Think twice before planning a holiday on Bermuda. Although many gays live in and visit Bermuda, the island is rather repressive to homosexuals. Displays of affection by same-sex couples will be frowned upon at public beaches and most hotel pools, restaurants, and attractions. If you want really happening gay beaches, bars, and clubs, head for South Miami Beach, Key West, Puerto Rico, or the U.S. Virgin Islands, a series of islands that are much more accepting of homosexual relationships.
For most of its existence, Bermuda had harsh penalties against male homosexuals, making sex between consenting legal-age males a crime subject to imprisonment. Lobbying against such a measure, the Bermuda Human Rights Alliance, a Bermuda gay and lesbian group, helped to bring about a repeal of the criminal code. Since an assembly vote in the Bermuda Parliament, sex between men over the age of 18 is now legal.
If you're contemplating a visit, point your browser to www.gaybermuda.com, a comprehensive website geared to gay travelers to Bermuda.
The International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association (IGLTA) (tel. 800/448-8550 or 954/776-2626; www.iglta.org) is the trade association for the gay and lesbian travel industry, and offers an online directory of gay- and lesbian-friendly travel businesses; go to their website and click on "Members."
Many agencies offer tours and travel itineraries specifically for gay and lesbian travelers. Among them are Above and Beyond Tours (tel. 800/397-2681; www.abovebeyondtours.com); Now, Voyager (tel. 800/255-6951; www.nowvoyager.com); and Olivia Cruises & Resorts (tel. 800/631-6277; www.olivia.com).
Gay.com Travel (tel. 415/644-8044; www.gay.com/travel or www.outandabout.com) is an excellent online successor to the popular Out & About print magazine. It provides regularly updated information about gay-owned, gay-oriented, and gay-friendly lodging, dining, sightseeing, nightlife, and shopping establishments in every important destination worldwide.
The following travel guides are available at many bookstores, or you can order them from any online bookseller: Spartacus International Gay Guide, 35th Edition (Bruno Gmünder Verlag; www.spartacusworld.com/gayguide); Odysseus: The International Gay Travel Planner, 18th Edition (www.odyusa.com); and the Damron guides (www.damron.com), with separate, annual books for gay men and lesbians.
