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Indonesia’s “Broken Beach” – Keep Calm and Wander

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Broken Beach - Keep Calm and Wander

The Broken Beach in Nusa Penida is one of the most-visited tourist attractions on the small island, next to Bali. But is it really broken? When I saw it personally, I couldn’t figure out why they call it as such. Nothing there is broken.

Broken Beach Views

As you can see in these photos, there is a natural bridge with a natural arched tunnel under it. The water passes through the tunnel and smashes to the small beach below.

Of course, there’s no way going down to the beach, except taking a boat tour – as we were told. You see, the area is circular, and the hole in the middle forms a 50-200 meters high cliff. It is a unique rock formation and truly one of the island’s natural wonders.

By Alain – Full Story at Keep Calm and Wander

Indonesia Gay Travel Resources

Gay Vancouver – The Nomadic Boys

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Gay Vancouver - The Nomadic Boys

Greenpeace, Ryan Reynolds, Hayden Christensen, and Botox – what do they all have in common?
Vancouver!

That’s right, they were all created in this super cool city located right on the far West coast of Canada. Vancouver is the capital of the British Columbia Province, famous for being one of the most diverse regions of Canada. It is also nicknamed “The Hollywood of the North” due to its popularity as a filming location for TVs/movies after LA and NYC. Oh, and did we mention the part about Ryan Reynolds and Hayden Christensen?

We visited Vancouver several times on our trips to Canada and always have a fantastic time. As well as a bustling Gay Village over at Davie Street, Vancouver has tons of fun things to do, with the mountains on its doorstep and the natural paradise of Vancouver Island a short ferry ride away.

Most importantly of all, we found gay Vancouver to be a very tolerant city, accepting of everyone. We frequently saw many gay couples walking the streets hand-in-hand all across town and felt comfortable to do the same. Of course, this comes as no surprise as this is Canada, a country we absolutely adore and rate as the most gay friendly country in the world.

In this detailed gay guide to Vancouver, we summarise our experience discovering the gay scene of Davie Village, as well as some of the best things to do in the city, gay hotels to stay and more practical tips for LGBTQ travellers.

Davie Street: The Gay Vancouver Village

Vancouver’s gay village, also known as the Davie Village, is the heart of the city’s LGBTQ community. It is based mainly along Davie Street between Jervis Street and Burrard Street. This is where the majority of the queer bars and clubs are. Although it’s not as big as the scene of Montreal or Toronto, it’s just as fun.

There is also a more bohemian area popular with the lesbian community of the city at Commercial Drive, called “The Drive” over in East Vancouver, which we did not visit so have not covered in this guide.

Indonesia’s Jatiluwih Rice Terraces – Keep Calm and Wander

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Indponesia's Jatiluwih Rice Terraces - Keep Calm and Wander

Jatiluwih Rice Terraces is really beautiful. I mean, it won’t be called Jatiluwih if it’s not really stunning, right? I was told that “jati” means real, and “luwih” translates as beautiful or good. You see, Jatiluwih Rice Terraces is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. You might wonder why but when you are standing there, you’d understand why.

Its five rice terraces are interconnected with a brilliant water irrigation system, known as subak, that goes through canals and low head dams. These water management systems mirror the philosophical belief of Tri Hita Karana, which brings all together with the balance of nature, of the spirit, and the human world.

By Alain – Full Story at Keep Calm and Wander

Indonesia Gay Travel Resources

The Iceland Bubble Hotel – Once Upon a Journey

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The Iceland Bubble Hotel - Once Upon a Journey

Have you always dreamed of sleeping under the stars? And sleeping under the northern lights? Then we have amazing news for you, it’s possible if you stay at Buubble: the Iceland bubble hotel! And the best part is, you can watch the stars and northern lights comfortably from your warm bed. You just have to look up, as the bubbles are see-through.

There are many unique places to stay in Iceland, but when you visit Iceland you have to add staying the night at the bubble hotel to your Iceland itinerary. Sleeping at the ‘5 million star hotel’ is an experience you will never forget.

Yes, of course, you need to be lucky weather-wise to see the Aurora Borealis (the northern lights). And visit during the right season (late August to mid-April), but to sleep in a bubble, surrounded by nature, is magical anyways.

If you aren’t a fan of glamping yet, be aware, we fell in love with it! In this article, we will tell you all about Iceland’s bubble hotel, our experiences, what to expect and what to bring. It’s a one of a kind experience like you are sleeping in a fairy tale.

Full Story at Once Upon a Journey

Gay Palawan – The Nomadic Boys

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Gay Palawan - The Nomadic Boys

The Philippines have occasionally been called the treasure islands of the Pacific, but if you were to ask us, we’d say that the largest gem of all can be found within gay Palawan!

As adventurers, we’re always on the lookout for the most exciting destinations to share with the LGBTQ world. So, what if we told you that Palawan is a top-of-the-line oasis where you can find the softest and whitest sand? The deepest and most mysterious caves? Mountains, covered by vast and verdant jungles? Well… It’s true! Palawan has everything that explorers could ever want from a thrilling vacation.

And while there is no primary hotspot for gay activity amongst the various islands and municipalities throughout Palawan, there are still several LGBTQ-owned businesses to be found. Also, just based on our own personal experiences from traveling across the seas to the Philippines, we have met a lot of queer folk flooding into these gorgeous islands. Filipinos are incredibly welcoming and gay friendly, many of our friends have even weighed in on why the Philippines is so gay friendly.

From our perspective, Palawan is not only a safe place for both local and foreign travelers, but it is also a must-stop, bucket list-worthy location. We want to help you plan the best possible island holiday, which is why we’ve created this all-inclusive, gay travel guide!

Full Story at The Nomadic Boys

Gay Palawan / Indonesia Travel Resources

Stockholm Gay Bars – The Globetrotter Guys

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Stockholm Gay Bar - The Globetrotter Guys

Stockholm is an incredible destination for gay travellers with so much to offer – it is a very liberal and welcoming city. As a result, the bars (and scene) here are quite unique.

Given Stockholm is such a progressive city, you will find yourself welcome as a traveller in bars all across the city. However, whilst this is great to see, we were very keen to check out as many ‘actual’ Stockholm gay bars as possible during our visit.

Best Stockholm Gay Bars: Club Backdoor

Club Backdoor markets itself as ‘the best gay club north of Ibiza’. Backdoor is open till 5am Friday/Saturday and naturally becomes the final stop for everyone on a night out in town. On Fridays it plays hits, hip hop, RnB and 90s, Saturdays plays dark house and techno (check Facebook for updates). This club can tend to attract more of the circuit crowd and can be found just outside the city centre.

By Sion & Ben – Full Story at the Globetrotter Guys

Indonesia’s Kelingking Beach – Keep Calm and Wander

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Indonesia's Kelingking Beach - Keep Calm and Wander

Yes, Kelingking Beach in Nusa Penida is your ultimate hiking trail down to the white seashore. That is, I assume, if you are into a treacherous hike and reward yourself by frolicking in the white sandy beach and the turquoise salty water.

Perhaps you’ve seen this area on many tourism promotions for Bali and Indonesia.

Pantai Kelingking in Nusa Penida, according to the Traveler’s Choice Awards in 2019, grabbed the 19th spot of the best beaches in the world.

Full Story at Keep Calm and Wander

Indonesia Gay Travel Resources

Gay Amsterdam – The Nomadic Boys

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Gay Amsterdam - The Nomadic Boys

We love visiting gay Amsterdam. Whether it’s for a city break, romantic weekend or a party, we always know we’re going to have a terrific time.

Whilst Amsterdam is most famous for its “coffeeshops” where you can smoke joints legally, it is also culturally rich with world-class museums and has the most distinctive urban landscape. The city is dominated by water, with 165 canals, around 500 bridges, lots of cute narrow cobblestone streets and many many many bicycles! It’s so picturesque that the network of canals in the 17th-century historic old town (called the “Canal Ring“) was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2010.

The city is also super gay, which is unsurprising given that it is the capital city of one of the most queer friendly countries in the world. It is one of the few places where we feel comfortable walking the streets holding hands and don’t feel like we first have to look over our shoulders to do that safety check! It also has some fantastic parties, plenty of LGBTQ+ hangouts, lots of events and the most unpronounceable gay village ever! We’ve summarised it all right here in our detailed gay Amsterdam travel guide.

First time in Gay Amsterdam?

One of our favourite ways to get a feel of Amsterdam is on a gay tour, in particular the ones offered by Gaily. They do a series of different tours in Amsterdam which we’ve tried, love and highly recommend, especially to first-timers. A local will take your hand and guide you through the touristic highlights of the city by day and will also show you around the Reguliersdwarsstraat scene by night.

Full Story at The Nomadic Boys

Gay Amsterdam Travel Resources

Gay New York City – The Globetrotter Guys

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Gay New York City - The Globetrotter Guys

When it comes to LGBTQ+ friendly cities, New York is one of the greatest to visit with its thriving queer scene, a deep-rooted history and some of the most iconic sights and buildings in the world. Each of our visits to gay New York City has been a truly magical experience.

We have always been wowed by its grandeur and palpable buzz, kept incredibly busy and each time left wanting more – it really is the city that never sleeps. NYC should be on everyone’s travel bucket list without a doubt.

In our ‘Gay New York City Travel Guide’ we will cover everything from where to find the queer areas here, to the best gay bars, hotels, the top things to do and many other helpful travel tips.

Why is New York so Gay Friendly?

We found the city to be very gay friendly and it should come as no surprise.

The Big Apple is considered to have one of the most well established, largest, out and proud LGBTQ communities in the world and home to one of the biggest pride celebrations.

This is likely to stem from the fact that New York is well known for being the birthplace of the gay rights movement – aka the Stonewall Riots.

Full Story at The Globetrotter Guys

Gay New York City Travel Resources

Gay Arequipa – The Nomadic Boys

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Gay Arequipa - The Nomadic Boys

We came to Arequipa as the base for our trek to the Colca Canyon, one of the deepest canyons in the world. We ended up staying a week because we fell in love with the cutesy old town and the chilled vibe of the “White City”.

On that note, the ‘White City’ nickname has nothing to do with coca(!) play or Miami-style White Parties…it is simply because the city is almost completely built out of “sillar” – a white volcanic stone.

Put simply, this is a place to come to be WOWed by nature over and above everything else. Travel + Leisure Magazine even named it as the #2 on its annual list of the top 50 best places to travel to. Whilst there is a small gay scene to explore (more on this below), we suggest saving up your partying groove in gay Lima.

In this guide to gay Arequipa, we set out the best hotels to check out, along with the queer-friendly spaces, events, our favourite places to eat and best things to do.

Is Gay Arequipa safe?

Overall we found the city to be safe for gay travelers. Tourism is a major source of income for the local economy, so businesses are used to dealing with foreigners and are accustomed to dealing with LGBTQ travelers.

That being said, remember Peru is still very conservative with a strong affinity to the Catholic Church. We took this on board and were careful not to flaunt our love in people’s faces. At the same time, we never felt unsafe anywhere in gay Arequipa. In the worst-case scenario, people just asked us if we’re brothers. All the hotels we stayed at were gay friendly and welcomed us – no one batted an eyelid that two men wanted to share a double bed.

By Stefan Arestis – Full Story at the Nomadic Boys

Arequipa Gay Travel Resources