Look at any gay pride parade or fag rag and youāll see the singular white-on-purple āW,ā telling homosexuals that hey, this is the hotel chain for you. Until it isnāt: The gays just ousted W as their favorite hotel. Who took its spot?
Kimpton is now the favorite place to rest heads among gay travelers, according to Community Marketingās fourteenth annual travel survey, which asked 4,700 respondents to name their favorite hotels unprompted. Kimpton won 13 percent of the vote; W (a Starwood hotel brand) took 12 percent; and trailing were Hilton with 9, Hyatt with 7, and Marriott with 7.
So how did Kimpton pull ahead? āOf all the hotel brands, [they are] the most active in LGBT community,ā says Community Marketingās David Paisley. āThey have a website, they sponsor tons of events and they advertise in gay and lesbian media. W is very active and well respected, but they did fall behind.ā
Sometimes I forget the only thing it takes to curry favor with us is spending money to make us feel included.
How about we take this to the next level?
Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
[photo via]
Michael
Where is the Ritz-Carlton? W and Kimpton are both fine, if you’ve got the money. Right now, in select cities, it’s 50% cheaper to stay at a W than Kimpton. I guess I’m not gay enough to pass up the savings.
Not gay enough
Michael, at least you’re gayer than me. I had never heard of Kimpton until this article. I’m Platinum at Marriott, so I do stay at hotels. Guess I’m a just loser who really isn’t living the gay lifestyle. I need to branch out more.
Rick Gold
Kimpton follows me on Twitter!
wtf
Kimpton PAYS Community Marketing to promote them, so for them to claim that Kimpton is the #1 gay hotel is disingenuous at BEST. The W on the other hand ALWAYS responds to every request I make for events and fundraising for AIDSWALK and the local LGBT Community Center. Community Marketing generates cash by going to travel businesses and hotels and telling them that they can make them #1 in the gay market through their marketing magic. lol
Topher
How could you forget that’s all it takes? Look at the democratic party…
dbillings
@Not gay enough: Or brunch out more.
Mark Snyder
Queerty you should remove this article because Kimpton Pays Communithy Marketing. This is just flat out not an accurate report.
TommyOC
Kim-what? I’ve never heard that name uttered before, so to think that 13% of supposedly “random” gays would spontaneously utter it… I don’t think so. If one bothers to read the summary of the survey, Kimpton was heavily favored in the 45+ bracket, if that tells you anything. The 30-and-unders skewed toward W.
As for me, I won’t spend more than $100/day on lodging, so both of the above hotels are off-limits to me. I’d rather use my hard-earned money to *do* things when I travel. So unless there’s a great deal to be had, it’s Days Inn, Ramada, or Motel 6. I have no shame on the 6, baby.
hephaestion
All those places are too expensive for me. Some of us gays have found cheap places to stay in NYC and elsewhere, but we won’t tell where they are because we don’t want them to raise their prices.
Qjersey
oh yeah 13% of the vote is a real winner. Asshat spin on statistics…and I never heard of Kimpton either.
damon459
I’ve never heard of most of those hotels I guess I’m a cheap. I agree with other who said they’d rather spend their money on something fun then spending hundreds on a hotel. Hell I’d rather just take the RV ya it’s older and not 5 star accommodations but I have all the comforts of home and best of all I can sleep past noon without paying extra. Also if you in town with a walmart you can park in their parking lots for free leaving lots more cash for site seeing. Why is it in so many in the gay community think you have to spend boat loads of money to have fun or be popular? Is this a big city thing? I’m from Montana and I’d rather be out in nature then in a shopping mall stressing over brand labels and the latest fashion gimmick.
peteNsfo
you guys are a little cranky today, eh?
Kimpton is the corp name- their branded hotels are Monaco, Palomar, others… they started as a collection of boutiques in SFO and are now national. They are a much smaller corp than Starwood, but I have no idea about individual benefits. They’re kind of campy, groovy places, but also several hi-end.
Joie de Vivre collection of boutiques is likely ‘gayer’ than all of them- and it was begun by a homo! š
And that Platinum dude from Marriott… really, Platinum, but you choose to put that much business at a Mormon owned corporation???
You must be very proud-
opaaga
@peteNsfo: Oh, so you’re no longer blaming the blacks for the Proposition lost? Did the gays boycott Marriott, yet? If so, was it at all effective? Okay, then leave Not Gay Enough alone.
These “stats” are clearly flawed. I know of Palomar in midtown Atlanta. Its presence isn’t causing other hotels to shake in their boots. Starwood, Marriott, and Hilton are too huge.
jno
I stay @ Marriott for business, simply because they’re everywhere and you know what your getting, but I hate the fact that they are owned by Mormons. I like Starwood better though, a Westin stay is 4 star and a nice extravagance on a business trip, but there are too few. Kimpton is only in major cities, and have free wine every day. Bonus!
jno
PS- the W is all style and no substance. It’s a bar with rooms above it. Bad service too.