Florida

Florida Keys Kayaking Adventure – 2TravelDads

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Florida Keys Kayaking - The Globetrotter Guys

Florida Keys Kayaking was one of our favorite parts of our road trip from Miami to Key West (mmm, key lime pie!). The best places to kayak in Southern Florida are spread out between the many islands, and they aren’t all where you’d expect. This is our guide to kayaking with kids in the Florida Keys, and any of these spots are great as an adult too.

As we go through the many kayaking spots in the Keys, you’ll see that some of the launch sites are in state parks and others are public access via beaches or boat ramps. Wherever you’re putting in, and whether it’s a kayak, canoe, or standup paddleboard, always be aware of wildlife, underwater obstacles, and other boats. Remember, safety first in all things if you want to have an amazing Caribbean vacation!

Best Places for Florida Keys Kayaking

Kayaking through the backcountry waters of the Keys, and you’ll see one of the world’s most diverse marine life ecosystems. The quiet, shallow backwater region of flats and mangrove islands has inspired many naturalists and outdoor enthusiasts to combine environmental tourism with the sport of sea kayaking. The opportunity to explore such serene, untouched areas is very special.

Full Story at 2TravelDads

Florida Keys Gay Travel Resources

Miami Gay Bars – The Nomadic Boys

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Miami Gay Bars - The Nomadic Boys

Most people call Miami the Magic City on account of its rapid growth and expansion throughout the mid-’90s. Me? I call it the Magic City because it’s the place where all the Miami gay bars make my gay party dreams come true!

The city has been home to queer nightlife as early as the 1930s. Cut to present day and the city now prides itself on having one of the largest LGBTQ communities in the world as well as being a major tourist location for over one million gay visitors every year. To prove their commitment to serving the community, they have gone as far as founding an LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce to help the locals safely and comfortably navigate life in their city.

Whether you call Miami your home or your favorite vacation spot in the US, you likely understand the extent to which diversity is an essential pillar that upholds the success of Miami gay bars and nightlife. The bars and clubs throughout the entire city echo their patrons, each one more wild and eclectic than the last!

With so many unique Miami gay bars scattered across the map, we want to walk you through the scene and show you exactly which businesses deserve your attention, which is why we have compiled our list of the best queer bars and clubs in the city.

By Stefan Arestis – Full Story at the Nomadic Boys

Miami Gay Travel Resources

Gay Miami Beaches – The Nomadic Boys

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Miami Gay Beaches - The Nomadic Boys - 12th Street Beach

You know us, we love being on vacation (I mean, who doesn’t?) but we really get our gay lives on the world’s many stunning beaches. If it’s a gay beach, all the better. If it’s clothing-optional… Well, we couldn’t possibly comment on that in such polite company, could we? wink emoji

Often overlooked in favour of Fort Lauderdale’s and gay friendly Key West, Miami is one of the more underrated gay vacation destinations in the Sunshine State. With a relaxed live-and-let-live attitude and a devilish twinkle in its eye, Miami is a great place to celebrate your queerdom in all its gay glory.

So, slap on the factor 50 and slip into your skimpiest swim trunks to check out our list of Miami gay beaches – last one in the sea is a banana! Oh and while we have you here, be sure to check out our detailed gay guide to Miami for the full low down on the scene!

12th Street Gay Beach

The 12th Street Gay Beach near Ocean Drive is the best gay beach of Miami. Put it this way: you will never see so many beautiful specimens of manhood anywhere else in the world. We almost gave ourselves whiplash checking out the stunning procession of perfect physiques parading across the gorgeous white sands. Don’t worry about packing a load of things, as you can rent chairs and umbrellas for a small fee when you get there. As ever, all you beach babes remember to stay hydrated and top up your sun protection regularly. We’re on vacation – the only place for lobsters is in a cobb salad!

By Stefan Arestis – Full Story at the Nomadic Boys

Gay Miami Beach Travel Resources

Fort Lauderdale Gay Bars – The Nomadic Boys

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Fort Lauderdale Gay Bars - The Nomadic Boys

Fort Lauderdale is out, loud and fabulously proud!

Over the past few decades, Fort Lauderdale has gone from being a Spring Break destination for straight teen college kids to one of the gayest places in the whole country! It was even featured as the ultimate gay holiday for the boys in the hilarious movie with Ru Paul, Lady Bunny and Brent Corrigan – “Another Gay Sequel: Gays Gone Wild!”

We always love coming here to party. The gay scene of Fort Lauderdale is mainly based in the vibrant gayborhood of Wilton Manors, which comes alive every night of the week. It has tons of gay bars and clubs here to suit any gay boy under the sun! In this article, we’ve set out some of the best Fort Lauderdale gay bars to check out with a snippet of what you can expect. As you’re in the area, we recommend heading south to check out the gay scene of Miami – it’s only a 40-minute drive away!

01 ROSIE’S BAR AND GRILL

See and be seen at Rosie’s Bar & Grill!
It’s our favourite bar in Wilton Manors. Totally camp, always buzzy and full of guys cruisin’ and drinkin’. Whether you come on a Monday evening or Sunday brunch, it’s always a blast at Rosie’s, which is why we love it!

Rosie’s is the perfect spot to start the night with a group of friends, get a few burgers and cocktails, before heading over to somewhere like The Pub or Georgie’s. We love the quirky vibe here.

And then there are the burgers! Those tasty, juicy, cheesy award-winning bundles of yumminess…a reason to head to Rosie’s. The menu is priceless, with names such as Plain Jane and Miley Highclub – don’t forget the Hellena Bun – “tossed in Rosie’s own ‘Smack My Cheeks and Make ’em Rosy’ sauce”! When we last visited, the Brexit Burger was on the Specials Board making us all giggle!

Rosie’s is located at 2449 Wilton Drive. It is open every day from around 10am until midnight. Find out more on their Facebook page.

By Stefan Arestis – Full Story at the Nomadic Boys

Gay Fort Lauderdale Travel Resources

Gay Fort Lauderdale – The Nomadic Boys

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Gay Fort Lauderdale - The Nomadic Boys

Over the past few decades, Fort Lauderdale has evolved massively to become the gay capital of Florida as well as one of the top LGBTQ destinations in the USA. The city has everything to suit all LGBTQ travellers including clothing-optional male-only resorts, gay beaches, many gay events taking place throughout the year and of course the gay scene of Wilton Manors!

We’ve been several times to Fort Lauderdale, either as a stopover for a cruise, or to go to one of the many gay parties they have here throughout the year like “Wicked Manors” on Halloween. We always love coming here, particularly as it’s a 365 day destination. There’s always something happening and you’re almost always guaranteed gorgeous sunny weather.

This is our detailed gay guide to Fort Lauderdale featuring highlights from the gay scene of Wilton Manors, the best gay beaches, events and gay hotels to stay. Read why we included Fort Lauderdale in our detailed guide to the best vacation places in the world for LGBTQ travelers.

Is “Gay Fort Lauderdale” Really Gay Friendly?

Fort Lauderdale has evolved so much over the past few decades to become one of the gayest places in the entire country, especially Wilton Manors. It’s so gay that in the 2010 US Census it was ranked as the second gayest place in the USA after Provincetown for most gays couples per 1,000.

Even the community leaders of Wilton Manors are predominantly gay. The city’s first openly gay mayor was John Fiore who was elected in 2000. He was then succeeded by Jim Stork in 2002, making Wilton Manors the first city in the United States to elect two consecutive openly gay mayors. More recently, Justin Flippen was the openly gay mayor of Wilton Manors, who sadly died in early 2020 from a brain aneurysm.

By Stefan Arestis – Full Story at the Nomadic Boys

Gay Fort Lauderdale Travel Resources

Gay Florida Keys – The Nomadic Boys

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Gay Florida Keys - The Nomadic Boys

We’ve travelled the world extensively, and can hands down say that when it comes to stunning sunsets, the Keys of South Florida is the best place to come. There are of course many other reasons to visit the Keys: the terrific gay scene of Key West, the diving in the many coral reefs, beautiful beaches, and of course the star culinary highlight, the divine Key Lime pie! But for us, those magnificent sunsets stole the show.

The Florida Keys are a string of thousands of tropical islands stretching about 120 miles (193km) off the southern tip of Florida, between the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico. The word “Keys” comes from the Spanish word “cayo”, which means ‘small island’.

The Keys begin at the southeastern coast of the Florida peninsula, about 15 miles (24 km) south of Miami. They then extend from Key Largo, all the way to Key West, which is the westernmost of the inhabited islands.

This is our gay travel guide to the Florida keys, where we set out the best gay hotels to stay, our favourite gay hangouts and top things to do.

By Stefan Arestis – Full Story at the Nomadic Boys

Gay Florida Keys Travel Resources

Gay Key West – The Nomadic Boys

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Gay Key West - The Nomadic Boys

Conch! It’s quite a quirky word, satisfying, yet it sounds like you’re cursing… “you CONCHhead!” or “you’re such a CONCH!”

Giggles aside, over in the gay island mecca of Key West, a conch is a legit nickname given to the locals. And this bunch of conchers sure know how to live life to the fullest!

Key West is famous for its relaxed, tolerant and queer inclusivity. Historically it’s always been different, helped by the fact that it is the southernmost point of the USA mainland, slightly cut off from the rest of Florida. This has allowed Key West to thrive as a mixed haven for an eclectic blend of people ranging from Native Americans, Spanish, freed slaves, pirates, and of course, the LGBTQ community. It has also been a bedrock for artistic talent with the likes of Tennessee Williams, Ernest Hemingway and Judy Blume all making this unassuming island their home base. Key West even has an official motto of “One Human Family“.

We absolutely loved Key West. There are so many things to do here with a really exciting gay scene along Duval Street. We’ve been to Key West several times and always had a ball on each visit. We’ve put together this detailed gay guide to Key West to include our experience trying out the best gay hotels, partying in the bars/clubs, inspiration for things to do, and more.

Gay Key West

The gay area of key West is based around the busy Duval Street, between Angela and Petronia Streets. There is a permanent Rainbow Crosswalk here so you can’t miss it! This small intersection forms the gay neighbourhood of Key West, largely centred around 3 large complexes forming a sort of triangle. The 3 large complexes are 801 Bourbon, Bourbon St. Pub and Aqua. Each one has around 3/4 separate bars/clubs inside which we summarise in detail below.

By Stefan Arestis – Full Story at the Nomadic Boys

Key West Gay Travel Resources

Gay Sarasota, Florida – The Nomadic Boys

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Gay Sarasota, Florida - The Nomadic Boys

This is the home of Siesta Key Rum, the Siesta Key beach, the massive Ringling Circus Museum, and so much more! Sarasota is a destination that most gay travellers to Florida are likely to overlook. 

We’ll be very honest, before coming to Sarasota we knew very little about it. However, it turned out to be the hidden gem of our trip, a place we would definitely love to return to. As well as being a cultural hotspot of Florida with so many things to do, Sarasota also has a small fun gay scene worth checking out, with annual events like the “Harvey Milk Festival”and “Sarasota Pride”.

Following our trip, we’ve put together this detailed travel guide to Sarasota featuring the best gay bars, events, things to do, gay friendly hotels to stay, and more.

Gay Sarasota Neighborhood?

The Sarasota gay scene is very small with only a handful of gay hangouts spread around the city. As such, there is no official gay neighborhood in Sarasota. The focal point of the city where you may want to consider basing yourself is by the pretty Bayfront Park. It’s close to the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens as well as a few queer-friendly bars like the Pangea Alchemy Lab and the Westin hotel rooftop bar.

Purple Rhino is the main gay bar of Sarasota, which is located around 10 minutes taxi ride south Bayfront Park. Even further south is the Oasis club, which is close to famous Siesta Key beach.

By Stefan Arestis – Full Story at the Nomadic Boys

Sarasota Gay Travel Resources

Gay Key West Resorts – The Nomadic Boys

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BLOG - Gay Key West Resorts - The Nomadic Boys

Key West is super gay! This small island in south Florida is a notorious gay mecca, with a whopping 30% of its 25,000 residents identifying as LGBTQ.

The island’s history as a gay destination dates back to the 1950s when well-known LGBTQ celebrities like Tennessee Williams, Gore Vidal, Jerry Herman, Leonard Bernstein and Elizabeth Bishop have since made it their home. Subsequently in 1983, Key West became the first place in the US to elect an openly gay mayor (Richard A. Heyman), then in 2000, the island’s motto became: “One Human Family“.

We’ve visited Key West on several occasions and always had a blast, especially on the gay scene on Duval Street. There are so many things to do for gay travellers and with regards to to the hotels, it was never a case of ‘please can we have a double bed’, but more – ‘which of these many gay hotels should we stay at on this trip?’

There is an impressive number of different gay Key West resorts to pick from, so we’ve put together our 10 favourite, which also includes gay hotels and guesthouses.

Island House

Island House is notorious across the entire LGBTQ community of south Florida. It’s also one of the largest male-only clothing-optional resorts we’ve ever been to.

By Stefan Arestis – Full Story at the Nomadic Boys

Key West Gay Travel Resources

Grandview Gardens B&B – Gay Owned Bed & Breakfast in West Palm Beach, Florida

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Grandview Gardens B&B - Gay Owned Bed & Breakfast in West Palm Beach, Florida

GRANDVIEW GARDENS B&B – ELEGANT WEST PALM BEACH B&B

Grandview Gardens Bed & Breakfast is in the center of West Palm Beach’s downtown, in the Grandview Heights Historic Neighborhood.

We’re just five minutes from City Place, the renovated and upgraded civic center – walk to fine dining, theaters, outdoor cafes, clubs and bars, and boutique stores.

Grandview Gardens Bed & Breakfast is also close to The Convention Center, Palm Beach Atlantic University, the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts and the resort island of Palm Beach, and just ten minutes by car from The Palm Beach International Airport.

We offer bicycles for guest use.

We’re surrounded by tropical gardens on Howard Park, just across from the Armory Art Center.

See the Grandview Gardens B&B Expanded Listing on Purple Roofs Here

West Palm Beach Gay Friendly Bed and Breakfasts, Hotels, and Vacation Rentals