Identities

Pocket WiFi in Taiwan – The Nomadic Boys

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Pocket WiFi in Taiwan - The Nomadic Boys

We love Instagramming during our trips, especially Stefan, especially in Taiwan…look, I’ll be honest, it does start to grate on me when trying to enjoy a romantic cocktail together with a beautiful sunset backdrop, yet he’s on his phone posting about it on social media…

…but you gotta do what you gotta do to keep your man happy right?

So, when arriving in a new place, the first thing we HAVE to do (to prevent the infamous Stefan tantrums breaking out)is to make sure he has a way of staying online at all times. We normally buy a new local SIM card, but recently, whilst travelling through Taiwan, we’ve found that investing in pocket WiFi devices is much better.

For starters, it means your phone can still be locked to your home contract, whereas SIM cards require you to have an unlocked phone. It can also work out cheaper as data is unlimited (compared to SIM card data packages), and it means you can connect all your devices to it, so if you’re travelling as a group, everyone can stay connected.

We used a pocket WiFi device during our trip to Taiwan and it was a godsend! Prior to ordering it, we researched all the many different pocket WiFi options, which we summarise in this article so it can help you figure out which one is best for you.

By Stefan Arestis – Full Story at the Nomadic Boys

Berlin’s Charlottenburg Palace – Keep Calm and Wander

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Berlin's Charlottenburg Palace - Keep Calm and Wander

There is no doubt that Charlottenburg Palace is the most splendid in Berlin. I’m not sure how many palaces the city has, but if there’s one palace that you must go in, this should be it.

The Baroque and Rococo facade of the palace tells of its former glory. Its history dates back to the Hohenzollern Family, a royal dynasty. Built towards the end of the 17th century, Charlottenburg Palace and its surrounding area were named after the first Queen, Sophie Charlotte, the first consort of Prussia.

Charlotte was a voracious lover of the arts. The “Court of the Muses” inside the palace hosted philosophers, poets, musicians, and other artists.

By Alain – Full Story at Keep Calm and Wander

Germany Gay Travel Resources

Victoria’s Royal BC Museum – 2TravelDads

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Victoria's Royal BC Museum - 2TravelDads

There are very few museums that we’ve gone back to several times, but the Royal BC Museum in Victoria is one of them. Located just off the Inner Harbour, it’s an easy addition to a Victoria BC weekend getaway or even just a day trip. And the Royal BC Museum with kids is wonderful too. This is both our review and our guide to the museum and should answer any questions you’ve got about planning a visit.

Getting to the Royal BC Museum

Victoria is an easy place to get to, either from Seattle, the Olympic Peninsula or Vancouver. Living in the Seattle area, the Victoria Clipper is a great option for us. Catching the Clipper from Pier 66, there is overnight parking nearby or it’s a short Lyft ride from anywhere in the downtown area. The ride from Seattle to Victoria is a little less than three hours, and riding the Clipper is really relaxing. It’s a great way to start a Victoria weekend getaway.

Other options for getting to Victoria include the Blackball Coho ferry from Port Angeles, WA; Washington State Ferries to Sidney from Anacortes, WA; BC Ferries from Tsawwassen, BC to Sidney; or the V2V boat from Vancouver, BC (seasonal).

Depending on your overall travel plan, any of these can be booked on relatively short notice and at a variety of price points. Also, seaplane flights from Seattle’s Lake Union or Vancouver’s waterfront are available, but at a much higher cost.

By Chris and Rob – Full Story at the 2TravelDads

Victoria Gay Travel Resources

Slovakia’s President Lives Here – Keep Calm and Wander

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Slovakia's President Lives Here - Keep Calm and Wander

The President of Slovakia lives here – at the Grassalkovich Palace in Bratislava. I was surprised that the surroundings were not heavily-guarded with Presidential guardians. It was early June when I was there – and boy, it was quiet!

As you can see in the photos below, I was the only tourist roaming around. It’s so different from Presidential residences I’ve been to – like the White House in the USA, 24 Sussex Drive in Ottawa, Canada, or at 10 Downing Street in London.

By Alain – Full Story at Keep Calm and Wander

St. Augustine for Gay Families – 2TravelDads

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St. Augustine for Gay Families - 2TravelDads

We have visited St Augustine quite a few times and each time we’ve stayed someplace different. There are many hotels in Saint Augustine for gay families as well as other options, such as camping, and we’re covering them all! After you read this article you should be able to make a solid choice in choosing a hotel in St Augustine and the surrounding area.

We work with Best Western Hotels & Resorts and have lots of experience with the brand, so we do recommend them for sure, and they sponsored our most recent trip to Saint Augustine. We encourage you to check them out for booking a hotel in the St Augustine area, particularly because they have so many options! We’ve got additional recommendations for St Augustine and all the way up to Jax Beach for hotels and other accommodations, so let us know if you have any questions.

St. Augustine for Gay Families

A city like St Augustine is great for any type of traveler because there is such a diversity of accommodations. Whether you want to find a budget hotel or want to book a beautiful, historic suite, there are lots of options!

By Chris and Rob – Full Story at the 2TravelDads

St. Augustine Gay Travel Resources

Who Really Goes on a Gay Cruise? – The Globetrotter Guys

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Who Really Goes on a Gay Cruise? - The Globetrotter Guys

Please throw all of your stereotypes and preconceptions straight out of the window – they aren’t welcome on this gay cruise.

We have been on our second gay cruise with Atlantis and are finding it incredibly difficult to put into words how the experience felt.

It’s the one place in the world where we felt no barriers whatsoever.

It allowed us to remove all of our inhibitions, be our true selves and celebrate every type of person with no judgement or attitude at all.

It was empowering, liberating, full of love, the friendliest environment we have experienced and gives us hope for humanity. An Atlantis gay cruise is something special that needs to be experienced to be appreciated and fully understood. 

We’ve asked you to throw away your stereotypes for good reason, these may include:

  • Gay cruises are just for hot young muscle-men 
  • Gay cruises are just for singles looking for sex 
  • In contrast to the one above, some people think cruises are actually just for couples
  • In contrast again, some people ask why on earth would you go on a gay cruise as a monogamous couple?
  • Gay cruises are cliquey, I could never go solo

Before we move on, from our experience and from all the people we have spoken to, all the above points are false.

Quite simply, a gay cruise is for everyone. It doesn’t matter if you are travelling solo, with friends, are in either an open or closed couple, a throuple or anything else in between – we have seen and met them all.

However, don’t take our word for it, we have sat down and interviewed a mix of these types of travellers from this years Atlantis gay cruise.

Read on to find out how this experience worked out for each of them.

By Sion & Ben – Full Story at the Globetrotter Guys

Pnyx Hill in Athens – Keep Calm and Wander

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Pnyx Hill in Athens - Keep Calm and Wander

Pnyx Hill in Athens is not your ordinary hill. It may just be another hill in the city but this was once where citizens congregate to talk about and vote on issues that mattered to them. 

Yes, democracy was born here! When power was transferred to the people, they held assemblies here to discuss reforms.

The hill is overlooking the ancient Agora, once a thriving center for business and commerce of ancient Athens. The Parthenon or the Acropolis is very visible at a far distance. It’s only less than a mile.

By Alain – Full Story at Keep Calm and Wander

Athens Gay Travel Resources

Lesbian Boston – Go Girlfriend

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Lesbian Boston - Deposit Photos

Business travel often takes us to new cities and states outside our regular travel zone. Too often it’s a swoop in, attend the conference and hop back on that plane to wing your way back home. How sinful that we don’t take an extra day before or after to at least see the local sights and taste the local flavors – or make a long weekend of it. Clearly the host community is well set to share their local restaurants, craft brews, it’s harbor front or mountainscape – they want you to explore! stroll the Boston HarborWalk Trail. I know the local economies appreciate our dollars being spent there.

Recently, we had the great opportunity to add a few days to our conference travel and spend it exploring Boston and Salem, Massachusetts. This was a conference on a scale we’ve never attended before with 26,000+ attendees arriving in Boston for 3 days at the Inbound Marketing conference. Think on that – 26,000+ attendees from around North America and the world; a powerful community learning experience Boston is well suited to host.

Take Time Out to See Lesbian Boston

We arrived in Boston the day of the conference. Grabbing a cab from the airport to our hotel – The Boston Westin Waterfront – gave us a teasing glimpse of the waterfront area, it’s walking trails and vibrant city buzz. We were hooked and knew we wanted to get out and explore more.

Gay Romania – The Nomadic Boys

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Gay Romania - The Nomadic Boys

Romania, the homeland for the goths at heart.

After all, the central region of Transylvania is the inspiration for the legendary novel “Dracula”. Hands up, who didn’t have a vampire phase? What gay teenager didn’t pine after Robert Pattinson in “Twilight”? But despite its cryptic and haunting backdrop, Romania as a whole is delightfully pleasant. 

With cities that reflect the medieval villages we see in the history books, locals that are passionate about life, streets that are bursting with character and natural scenery, Romania took our breath away and completely surprised us! Not to mention all the many charming old churches, the range of delicious food and the friendly locals. For us, Romania embodies all that is magical about Eastern Europe. 

From the outset, we knew Romania wasn’t the most gay-friendly country that we’ve been to. Yet despite this, we found several queer hangouts in the main big cities, especially in Bucharest. Plus, when we did find these spaces, we found them to be just as erratic, wild and party-centric as they would be in London, Barcelona or New York. If not more so!

We’ve put together this LGBTQ country guide for Romania based on our personal experience to help inspire gay travellers wanting to see just what Romania has to offer.

How welcoming is Gay Romania?

Romania generally is not the most gay friendly country in Europe. Homophobia is rife and we certainly felt it as a gay couple travelling around the country. The most obvious example was when we contacted several hotels prior to visiting, asking them whether they’re ok to host a gay couple.

By Stefan Arestis – Full Story at the Nomadic Boys

El Mirasol Villas – Gay Owned Resort in Palm Springs, California

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EL MIRASOL VILLAS: CLOTHING OPTIONAL RESORT, GARDEN/POOLS

El Mirasol Villas is the original Palm Springs resort catering to gay men since 1975. Built by Howard Hughes in 1947, the hotel’s charm and privacy have preserved while offering the style and comfort sought by today’s gay traveler.

Walled and gated, this private resort is in the Warm Sands area, only blocks away from downtown Palm Springs, gay nightlife, hiking, shopping, casino gambling and gourmet dining.

Meandering garden paths lead to bungalows, one or two bedroom suites and studios, two gorgeous clothing optional pools and a 10 man Jacuzzi/Spa with an outdoor shower.

The hotel even features a eucalyptus steam room.All rooms have California king beds, private baths, Flat Screen wireless TV and DVD players, some with kitchens and private patios.

See the El Mirasol Villas Expanded Listing on Purple Roofs Here

Gay Palm Springs Bed and Breakfasts, Hotels, and Vacation Rentals