Nordic Sea Hotel in Stockholm, Sweden

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that Nordic Sea Hotel located in Stockholm, Sweden has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Nordic Sea Hotel recently post a review about your experience.

The Square Hotel in Copenhagen, Denmark

PinkChoice is pleased to announce that The Square Hotel located in Copenhagen, Denmark has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at The Square Hotel recently post a review about your experience.

Pink Choice Awards Are Coming!

We are eagerly anticipating the final ratings and reviews of 2007, as they will seal the deal for those destined to take home a Pink Choice Award!

In January, we will announce our second annual Awards, which will highlight 2007's top ranked gay friendly lodging establishments around the world. Winners will be chosen based on accumulated Pink Choice member feedback, with rankings compiled from travelers’ reviews and ratings throughout the year.

If you have a favorite property and haven't yet submitted a review, now is the time to let us know it is worthy of the highest praise...a Pink Choice Award!

Condesa Haus in Mexico City, Mexico

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that Condesa Haus located in Mexico City, Mexico has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Condesa Haus recently post a review about your experience.

Residence Verona in Prague, Checkoslovakia

Residence Verona located in Prague, Checkoslovakia has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Residence Verona recently post a review about your experience.

Hotel de la Paix in Siem Reap, Cambodia

PinkChoice is pleased to announce that Hotel de la Paix located in Siem Reap, Cambodia has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Hotel de la Paix recently post a review about your experience.

We're happy to watch the power of GLBT travelers as they change how cities approach their tourism industry. London, always a top destination for gay and straight travelers of all nationalities, has earned its keep as the official #1 destination for GLBT travelers out of the US. PinkNews tells us more in this article, with the very interesting subplot that:

Gays and lesbians are not going to Britain because they might see other gays and lesbians, their motivations and triggers are similar to those of other travellers.

They consider Britain a sophisticated, worldly destination and want to see it portrayed as such. They do not want it presented in a cheesy way.

VisitBritain vowed to change their advertising to feature situations like same sex couples enjoying country walks or traditional British images such as Buckingham Palace guards dressed in the rainbow colours of the gay pride movement.

We already have a number of destination reviews on our London page, and we think that will grow as this great movement takes hold.

Hail Britannia!

Mystique in Santorini, Greece

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that Mystique located in Santorini, Greece has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Mystique recently post a review about your experience.

PINK CHOICE CONGRATULATES VANCOUVER

If Vancouver is glowing pink, it’s because US gay and lesbian travelers voted it their No. 1 destination in Canada for the second year running according to San Francisco based Community Marketing Inc.

On hearing the news, Candice Gibson, Tourism Vancouver consumer marketing manager, said local tourism operators really understand what it means to be “gay-friendly” by supporting causes important to the gay community, employing gay staff, having sensitivity training for staff and making information available to gay and lesbian neighborhoods and businesses in the city.

Pink Choice is delighted to add its congratulations to the city of Vancouver both on receiving this recognition and for its stand in recognizing the rights of same sex couples to marry. Pink Choice also encourages gay and lesbian travelers visiting Vancouver to post reviews of their accommodation experience to help other members of our community to find the best places to stay.

Top New England Destinations for Fall

Pink Choice Ranks Top Five New England Destinations for Gay Travelers

Travelers are on the road for leaf season

Pink Choice today released the top five New England destinations investigated by gay travelers as autumn trips are planned.

The top rankings are:

1. Provincetown, MA
2. Boston, MA
3. Ogunquit, ME
4. Bethlehem, NH
5. Woodstock, VT

Rankings are based on unique visits over a six month period to gay-friendly destination pages on Pink Choice. For more information and reviews for hotels and inns at these and other destinations, please visit www.pinkchoice.com.

Villa Ralfa in Hersonissos, Greece

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that Villa Ralfa located in Hersonissos, Greece has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Villa Ralfa recently post a review about your experience.

Night Heron Cottage B&B in Eastham, USA

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that Night Heron Cottage B&B located in Eastham, USA has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Night Heron Cottage B&B recently post a review about your experience.

How reFRESHing

Pink Choice wants our members and readers to know that while we're the best spot for you to submit reviews of establishments, we also have a taste for top destinations. We're excited to have teamed up with http://www.blogger.com/www.refreshlite.com as a contributor to their travel page. The site is an excellent source of info for the gay UK to begin with, and our two cents (or pence) may give another idea of where the hot spots are.

You can check out our latest review of Ft. Lauderdale here, which touches on things we've learned from our travels and our members' reviews, such as:

[Ft. Lauderdale] accommodation is as diverse as the population. Gay and lesbian travelers have plenty of GLBT-friendly choices, ranging from large international hotels to smaller, more intimate gay-owned guesthouses. These guesthouses are dotted throughout the city but are mainly clustered around Los Olas and Wilton Manors. Pineapple Point, Villa Venice and the New Zealand House are guesthouses highly recommended by pinkchoice.com members.

More reviews to follow in the coming months!

Kane O Kupono (Men of Nature) in Volcano, USA

PinkChoice is pleased to announce that Kane O Kupono (Men of Nature) located in Volcano, Hawaii, USA has been added to our listings!
Kane O Kupono is the Big Island of Hawaii's only gay owned, totally "natural" (clothing optional) Guesthouse/B&B. It is located on the lush, tropical east side of the Island, and is a perfect place to relax and unwind after a day at the beach, visiting the volcano, hiking to nearby waterfalls, or visiting the Thermal Hot Springs. The guesthouse is located close to Volcano's National Park in the Fern Forest area, where the weather is not so hot and humid.
If you have stayed at Kane O Kupono (Men of Nature) recently post a review about your experience.

Palace B & B in Amsterdam, The Netherlands

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that Palace B & B located in Amsterdam, The Netherlands has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Palace B & B recently post a review about your experience.

Barangay Richville Guest House in Torquay, U.K.

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that Barangay Richville Guest House located in Torquay, U.K. has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Barangay Richville Guest House recently post a review about your experience.

The Bloomsbury in York, U.K.

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that The Bloomsbury located in York, U.K. has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at The Bloomsbury recently post a review about your experience.

Legends Hotel in Brighton, U.K.

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that Legends Hotel located in Brighton, U.K. has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Legends Hotel recently post a review about your experience.

Our Hearts to San Francisco

We're pleased to see the continuing trend of alliances between big business, travel and the GLBT community, as San Francisco's Convention and Visitor's Bureau and Southwest Airlines announced a new marketing partnership this week that is focused solely on the gay traveler. A $180,000 marketing campaign will launch, with Southwest adopting the tag of "the airline of gay and lesbian San Francisco" for at least a year.

San Francisco continues to be a top destination for Pink Choice members, and we look forward to seeing even more activity with this high profile initiative.

The Liberty Hill Inn in Yarmouth Port, USA

PinkChoice has just added The Liberty Hill Inn located in Yarmouth Port, USA to its listings!
If you have stayed at The Liberty Hill Inn recently post a review about your experience.

Cordials B & B in New Hope, USA

PinkChoice is pleased to announce that Cordials B&B located in New Hope, USA has just received its first Pink Choice review!
If you have stayed at Cordials B&B recently please post a review about your own experience.

Sofitel Silom in Bangkok, Thailand

The Sofitel Silom located in Bangkok, Thailand has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Sofitel Silom recently post a review about your experience.

Palace B & B in Amsterdam, The Netherlands

The Palace B & B located in Amsterdam, The Netherlands has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Palace B & B recently post a review about your experience.

West Lodge Vegetarian GuestHouse in Norwich, U.K.

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that West Lodge Vegetarian GuestHouse located in Norwich, U.K. has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at West Lodge Vegetarian GuestHouse recently post a review about your experience.

Villa la Pinède in Avignon, France

PinkChoice has just added Villa la Pinède located in Avignon, France!
If you have stayed at Villa la Pinède recently post a review about your experience.

Casa Sirena Hotel Boutique in Cancun, Mexico

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that Casa Sirena Hotel Boutique located in Cancun, Mexico has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Casa Sirena Hotel Boutique recently post a review about your experience.

BBB Inn in Bangkok, Thailand

PinkChoice is pleased to add the BBB Inn in Bangkok, Thailand.
The BBB Inn is part of the BBB Group. It is exclusively gay with 17 standard and 6 deluxe rooms, located 1-2 minutes walk from all the major gay bars in theSilom/Surawong Area. It is approximately 35 km from the new Bangkok airport. The 24 hour coffee shop serves drinks, and food from outside. The facilities include Pool table, reading corner, meeting place, Internet Café with wireless access.
If you have stayed at the BBB Inn recently post a review about your experience.

Hotel Es Vive in Ibiza, Spain

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that Hotel Es Vive located in Ibiza, Spain has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Hotel Es Vive recently post a review about your experience.

Villa Mazarin in Paris, France

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that Villa Mazarin located in Paris, France has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Villa Mazarin recently post a review about your experience.

Sandy Hook Cottage B & B in Highlands, USA

PinkChoice is pleased to announce that Sandy Hook Cottage B & B located in Highlands, USA has been added to our listings!

Located in Highlands, New Jersey, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean at Sandy Hook Bay, Sandy Hook Cottage enjoys panoramic views spanning from New York City to the beaches of Long Island, New York.

"The Cottage" is an intimate, New Jersey Shore bed and breakfast offering magnificent accommodations and warm, friendly hospitality. Perfect for romantic getaways, honeymoons, birthday celebrations, anniversaries or a well-deserved, relaxing break.

It is located less than a one hour drive from New York City or only thirty-five minutes on the scenic "Seastreak" fast ferry direct from Manhattan. In addition it is only ninety minutes from Philadelphia and less from the Bucks County suburbs.

If you have stayed at Sandy Hook Cottage B & B recently post a review about your experience.

Observations from HotelChatter.com - and a call for More Gay Sydney!

A tip of the cap to HotelChatter.com for pointing out one of the gay travel community's biggest needs in their post about our great first year: more information about some of the world's best vacation spots. Pink Choice agrees - we're proud to have our members on board and are excited to bring more hotels and resorts into the picture through their reviews.

We stand by our assertion that Sydney is indeed one of the prime gay friendly destinations in the world. If you've been to a Sydney hot spot and want to share, log in and let us know the details!

Happy Birthday to Us!

We were thrilled to announce our first anniversary today, and hope you'll join us in celebrating a great first year!

Since launching in 2006, Pink Choice has expanded to include over 200 global destinations covering 1000 hotels, inns and guesthouses. The site’s membership is strong and growing stronger, with over 800 unique visitors per day reading and posting reviews.

“Gay travel is changing before our eyes, with destinations literally branding themselves pink to attract the gay traveler – and the gay dollar,” said Trevor Pinker, co-founder of Pink Choice. “This is a great movement, but travelers need to hear real voices amid the marketing speak: they can help our global community know before they pack their bags whether their destination will welcome them with open arms. We’re proud to be providing a forum for those voices.”

The site’s rising popularity corresponds to findings of a study by MarketResearch.com in association with Witeck-Combs Communications (The Gay and Lesbian Market in the US, Fifth Edition, February 2007). The study cites that “nearly half (48%) of gay men and lesbians (47%) believe that the degree of gay-friendliness of a destination is important, very important, or extremely important in deciding where to travel.” This from a community that, according to the study, is comprised of frequent travelers and weighs in with an estimated 2006 buying power of $660 billion, with that number projected to exceed $835 billion by 2011.

“Let’s face it: the gay and lesbian community enjoys travel, but can’t always be sure they know what they’ll find when they reach their destination,” said Stephen Mascilo, co-founder of Pink Choice. “Unbiased, honest reviews about the things that matter most was a need that wasn’t being addressed, and we are proud to have taken the right steps to make a difference to our members.”

The travel community has responded as well: advertisers on the website include the Canadian Tourist Board, the International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association, the Provincetown Business Guild, the World’s Foremost Gay and Lesbian Hotels, BeYou Travel, Cape Air, and many individual hotels and guesthouses from around the world. Apart from advertising, Pink Choice encourages gay friendly properties to list on the site and travelers to submit comments that will help the community.

At year’s end, www.pinkchoice.com will issue its Pink Choice Awards to recognize properties that stand out based on the number and quality of the reviews they receive.

Trends in Pink Prominence

There's a lot of talk about the gay dollar lately, as a couple of studies show in plain numbers just how staggering powerful we are. No surprise to us, of course, although it seems to be news to some industries that are now stampeding to attract that pink money.

This is a good thing! And we at Pink Choice are proud to be a part of guiding travelers through all that stampeding. In fact, we're called out along with other areas that are worth watching in this Forever Trends series - check it out to learn more about industries that are finally catching on.

Speak out for Ft. Lauderdale

The flap in Ft. Lauderdale isn’t going away, as Mayor Jim Naugle’s various assertions (that robotic toilets are the answer to public gay sex, that homosexuals are inherently unhappy, and many more) continue to fuel an unfortunate fire in what has historically been one of the world’s most welcoming gay travel communities. There are a wide range of hotels and guesthouses that receive consistently glowing praise from our members, and we hate to see a wonderful business and pleasure destination suffering through such an avoidable struggle.

As the Gay Travel Blog shows us with its July 29 post and linkthrough to the Sun Sentinel, the media has gone to work letting us all know that gay tourism will survive. Meanwhile, some factions would like to put a dent in that sense of security, calling for a tourist boycott of the area.

We do not believe that diminishing our presence in Ft. Lauderdale is the answer. Yes, it will rob the city of a core source of revenue, but it will also make deep cuts into the businesses that have worked hard to make the area so welcoming in the first place.

We therefore encourage our members to raise their voices before launching a boycott: join us in emailing the Mayor’s office (mayorjames@aol.com), the Gay and Lesbian Community Center of South Florida (info@glccsf.org), and The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation - GLAAD (contact via their website) with constructive thoughts on the matter. Worth noting that GLAAD issued a press release on this subject and deserves our full support for putting a good foot forward.

We look forward to the Mayor adopting an attitude that better represents his city’s history and community – or to stepping down in favor of one who will.

Woodstocker Inn in Woodstock, USA

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that Woodstocker Inn located in Woodstock, USA has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Woodstocker Inn recently post a review about your experience.

Fridays Place in Trivandrum, India

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that Fridays Place located in Trivandrum, India has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Fridays Place recently post a review about your experience.

Inn of the Anasazi in Santa Fe, USA

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that Inn of the Anasazi located in Santa Fe, USA has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Inn of the Anasazi recently post a review about your experience.

Casa Holanda Bed and Breakfast, in Heredia, Costa Rica

PinkChoice has just added Casa Holanda Bed and Breakfast located in Heredia, Costa Rica to it's listings!
If you have stayed at Casa Holanda Bed and Breakfast, recently post a review about your experience.

Oketon B & B, in Bude, U.K.

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that Oketon B & B located in Bude, U.K. has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Oketon B & B, Bude, Cornwall recently post a review about your experience.

Le Chateau Japonais in Hastings, U.K.

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that Le Chateau Japonais located in Hastings, U.K. has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Le Chateau Japonais recently post a review about your experience.

Nelson House B & B in Vancouver, Canada

PinkChoice is very excited to announce that Nelson House B & B located in Vancouver, Canada has been added to our listings!
If you have stayed at Nelson House B & B recently post a review about your experience.