TripOut Gay Travel:
Meet the Winners of the 2009 TripOut Gay Travel Awards by John Polly

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After over two months, more than 100,000 votes and a hugely spirited response it is with great appreciation and gratitude that we announce the winners of the first ever TripOut Gay Travel Awards.

Created to honor the most stylish, exciting and hottest destinations and services that attract, pamper and market to the LGBT traveler, the TripOut Gay Travel Awards celebrate how far our community has come as we travel openly and enthusiastically around the world. The voting results showcase the places our community loves to visit, where and with whom they choose to spend their time and money, and which destinations and businesses truly excel in welcoming and making the world a better place for LGBT visitors.

No doubt you’ll see some of your favorite places and businesses on this list of winners. And hopefully you’ll discover new places you’ll want to visit. Share these results with your friends, partners and families, gay, straight or otherwise. After all, our community is always at the forefront of trends when it comes to matters of style, entertainment and travel, so I’m guessing that all savvy globetrotters will want to take note of the TripOut Gay Travel Award winners and nominees to gauge where the next great buzzworthy destinations are going to be. As we all know, where the gays go, mainstream culture follows.

Special gratitude must be extended to Richard Gray, our first-ever recipient of the Gay+ Award for “Achievement in Making This World Gayer.” A pioneer and leader in the field of LGBT travel, Gray’s guidance and vision have been central to Fort Lauderdale’s emergence as a top gay travel destination. Gray almost single-handedly brought the gay market to Fort Lauderdale, as part of a groundbreaking effort to create a marketing coalition to support the LGBT community. As a result, Gray’s model of marketing has become a standard in other destinations around the world to market to the LGBT traveler and tourist. He’s a true leader and we’re honored to celebrate his work.

And I must extend big thanks to all the nominees for sending us your quotes, and sending your fans and followers to vote! Also, I thank our esteemed panel of 18 seasoned LGBT travel writers and editors for helping us select this year’s nominees. And I have to just thank all the great LGBT tour companies, gay-owned or gay-friendly hotels, gay bar owners, LGBT-inclusive hotel and airline companies, and the gay-welcoming and progressive tourism bureaus who work tirelessly to make LGBT travelers feel as valued and worthwhile as they really are.

Thanks again to all our readers for voting.

Winner
New York City

Fellow Nominees
New Orleans
Philadelphia
Portland, Oregon
Provincetown
San Francisco

Winner
Rio de Janeiro

Fellow Nominees
Barcelona
Buenos Aires
London
Montreal
Sydney

Winner
Curacao

Fellow Nominees
Bogota, Colombia
Croatia
Mumbai
Santiago, Chile
Shanghai

Winner
The Abbey, Los Angeles

Fellow Nominees
Exit, Amsterdam
Heaven, London
Le Drugstore, Montreal
Sidetrack, Chicago
The Week, Rio & Sao Paulo

Winner
Madrid Pride

Fellow Nominees
Amsterdam Pride
Burning Man
Dinah Shore Weekend/The Dinah
Pride Toronto
Sydney Mardi Gras

Winner
Atlantis Events

Fellow Nominees
Alyson Adventures
R Family Vacations
Sweet
Undersea Expeditions
Zoom Vacations

Winner
American Airlines

Fellow Nominees
Delta Airlines
JetBlue Airlines
Qantas Airlines
Southwest Airlines
Virgin America Airlines

Winner
W Hotels

Fellow Nominees
Ace Hotels
Four Seasons
Hyatt Hotels
Joie de Vivre Hotels
Kimpton Hotels

Winner
Wynn Las Vegas

Fellow Nominees
Fountainebleau Resort, Miami
Four Seasons, Maui
Mandarin Oriental Dhari Dhevi, Chiang Mai
Park Hyatt Hotel, Tokyo
Singita Lodge & Game Reserves, Kruger National Park, South Africa

Winner
Paris, the Marais

Fellow Nominees
Buenos Aires, the Palermo neighborhoods
Fort Lauderdale, the beaches and bars
Las Vegas, any hotel room
Madrid, the Chueca neighborhood
Mykonos, Elia Beach

Winner
Richard Gray
Richard Gray Consulting
Fort Lauderdale, Florida