarlem (or on way to Paris)- small and walkable with good, unpretentious food and fun relaxed gay bars. Then high speed train to Paris for culture, pretentious food and pretentious gay bars. Then could do London - or maybe Switzerland for some nature.

I don't know whether you blond loving guys have actually been to Spain, or do you just assume that the men in Spain are mostly dark and swarthy?

I thought the same thing before my first of many trips to my favorite country, and I am here to tell you, there at blonds all over the place. Blonds which could easily be German, Danish, or Austrian.

A week in London! No language issues, with planning Non Stop flights for OP on miles. Walk to all sights from dowtown area London hotel and train from Heathrow to city once you land. Could even take morning Eurostar to Paris and return same or next day. Visit Harrods, Hyde Park, Westminster Abbey, British Museum at no cost. London Eye gives great panoramic view of London. Take day tripnext to Tymes River to Windsor Castle and countryside by motor tourbus. Any number of dining options and restaurants like any major city. Great walking city,

r99 I did a week in London (pre-cruise) in 2016. Stayed near Victoria Station; walked to a lot of things. Took buses (surprisingly easier than the Tube in many cases; the signage is very efficient) and the Tube to a lot of the sights. A river cruise down the Thames to Greenwich. Had a great time (solo.)

Not to be the Ugly American, but these days you can get by with English in much of the world. When I was in Vietnam (I'm R82) I was astonished at how many Vietnamese spoke at least some English. It's obviously more true in places where they deal with tourists a lot, but then those are the places where you'll probably be going.

It's the one foreign language they learn. The French tourists, German tourists, Japanese tourists, etc., all had to know some English to get by.

True. From conversations with locals, I’ve learned that many countries require English as a second language. In Poland, specifically, there was a gap between younger people who spoke English fluently and older people, who did not.

OP I also hope You check in and let us know your impressions on comments given! I also live in Southern California and hope you lean to a more distant and exotic trip! Spain and London on miles would be great but add a few days to a week trip.

All of R103's choices are good ones, although I don't know Brighton. In the original post however, he said he was interested in an all inclusive resort, or dinner, cocktails at a friendly local bar. In R13 he rejected Palm Springs. Seattle and Ft. Lauderdale are not particularly walkable. New Orleans and Montreal would be great choices for a solo. The Montreal strip clubs are a national treasure.

Key West should be on my list at R103.

Seattle is one of my favorite places to visit. Lots of great day trips. Amazing natural beauty. I go there every single year.

How about Tokyo? A city I feel like I need to see. But unsure how complicated and feasible it is solo. And if there is any real gay bar scene.

Puerto Vallarta where the money will go far, far, far. But Madrid and Barcelona, absolutely.

Avoid PV. OP lives in California and wanted something beyond long weekend adventure.

Although I've never been there, Scotland sounds good for solo gay exploring.

Oh right R111, sorry I didn't see that upthread. Then SPAIN SPAIN SPAIN!

[Quote]The Montreal strip clubs are a national treasure.

Indeed they are legendary.

Nice, R114, but I was thinking more of the strip clubs along Ste Catherine in the Gay Village.

I think I've settled on going to the Turks and Caicos.

Thoughts, comments?

CC: r104

Isn't that one of the homophobic British Caribbean countries?

R116 Do you like Frau fests?

R116 Nothing in my research indicated it was a "Frau fest", whatever that means. A relatively quiet beach, and some solitude are at the top of my list.

More like a suffering in poverty fest

Buenos Aires has favorable exchange rates, old-world charm, good food and wine, and hot hot guys. Take the buscobus boat over to Colonia, Uruguay for a day and stumble around the cobbstone streets. I stayed at a gay B&B in San Telmo the couple of times I went with a friend. It's very charming. Evening activities start LATE. There are lots of things to see and do.

Bangkok. There's a reason why it's called that. Never a bad time if you're into Asians. And Thais are among the prettiest people in the world.

R121 No thanks! You'd still have to hear that awful language - Porch-of-geese! Blech!

No, R123, it's that peasant language, Spanish.

I would never recommend New Orleans for solo travel. That's a bit like sending the lamb to slaughter.

Please. I've been to New Orleans dozens of times without a single problem. As in every city, there are areas where you don't want to travel alone at night, but overall, it's fine.

[Quote] A relatively quiet beach, and some solitude are at the top of my list.

If you had posted that in the OP, you wouldn't have gotten over 100 recommendations, few of which include solitude or beaches.

OP do you like large cities? London! There's a thread here about it, makes me want to go. And solo.s

Why not a beach? Go to some family-friendly SC oceanfront hotel in Myrtle Beach, SC. Really. Big hotels have nice restaurants, the local places in the town locals go to are fun, there is always a subtle gay life. You can go home tan and pretty!

I would recommend Amsterdam. Lots of direct flights from the US, not too expensive.

Very walkable and easy to get around. Museums, culture. And English is spoken fluently everywhere.

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