Get ready for 18 welcoming US lesbian vacation destinations.
Don’t we all just want to pack our bags and enjoy our lesbian vacation? Without needing to worry if we can get a double bed without awkward questions, without worrying if we can hold hands in public, and that we can kiss whenever we want?
Sadly, extra preparation is still needed as a queer female or lesbian traveler. But we are here to make things easier for you! These are 18 welcoming lesbian vacation destinations in the USA, so you no longer have to worry.
From relaxing on the beach, exploring exciting cities, hiking through the woods, and skiing from the slopes; we’ve included the best lesbian getaways where we – queer people – are welcomed with open arms!
And if you like to go out for a drink at a lesbian bar: we included those for you too.
2020 and 2021 are weird years, but we are ready to explore the beauty of the United States (and the rest of the world) again. Make sure to check federal, state, and local advisories before scheduling a trip.
Orbitz
Not only we are here to help you; there are more resources online to help you. One of our favorites is Orbitz!
Orbitz is an online travel agency, and they just launched a new microsite.
Their new microsite helps LGBTQ+ travelers book welcoming hotels and resorts all around the world. This way you know for sure your accommodation is welcoming, friendly and safe.
And you can find more information on their site!
Orbitz has been supporting the LGBTQ+ community for years, that’s why we love them even more.
Top US Lesbian Vacation Destinations
- New York City, New York
What’s a list with lesbian vacation destinations in the USA without New York City on it?
New York City has one of the largest LGBTQ+ communities in the United States. And the city is a historically important place for the community.
This is where the gay rights’ movement started with the Stonewall Riots.
NYC has 3 lesbian bars, Cubbyhole, Henrietta Hudson, and Ginger’s Bar (known as G-Spot). And of course, you have to visit the iconic The Stonewall Inn. Read more about queer and lesbian bars in NYC.
NYC is a city you have to visit at least once in your life. Or that’s what we think.
We can’t get enough of it!
Read our lesbian travel guide for the best lesbian (safety) travel tips.
- Provincetown aka PTown
Provincetown is a seaside town in Massachusetts. The town is famous for being very welcoming. Many gay travelers from all around the world travel to Provincetown.
Yes, many gay men go to Provincetown, but it’s also a great place to go to as a lesbian traveler. It’s really an LGBTQ+ friendly town in the USA. Maybe the most LGBTQ+ friendly in the whole country? We let you decide for yourself!
There are many things to do in and around Provincetown (also known as PTown). How does sailing on the ocean sound for example? Or exploring many art galleries?
Plus, if you want to relax at the beach, it’s also possible in Provincetown. The town also has an exciting nightlife. Drag performance in the Unites States started in Provincetown, so go and see a performance if you can!
Head to the bar and restaurant The Club for food and a drink. It’s founded by lesbian show Orange Is the New Black star Lea Delaria!
Provincetown for Women organizes many exciting activities for women. For example, single women’s week, women of color week, and women’s week.
Are you into beach towns? Another cute beach town to visit is Ogunquit. Drive a few hours north of PTown and you will find another LGBTQ+ friendly paradise.
- Miami, Florida
Miami is one of the gayest cities in the United States and has a lot to offer. From beautiful beaches, lots of sunshine, great parties, to cultural highlights, delicious food, and a vibrant LGBTQ+ community.
There’s truly something for everyone in Miami.
Yes, it’s true that Miami is famous for its amazing parties, and there are definitely some great parties for us queer women in Miami.
The lesbian party Aqua Girl, for example, is one of the biggest lesbian parties in the world! So if you like lesbian parties, make sure to head to Miami for Aqua Girl.
But, there are also many cultural things to do in Miami. We absolutely love exploring the buzzing Miami art scene.
Check our queer & lesbian Miami guide to read about the queer and lesbian top things to do in Miami: bars, clubs, events, hotels, and more. So you know exactly where to go.
- Honolulu, Hawaii
The islands of Hawaii are perfect to visit for a relaxing holiday and has, arguably, the most stunning scenery in the United States. It’s also an adventurous lesbian vacation destination in the USA. There are lots of fun and exciting things to do!
There are 8 major islands. Oahu definitely has the most to offer for the LGBTQ community. Especially its capital city, Honolulu.
Yes, gay life in the state of Hawaii is more modest than mainland USA, don’t expect a lesbian mecca, but you will be welcomed in this rainbow state. Hawaii is famous for being a diverse state with relaxing vibes!
The neighborhood Waikiki is the LGBTQ center of Honolulu. This is the place to be for great dining, relaxing beach vibes and queer nightlife. Stop at Scarlet Honolulu for a drink, to watch a drag show and dance the night away. Scarlet Honolulu is one of the main bars in Oahu for the queer community.
Make sure to visit Waikiki Beach and Queen’s Surf beach too. And hike Diamond Head if you are looking for adventure and relax on the beach afterward!
Good to know: Honolulu Pride is in October.
- Fire Island, New York
Only located two hours away from Manhattan, New York City, there is a small car-free island with only about 300 residents. Most of those residents are part of the LGBTQ community. But many tourists and summer residents love to go here.
Fire Island Pines, also known as The Pines, is the first LGBT (beach) town of the States. Close to it, is Cherry Grove beach, which is the place to go for lesbians, and Pines is more for gay men.
But the whole island is super welcoming and accepting. It has great vibes, and is a great place to be yourself an enjoy life.
If you are into volleyball, look into the women’s volleyball tournament LezVolley, that takes place at Cherry Grove!
- Los Angeles, California
Like NYC, Los Angeles is a city with a large LGBTQ+ community. Visit LA and live your own the L Word story! In case you forgot: the series follows a group of queer friends living in West Hollywood.
West Hollywood is a gay neighborhood in Los Angeles and is where the fun nightlife happens. Head to the Abbey to dance, eat and drink!
You can read more about lesbian nightlife in our lesbian Los Angeles guide!
Besides a great nightlife, Los Angeles has many amazing things to offer.
Great beaches, beautiful street art, many places to shop, fantastic museums, it’s close to Disneyland and much more.
You need weeks (maybe years) to see everything (especially with LA traffic jams)!
Looking for a place to stay in Los Angeles? Head to Orbitz for the best LGBTQ friendly places to stay!
- Palm Springs, California
About two hours away from Los Angeles you can find Palm Springs, which is perfect if you are looking for a lesbian getaway. Palm Springs is a desert resort city that attracts many tourists.
Many know Palm Springs from the famous festival Coachella. But us lesbians know it from a way more famous festival (in our eyes).
Dinah Shore Weekend happens in Palm Springs! It’s the largest lesbian festival in the world. Visiting the festival is a great reason to visit Palm Springs, isn’t it?
- New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is among the best US lesbian vacation destinations.
In the past, the city has been nominated by Gay Cities for the most welcoming city in the world. And the Advocate listed New Orleans as the fifth queerest city in the USA!
While the south may not be the most progressive, New Orleans is.
History, music, art, food, and so many more things come together in New Orleans. It’s a diverse city that has a lot to offer. Also for the LGBTQ+ community.
And don’t forget about visiting New Orleans during Mardi Grass (though be aware for ass-grabbers and drunk straight cisgender men)!
Head to the French Quarter and Bourbon street for all the party-fun.
- Puerto Rico
Before traveling to Puerto Rico, we didn’t know this, but technically this Caribbean island is USA territory.
If you are American and want to visit Puerto Rico, you don’t even need a passport, a government issued ID is enough!
Puerto Rico is a beautiful island to visit! We really enjoy its beautiful beaches, tropical waters, fun nightlife, great dining, and adventurous activities (think about zip lining through a rainforest and riding a quad bike).
Or enjoy the waters during a relaxing catamaran ride.
The island is great to visit year-round, which makes it a perfect lesbian vacation destination. We visited Puerto Rico in December and enjoyed the warm temperatures and island vibes.
The capital city, San Juan, has quite a few LGBTQ spots that are worth exploring. Some even call San Juan the gay capital of the Caribbean.
We haven’t explored any other islands in the Caribbean, so we can’t say anything about that title, but we can say that we felt welcomed in Puerto Rico, and we loved its capital San Juan!
Puerto Rico celebrates Pride in June and in December too, with a winter Pride!
- Seattle, Washington
Seattle is a beautiful lesbian friendly destination in the Pacific Northwest.
It’s a city that’s welcoming, safe, and friendly.
Seattle is located in the state of Washington, which is a very LGBTQ+ friendly state overall. The LGBTQ laws in the state are among the best of the United States.
The city is a very green city that has mountains nearby and has lots of water to enjoy. Plus, in Seattle you can find many great restaurants with delicious foods.
The art scene in Seattle is also exciting and the city has many cute neighborhoods.
The neighborhood Capitol Hill is the gay heart of the city. Capitol Hill is full of rainbow flags, rainbow crossings, and gay owned bars, restaurants and shops.
We didn’t visit Seattle yet ourselves (it’s super high on our list), we heard many great stories from our queer friends.
Planning on visiting Europe too? Check out these lesbian Europe destinations you have to visit!
- Key West, Florida
Blue waters, white-sand beaches, and palm trees!
Key West is a great US lesbian vacation destination if you want to relax. But also if you want to be active and go on the water for some water sports.
The island is known for its relaxed vibes and for being very tolerant and welcoming.
It’s the southernmost point of the mainland United States.
- San Francisco, California
Back to the west coast!
California is known for being a welcoming, progressive, and overall LGBTQ+ friendly state in the United States.
It’s home to two very important places with a large LGBTQ+ community: Los Angeles and San Francisco.
San Francisco is a beautiful city that has much to offer. A must-see is of course the Golden Gate Bridge.
But the Fisherman’s Wharf, Golden Gate Park, Painted Ladies, and the gay neighborhood Castro District can’t be missed either.
In the entire city, you can find gay-owned businesses. San Francisco is a very welcoming city!
Next to San Francisco there’s the city Oakland, which is great to visit on a day trip from San Francisco.
- Burlington, Vermont
Located in the state of Vermont, this lively small city is perfect to visit! Especially if you like to ski or snowboard.
It snows a lot in Burlington and there are many ski resorts nearby.
45 minutes away from Burlington you can find the town Stowe, which hosts a yearly gay ski week.
Progressive Burlington is also great to visit during the warmer months. For a romantic lesbian honeymoon for example!
Go kayaking, hiking, or sleeping in the forests.
- Chicago, Illinois
Another city on this list with USA lesbian vacation destinations that’s perfect for a city trip.
Chicago is an amazing Midwestern city that has lots to offer: fun things to do, friendly people, and a thriving LGBTQ scene. There are two gay neighborhoods in Chicago: Northalsted and Andersonville.
Northalsted was previous known as Boystown, but since that name wasn’t very inclusive, and since the place isn’t just for boys, its name changed!
Boystown/Northalsted was the first officially recognized LGBTQ community in the United Stated. It’s the place to be for LGBTQ nightlife in Chicago, but also for food and drinks during the day.
Andersonville has the nickname ‘Girlstown’, as it’s the lesbian leaning counterpart. The neighborhood is a lot small but is also fun to explore! It has many trendy cafés, shops, and restaurants. Make sure top stop at Women and Children First Bookstore, it’s a lesbian-founded bookstore where you can buy LGBTQ titles.
Other must-see spots in Chicago are Millennium Park, The Skydeck, Cloud Gate aka the Chicago Bean, and a stroll along the Chicago River.
Also make sure to eat Chicago style deep dish pizza!
- Fort Lauderdale, Florida
The gay capital of Florida: Fort Lauderdale! The city truly lives up to that title, so pack your swimwear and make your way to Fort Lauderdale.
Fort Lauderdale is a beach city that welcomes over 1.1 million LGBTQ visitors each year (or well, before 2020).
The city has one of America’s highest concentration of same-sex couples and there’s always a party going on in Fort Lauderdale.
Pride takes place in October and in June there’s a Stonewall Pride parade and festival.
Looking to relax? Head to one of many great beaches!
- Austin, Texas
Austin is not like the rest of Texas. The state is conservative and not so welcoming nor accepting. Its capital city is a whole different story.
Austin is liberal, progressive, and has a visible LGBTQ community. Austin is the perfect city trip destination for your lesbian vacation!
There isn’t just one gayborhood in the city, you can find the community all over Austin.
Austin is all about live music and the outdoors. Also known as the ‘live music capital of the world’, and has two major music festivals that attract many people: The Austin City Limits Festival and South by Southwest (SXSW).
Cheer up Charlie’s is a lesbian owned vegan bar, which is fun to visit if you are in Austin.
- Portland, Oregon
Over 5% of Portland’s population identifies as queer. That’s a lot higher than the average in the United States. So of course, Portland has to be included between these other great US lesbian vacation destinations.
Many members of the LGBTQ community move to Portland to live here.
And Portland is definitely a fun city to visit! Something we Dutchies love about Portland is that the city is very bicycle-friendly. Many people bike here. The city has been rated best cycling city in America and best walking city in America in the past.
The city is home to many queer events like the Portland Film Festival and Portland Pride Festival, so if you can combine your visit with a queer event, we highly recommend it.
Next on this list with lesbian vacation destinations is Northampton which is known as the lesbianville of the East. Some name Portland lesbianville of the West!
- Northampton, Massachusetts
And last but not least on this list with USA lesbian vacation destinations: Northampton.
Northampton in Massachusetts, also known as lesbianville, a title that was given to this town many years ago. It’s arguably the best place in the United Sates for lesbians, especially to live in.
It’s a small town, but is famous for its free-spirited hippie vibes, being an academic town that has multiple universities, and is an artistic and music hub. The best part: full of lesbians!
Go on a day trip to Northampton from Boston or New York City (around 3-hour drive) or decide to stay a couple days to fully enjoy lesbianville.
About 30,000 people live in Northampton and in the past years many other people of the LGBTQ community joined the lesbians and chose to live here.
Enjoy these US lesbian vacation destinations! Did we miss any lesbian vacations destinations in the USA? Let us know!
Want to chat about this article? Email us, or comment below!
Feel free to share this article with all you lesbian (travel) friends with.
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Sarah
Monday 22nd of August 2022
I’m not sure you are aware, but it’s quite problematic to not know Puerto Rico’s status as part of the US. There is a movement for Puerto Rican independence, proposals for Puerto Rican statehood and lots of activism in between. It’s not a minor issue.
Roxanne & Maartje
Wednesday 31st of August 2022
Thanks for pointing that out! We are definitely aware, but we didn't put effort into putting it into words here. We'll do better!
D. DiTommaso
Sunday 12th of June 2022
Northampton, Massachusetts. "There isn't a lot to do", you say? Are you kidding me??? For a "small town", the place is bursting with things to see and places to go! Restaurants galore! Awesome clubs with live music and dancing! Museums; Galleries; a tremendous selection of fine shops featuring everything from Italian leather shoes to home made chocolate and, neither last nor least, a street vibe that can be matched by only the better sections of New York or San Francisco, but without all of the bad stuff that comes with bid cities! And, oh yeah, Smith College - one of the most prestigious all women's colleges in the U. S. A. Want to take a summer course in just about anything???
"...isn't a lot to do"? HA!
Roxanne & Maartje
Sunday 10th of July 2022
Sorry to have offended you, we've adjusted the text. We're always open to feedback!
Lani Ravin
Saturday 18th of December 2021
When in Burlington Vermont, come camp at Huntington Open Women's Land, aka HOWL.