An Intro to LGBTQ+ Cruises
LGBTQ+ Cruises launched in the 1990s to capitalize on the potential of chartering an entire ship for queer passengers. The appeal was leaving behind the discrimination and harassement of the straight world for one where LGBTQ+ ruled the seas as the majority. A boatful of lesbians or gay men (and later mixed queer groups) offered community building opportunities and the ability to really be one's self without concern for who might be watching.
Queer cruises have continued to draw travelers for decades, even as they've changed over time, and different ones were launched to reach different travelers (like when R Family Vacations launched for queer families). Here are some of the top LGBTQ+ cruise companies today.
Queer cruises charter ships like this Celebrity boat chartered by VACAYA.
Atlantis Events
Founded in 1991 by current President and CEO, Rich Campbell, who was “looking to create a unique place for the gay community to come together to play,” Atlantis is the largest cruise company in the world to focus exclusively on the LGBTQ+ community. Catering to more than 20,000 guests a year, Atlantis cruises are known for their party culture and offer “a week of fun that’s mostly men and welcoming to women.” The company’s 2023 all-inclusive trips on chartered Celebrity ships begin in the Caribbean in January and February. The company also offers gay all-day resort take overs of Club Meds in Mexico.
Melissa Etheridge Cruise
For those who want their vacation to be a music festival, the Melissa Etheridge Cruise fills the bill. Two cruises have already set sail, the first in 2019 aboard the Norwegian Pearl and the second (which Jewel co-headlined) in 2021. This year Etheridge unveiled a land-based event, the inaugural Etheridge Island, an all-inclusive festival located at the Dreams + Secrets Resorts in Playa Mujeres, Mexico. The aptly named Women’s Beach will be host to the events run by Sixthman, (which produced Etheridge’s cruises as well). Currently, there’s no word yet if Etheridge will hit the seas again in 2023, but the lesbian rocker will continue to find ways to perform in these more intimate settings.
Olivia Travel
With its roots in women’s music and a heart deep in the LGBTQ+ movement, Olivia has changed the world with music and travel. The former record label launched Olivia Travel in 1990. Since then, the company has taken over 350,000 lesbians and LGBTQ+ women on hundreds of vacations around the world. In addition to chartering cruise ships, Olivia also books smaller luxury boats and riverboat cruises as well as land-based adventures and resort take-overs. If most of the trips weren’t already sold out, you could take the Columbia River Adventure cruise this fall, jet off to the Magical India Adventure, then bolt to the Mediterranean to join Olivia’s Greece, Cyprus, and Israel luxury cruise before either enjoying the warmth of the Hard Rock Vallarta resort, or braving the cold with a visit to Antarctica. Before the year ends there’s also a polar bear photography expedition and an African safari. If you want something really special, 2023 features Olivia’s 50th Anniversary celebration, and the company will party with two Caribbean cruises and a Cabo resort.
OUTBound
Founded by out actor Jonathan Bennett (Mean Girls, The Christmas House) and his husband Jaymes Vaughan (The Amazing Race 21, AdvocateChannel), this travel company offers small group vacations specifically for queer adults (guests 18-21 are required to travel with a companion over 25). The all-inclusive packages cover rooms and meals to drinks and entertainment and most activities. The company takes over resorts or charters small ships and has policies to protect the privacy of guests who aren’t out back home. The next sailings include a December trip along the Rhine River, Christmas-themed markets, and a Budapest Pride Cruise. OUTBound also does land-based adventures, including an African Safari that ends at the stunning Victoria Falls.
R Family Vacations
Founded in 2003 by travel entrepreneurs Kelli Carpenter and Gregg Kaminsky, and featured in HBO’s Emmy-nominated documentary All Aboard!, R Family Vacations was created for LGBTQ+ families (“and that includes our kids, who have their own activities”). Having served over 20,000 folks since then, the company’s cruises, resort takeovers, and land-based vacations, now include adults-only packages and a Broadway Cruise. With vacation destinations that range from domestic American such as Alaska or Miami, to the South of France, Ireland, Israel, Egypt, and even Thailand; R Family has expanded dramatically in the past 20 years. R Family Vacations has helped ensure that LGBTQ+ families are able to enjoy the world and is now carving out space for empty-nesters.
VACAYA charters entire ships and takes over resorts for folks across the LGBTQ+ spectrum (and their straight friends and family). The company’s bucket list destinations have included Provincetown, New Orleans, Iceland, Costa Rica, Antarctica, and the Seychelle Islands. Upcoming cruises include trips to Antarctica, the Caribbean, Greece, the Norwegian Fjords, and Venice. In addition to the activities, excursions, and entertainment provided on board. VACAYA also has a reach-out program that works with the communities visited, in keeping with their mission to “ensure we’re giving back more to the communities we visit than what’s being taken away.”
