Tag Archives: tourism

If you’re tooling around Manhattan and nature’s call strikes, you can go to Diaroogle.com, “the premier toilet search engine.” Provided, of course, that you carry one of those smart phones that all the kids are talking about these days. The site reviews and ranks more than 200 potty places around town on a scale of 1-5. The site mentions that …

Residents of the Castro are getting annoyed with the increasing number of tour buses bringing gawking tourists in to see homos in their native habitat. In the last three months, large tour buses have begun to park in the area on Thursday and Sunday afternoons, opening their doors and sending hundreds of tourists out to gawk and snap photos of …

Tourism to NYC isn’t suffering too much in this economy, we’re seeing just a slight dip in Broadway sales. But holy cow, room rates are averaging $350/night. In May the average cost of a hotel room in New York climbed to $350 a night from $300 in May 2007, according to figures released yesterday by the official marketing and tourism …

A tourism agency booked South Carolina into a gay tourism campaign in the UK, but once state officials found out about it, they refused to pay for it. South Carolina’s top tourism agency has canceled an overseas advertising campaign targeting gay tourists. The campaign, tied to gay pride week celebrations in London, included ads that proclaimed “South Carolina is so …

More than two dozen Democrats in the House have sent Homeland Security a letter protesting the proposed new travel rules for HIV+ foreigners. The letter says that the so-called “streamlining” of the process of allowing HIV+ individuals to enter the United States places the burden of the decision on those lacking the necessary medical expertise. The letter goes on to …

The government has proposed new rules which will make it even harder for HIV+ persons to enter the country, according to Gay Men’s Health Crisis and Immigration Equality. On World AIDS Day last year, President Bush announced his intention to create a streamlined process for foreign travelers with HIV to enter the United States more easily. Currently the United States …

New records were set yesterday when the U.S. dollar continued its decline against foreign currencies. The Canadian dollar, currently the strongest currency in the world (seriously) is now trading at $1.10, the Euro is $1.47, and the British pound is at a 26-year high at $2.10. So much for foreign vacations this year, eh? Meanwhile, Manhattan is just swamped with …

In what a local guesthouse owner labeled “a bit of sweet revenge” for local activists, readers of Out Traveler have named Fort Lauderdale the top resort destination for gay vacationers. Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitor’s Bureau CEO Nicki Grossman, who was instrumental in the removal of anti-gay Mayor Jim Naugle from Broward County’s tourism board, said, “It’s a wonderful …

According to 60,000 readers of Travel + Leisure, the top three cities in the U.S. in terms of gay-friendliness are San Francisco, New Orleans, and Portland, Oregon. New York is the 7th most mo-friendly. New York ranks last in cleanliness (I’d put 17th place SF there), affordability, and access to outdoors, but Gotham is first in overall culture, people watching, …

As has been reported on many news outlets, the Minneapolis airport bathroom in which Sen. Larry Craig was arrested has turned into quite a tourist attraction, with many airport visitors demanding to be directed to the lewdy loo. JMG reader Brian visited the Larry Craig Memorial Tearoom this week and sent me a picture of the famous toe-tapping stall, however …

Yesterday Broward County commissioners voted unanimously to boot Ft. Lauderdale Mayor Jim Naugle from their Tourism Development Board, citing his hate speech which has already cost the city vacation and convention business. During his remarks before the vote, out gay County Commissioner Ken Keechi said, “Let do the right thing, let’s throw him off this board.” Fight OUT Loud president …

Nicki Grossman, president of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Visitors and Convention Bureau, dropped a comment on one the Flush Naugle posts and I’m reposting it here so that everybody sees it. Hello, I’m writing from The Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau. I wish to reassure you and your readers that Greater Fort Lauderdale is a warmly welcoming destination …

Saturday night I found myself chatting with a guy from Nottingham and a guy from Sydney, when naturally the conversation turned to American imperialism. I jokingly asked a friend nearby, “Quick, name five famous Australians.” He hesitated and I added, “Besides Kylie.” He said, “Oh, shoot. Um…there’s her sister, Danni. Oh, and Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe.” I said, “Don’t …

The government is working on closing the “visa loophole” that allows British citizens to enter the U.S. without a visa, citing terrorism concerns over Britain’s vast Pakistani population, which currently numbers about 800,000. Options on the table include requiring all Brits to apply for a visa or singling out only Brits of Pakistani origin. Naturally, the British government is balking …