Bolivia’s Laguna Colorada (Red Lagoon), located in the Bolivian Altiplano, is a natural wonder that must be seen to be believed. The shallow lake, fed by hot springs, is a stunning shade of reddish-orange, with white borax islands dotting its surface.
The lake is home to a variety of wildlife, including three species of flamingos – the Chilean, James’s, and Andean flamingos. These vibrant birds can be seen wading through the shallow waters, searching for food.
In addition to the flamingos, visitors may also spot llamas, vicuñas, and even the occasional viscacha (a type of rodent) along the shores of the lake. One of the most popular ways to experience Laguna Colorada is by taking a guided tour through the reserve.
Visiting Gay Bogota – From La Candelaria to the Gold Museum
Bogota, the vibrant and lively capital of Colombia, offers a wealth of exciting things to do and see for visitors who are only in the city for a day. From its rich cultural heritage and vibrant nightlife to its breathtaking natural beauty and bustling street markets, there is something for everyone in this diverse and dynamic city. Here are some of the top things to do in gay Bogota for a day.
First, take a stroll through the historic center of the city, known as La Candelaria. This charming neighborhood is filled with colonial-era buildings, cobblestone streets, and vibrant street art. Visit the historic Plaza de Bolivar, the heart of the city, and the stunning Catedral Primada, the oldest cathedral in Colombia.
Next, head to the gold museum, known locally as the Museo del Oro. Located in the heart of La Candelaria, this museum is home to one of the largest collections of pre-Columbian gold in the world. The museum offers fascinating insights into the history and culture of the indigenous people of Colombia.
Take a Walking Tour of Gay Lima and See The Sights
This walking tour in Lima will last 2-3 hours, depending on your pace. That’s what we did. Though there are a few “free” walking tours in the historic district, we opted to do it ourselves because we had the whole day to explore the area and didn’t want to rush. We wanted to take it slowly, on our own terms.
Lima is a bustling city and the world’s second driest capital, next to Cairo. Most often, Lima is where most tourists/visitors land on their way to fulfill a bucket list – Machu Picchu! Staying for three days in Lima is ideal – enough to explore the historic district, Barranco, and Miraflores neighborhoods. And maybe, a day tour to Huacachina and Paracas.
On our first day in gay Lima, we started at 9 o’clock in the morning. On our way to Plaza San Martin, we encountered locals in their costumes. We didn’t really know what was going on, but I think they shot a promotional video for the upcoming Independence Day or something.
How to visit Machu Picchu? If you are planning to visit this amazing landmark this year or in the future, and you don’t know where to start, you’re in the right place! I’ll try to explain it briefly as possible, so I won’t waste your time reading this post.
Two ways to visit Machu Picchu by train: Go with a guided tour (stress-free) or do it your own (stress-filled way but more adventurous!).
We did this because we only had a short time in Cusco and joining a small-group tour is stress-free. If only Cusco had reliable transport and made it easy for non-Spanish speaking to move around from one place to another, we would have taken this more adventurous way. So, we opted for a two-day Sacred Valley and tour.
Traveling in Peru by bus is possible, and I don’t mean traveling on dirt, dusty roads or unreliable public transport with caged chickens and pigs as your fellow passengers. Of course, I’m talking about traveling by bus – in style!
Let me be honest – all I knew about Peru before the trip revolved around Machu Picchu. When I started researching places to visit in the country, I was excited to find out that all the attractive destinations I wanted to see were accessible by bus. I don’t even have to worry about transferring from one company to another—or worrying about getting scammed in bus stations.
Perhaps, you might have heard of Hop-on-Hop-off buses in big cities, like London, New York, or Toronto. These buses go around the city, stopping at famous landmarks where you can get on and off anytime within a day or two.
In Peru, there’s this same one with the same concept, but it goes mostly south of the country and even extends to Bolivia, a neighboring country. This concept takes a whole new level to get around Peru – on a bus, with a guide, but you’re not really on a formal tour! Before you disembark, the guide will give you tips on what to do, see, eat and drink in the places you will be going. Once you reach your destination, you’re on your own! And the best part about it? The bus will drop you off at your hotel or hostel, making it safer, especially when you arrive late at night or early in the morning.
Following our travels in South America, we’ve rounded up our top fun and interesting facts about Argentina.
We sure did after spending half a year traveling around Argentina as a gay couple. We started our trip in the uber-cool capital of Buenos Aires and headed all the way south to Patagonia for some of the best treks we’ve ever done. Along the way, we also visited cities like Córdoba, Mendoza, Rosario, and Puerto Madryn.
Our conclusion? This is a place begging to be explored! Some of the most stunning raw natural surroundings, a rich cultural heritage that include Evita and the tango, a delicious (non-vegan friendly!) culinary journey, and arguably the hottest people on our planet who (in Marlene’s own words) throw themselves at you!
Marlene Dietrich was definitely on point when she said this. The Argentinians are an extremely passionate hot-blooded bunch with their own unique style of Spanish, spoken with strong Italian-like charisma. They will instantly embrace you into their lives and in return, you will no doubt quickly fall in love with them.
1. Argentina has the best steak in the world!
Argentinians are super passionate about their meat and it shows: their steak is world-famous! This is largely due to the abundance of cows. According to the Cattle Network, Argentina is 1 of 5 countries in the world (along with Uruguay, Brazil, New Zealand, and Australia) which has more cows than people.
Santiago might be home to a large gay scene in Bellavista, but for our money, Valpo is even more tolerant, open-minded and downright fabulous!
Valpo (for short) is one of the country’s most popular draws, famous for its magnificent street art and unique architecture. Pablo Neruda, the famous Chilean Nobel Prize-winning poet, loved Valpo so much he set up one of his homes here. UNESCO was so impressed, it added Valpo’s Historic Quarter to its World Heritage List in 2003, and The Guardian described Valpo as a “mini Berlin by the seaside“.
As Chile’s capital of culture, Valparaiso is packed with art, nightlife and creativity of every kind. This makes the city a hub for the nation’s gay community and we felt more at home in Valpo than anywhere else in Chile.
We fell in love with Valpo’s stunning seaside location, it’s amazing works of art and, of course, the drop-dead gorgeous locals. It goes without saying that by this point, Valpo is one of our favorite cities in Latin America.
To show you how great Valparaiso for LGBTQ travelers, we decided to create a comprehensive gay guide to the city and its neighboring gay resort town Viña del Mar. From the most gay-friendly places to stay to the wildest gay bars and clubs, we will cover it all in our guide to Chile’s coolest city.
Panting for breath after walking just 5 steps…that was our first memory of Quito as soon as we touched down at the Mariscal Sucre airport. Standing proud at 2,850 metres (9,350ft) high, tucked away in the Andes Mountains, Quito is the second-highest official capital city in the world after La Paz in Bolivia. And bloody hell you certainly feel it!
Other than panting for breath every 5 minutes, Quito packs a punch for gay travellers. It’s not only a cultural gem with a really pretty Old Town to explore, it also has an impressive and vibrant gay scene. The capital city of Ecuador is also located right by the equator line from which it takes its name. Locals nickname Quito as “la mitad del mundo” or the middle of the world.
We spent half a year based in the middle of the world during our big trip to Latin America and fell in love with it. It’s an inexpensive place, extremely pretty, never too hot and never too cold. It’s also a very rewarding destination due to the variety of food to try and the variety of hot guys to meet!
We’ve bundled all our first-hand experiences from Quito into this comprehensive gay guide covering the best gay bars, clubs, hotels to stay, things to do and more.
Is Quito safe for gay travellers?
Quito is the touristic and LGBTQ capital of Ecuador – a country that legalised gay marriage in 2019 and was one of the first in the world to ban discrimination based on sexual orientation back in 1998. The city has a very active LGBTQ community, along with quite a diverse LGBTQ scene and a popular Pride every June that has taken place almost every year since 1998.
As a gay couple, we never had any problems in any of the hotels we stayed in. We always felt welcomed and never faced any issues when asking for a double bed. The only thing we’d say about Quito, which applies to all travellers (straight or gay), there are parts of the city which are a bit dodgy, such as the Old Town in the evening after dark.
Lima – famous for its ceviche, Paddington Bear and the birth city of a very handsome chef (have you seen THAT video of Franco Noriega cooking in his boxers?!)… The “City of Kings” is the transport hub and capital city of Peru – also rated by many as THE foodie capital of South America. And we can’t agree more! Lima is a melting pot of culinary creativity with a handful of world-famous top 50 restaurants including Central, Maido and Astrid y Gastón. Even venturing into a local market is a top foodie highlight in Lima such as the Festival Gastronomia every Sunday in the Plaza Municipal in Barranco.
Lima is also a pretty sweet base for gay travellers. There are around 9 million people living here. That’s statistically almost 1 million gay boys waiting to have a few Pisco sours with you. The gay scene of Lima is certainly exciting. On weekends, the gay bars and clubs are buzzing with local Peruvian gays (and their fans!) getting their groove on to the latest Latino beats.
We’ve been several times to Lima as part of our big trip around Latin America and loved it. It’s an inexpensive city to base yourself and also an important transport hub in South America. Most gay travellers to Peru will enter the country from Lima and spend a few days here.
We’ve put together this detailed gay guide to Lima from our firsthand experience with practical safety tips for LGBTQ travellers, the best gay hotels to stay, top gay bars, club, events, and more.
“Guys it’s true, trust me: 98% of guys in Montevideo are either gay or bisexual!”
…so claimed our Uruguayan friend, Rodrigo, when we were chatting with them in Chains Pub about what gay life is like in Montevideo. Whether or not our friend is right, one thing’s for certain: the guys here are smoking hot!
Montevideo is often described as a “sleepy South America city“ – slow-paced, old fashioned, and nostalgia-tinged. Sleepy or not, we had a ball exploring the gay scene of Montevideo, its cutesy old town and the impressive coastline avenue, the Malecon.
And the bit about 98% of men here allegedly being homosexually inclined in some way? Well whether it’s true or not, this simply speaks volumes about how liberal, open-minded and chilled Montevideo is.
We’ve put together our experiences of Montevideo in this detailed gay guide to inspire your trip to include the best gay hotels, bars, clubs, events, things to do and more.
Is Montevideo safe for gay travellers?
Definitely! Montevideo is frequently rated as one of the most gay friendly cities in the world and based on our personal experience, we certainly rate Uruguay as one of the most gay friendly countries in the world.
To start with, Uruguay has a history of being extremely progressive, lenient and open-minded. It legalised abortions in 2012, established a welfare state all the way back in 1903 and legalised marijuana consumption in 2013. With regards to LGBTQ rights in Uruguay, they have long been secured and respected. For example, homosexuality was decriminalised as far back as 1934, anti-discrimination laws have been in place since 2003, adoption laws since 2009 and gay marriage implemented in 2013.
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