» Give & Take.
Nervous about upsetting religious conservatives, Israel's walking a fine line in courting gay tourists. They won't encourage it - and, at times, politicians will condemn lavender visitation - but the Tourism Ministry still supports homo outreach. [CS Monitor] |
|
Who could forget when Prime Minister Bruce Golding insisted there's no place for gays in his government? And, of course, there's the sick history of homophobic attacks, like when a mob attacked a transvestite last year. Though many Jamaicans hope to keep their island clear of queers, scholar Dr Donna Chambers insists the nation needs to clean up its act, particularly in terms of tourism: Tourism stakeholders, the lecturer declared, must determine if they could continue to ignore this market estimated at US$65 billion, or five per cent of the annual US$1.3 trillion global tourism market. Obviously that's rhetorical. Chambers went on to say that Jamaica can only foster gay tourism if it creates a queer-inclusive space. She then begged the question, "Can the economic imperative precipitate cultural change?" Considering that the colonial economy helped engender Jamaica and others' anti-gay attitudes, we'd say "yes." Can they in today's cultural environment - and without subjugation? Probably not as easily. |
» "Family" Fun.
"R Family Vacations is led by Rosie O’Donnell, the entertainer and talk-show host; Kelli O’Donnell, the pixieish entertainment executive who recently became her wife; and their business partner, Gregg Kaminsky, and caters to gay and lesbian families. But anyone who might have signed up looking for something sexy or even illicit — for a Love That Dare Not Speak Its Name Boat — well, that ship had left the harbor. Whatever their sexual orientation, this was an extremely straight bunch." [NY Times] |
|
|
|
With legal gay marriage set to go on Monday at 5:01 p.m., California is rolling out the rainbow colored welcome mat, with the California Travel and Tourism Commission's website showcasing over four dozen wedding locales and packages specifically targeting same-sex honeymooners. We know we should be cynical about this, but it's just too awesome! |
» VonTrapp Protest.
Residents of Salzburg, Austria are in a fury over plans to turn the von Trapp mansion into a tourist hot spot. The von Trapp family, of course, were the inspiration behind The Sound Of Music, the longest, gayest movie in history. [POQ] |
|
Or, Grabbing Life By The Horns
But, I had signed on to a press trip for a gay weekend in Philadelphia. Group activities are also not something to which I’m inclined and I needed some time away from New York City, with which I was falling out of love. |
|
Departement of Tourism director Pilar Bush recently apologized after coppers detained American Aaron Chandler for kissing his boy friend in public, a story Queerty broke last Friday. Today, however, we hear that Tourism Minister Charles Clifford describes Chandler's act as "offensive." The Minister presided over a town hall meeting Monday night and told his constituents that while he and others found Chandler's gay ways distasteful, he can't do anything about it: All of us in this room and most people in Cayman would agree that what happened in that incident at Royal Palms was offensive to most people in Cayman. Chandler told us earlier this week that there's still debate as to whether a law against public gay affection even exists. That's where authorities should start their investigation. |
» Cayman Apology!
Aaron Chandler, the American who found himself dragged to a police station for same-sex public affection in the Cayman Islands, received a personal apology from the Cayman Islands' tourism minister, Pilar Bush, who, we're sure, is also talking to other gay jet-setters: "On behalf of the entire Department of Tourism, I apologise for your upsetting experience and want to assure you that the Cayman Islands is a welcoming jurisdiction to all people… What happened to you was an isolated incident, and is not representative of Cayman. We know that thousands of gay and lesbian visitors travel to the Cayman Islands every year and enjoy their vacation.” [Cay Compass] |
» Frank Talks.
New Jersey-born homo-politico Barney Frank offers favorite places in DC. He also offers some frank talk on the GOP's gay ways: "There's a very large gay staff presence on Capitol Hill. And it's larger than people would think on the Republican side. But most of them have to be closeted. Not necessarily in their offices — they'll say, "Oh, my boss knows and they're very proud." But the boss doesn't want anybody in the district to know." [PlanetOut] |
|
Throughout the Northeast, competition has spiked among wedding sites, hotels, resorts and inns as the travel industry has realized that same-sex ceremonies can draw scores of guests, who turn these destinations weddings into weekend stays. Let that be a lesson to all those politicians and conservatives who wag a finger at gay nuptials. |
» Brush Off
Jamaica's tourism minister, Edmund Bartlett brushed off gay activists' complaints regarding the island's pervasive homophobia. And American journalist Timothy Kincaid does not approve: "I would discourage anyone whom I love from vacationing on the island. Those who champion violence against some can champion violence against many….If he cares about the future of his nation’s economy and stability, he might be better concerned that his nation not come to be seen by the American public as a hostile and violent place…" [BTB] |
|
» Partners.
We don't know how we missed this story last week, but we did: PlanetOut has joined forces with Expedia.com. "PlanetOut Inc. has put Expedia Inc. in charge of travel booking on its web sites. It didn't give financial details of this agreement. Expedia, based in Bellevue, Wash., agreed to advertise on PlanetOut sites as part of the deal, and to sponsor some of the company's events." [Business Times] |
|
Copenhagen mayor Ritt Bjerregaard recently approached Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai and invited him to set up a compound at the event in order to promote tourism to the Israeli city… The duo have enlisted a number of Israeli cultural figures, including gay filmmaker Eytan Fox, to represent Tel Aviv at this summer's festivities. They're also coordinating a massive dance party, because everyone knows we gays can't resist a little rump shaking! |
|
» SF's Gays Want More
One wouldn't think San Francisco needs any more gay attention, but The Golden Gate Business Association says otherwise. The so-called "first LGBT chamber of commerce" recently launched an ad campaign enticing homos to visit their fair city. [The Age] |