Greece offers a wide variety of options for a memorable gay vacation. Naturally, gay travel in this area is usually full of spectacular sunrises, romantic strolls along pristine beaches, exploring ancient architecture and traveling by boat between some of the many Greek islands. Whether your vacation plans include a fun-filled family holiday exploring museums, learning how to make olive oil and traveling to see historic landmarks, a romantic beachside retreat with your partner, or a week of partying and taking in the lively Athens nightlife with friends, Greece is sure to deliver and provides a perfect setting for gay travel.

Athens has a lively gay scene with several clubs and bars, as well as gay-owned and gay-friendly cafs, coffee shops and lodging options. For gay men interested in partaking in a bit of bathhouse culture during their gay vacation to Greece, there are two popular saunas in Athens. Athens Relax caters to a mixed-age clientele and is a large sauna directly across the street from one of Athens popular gay clubs, while the smaller Hera caters to a more mature clientele. There is also an unofficial gay beach area at Limanakia, which is south of Athens and a popular hangout for gay men.

No gay travel experience to Greece would be complete without visiting Mykonos, one of the Greek Islands where folks on a gay vacation will find a warm, welcoming environment. Mykonos offers breathtaking scenery, exceptional beaches, a pulsating nightlife, a cosmopolitan atmosphere and friendly locals, making this a must-see spot for any Greek gay vacation. There are plenty of gay-friendly accommodations on Mykonos, including a gay-owned lodging that caters solely to gay travelers and is adults only. Another popular Greek island for gay travel is the Island of Crete. While you will not find a highly visible gay scene on Crete, you will find a few gay bars and establishments, gay beaches, a gay-owned bed and breakfast and a welcoming environment, making Crete a great choice for a gay vacation in Greece.

Of course, lesbian travelers will not want to miss Lesvos and the opportunity to explore Sapphos native hometown, Eressos. Lesbian travelers can stroll along beautiful beaches, experience luxurious spa treatments, people watch from romantic cafes and indulge in a delightfully women-centered nightlife while visiting this haven for lesbian travel.

Greece remains a mostly traditional, religious country, but those who visit Greece on gay vacations will find a welcoming environment almost anywhere in the country. One of the best ways to partake in a gay vacation to Greece is to visit this beautiful country as part of organized gay tours. Another great option is to plan your gay vacation to Greece through a travel agency that regularly plans Greece gay vacations. This will ensure that you will have the opportunity to experience all that Greece has to offer and will return with a lifetime of memories.

Howie Holben also runs Spirit Journeys, a spiritual gay travel organization. Spirit Journeys is known the world over for offering unique gay tours. Learn more about conscious gay vacations at www.SpiritJourneys.com.

With LGBT communities in every large city, Germany is a well-known LGBT haven in Europe. This, of course, is why that gay vacations to Germany’s LGBT hotspots, such as Hamburg, Berlin, Cologne, Munich and Frankfurt, are so incredibly popular with visitors from all around the world. Germany is also home to several large Pride festivals, with the best-known being the world-famous festivals in Cologne and Berlin, and is a great for gay travel tours anytime of the year. Travelers will likely find that city dwellers are more welcoming than rural residents; however, all across the country travelers will find a welcoming environment in this popular gay vacation destination.

Cologne is generally thought of as the LGBT capital of Germany and is a fantastic destination for gay travel. Poised on the banks of the Rhine River and the oldest larger city in the country, Cologne draws travelers from around the world to indulge in this picturesque citys rich culture and history, to get to know its jovial inhabitants and to experience the thriving art scene. As the home of the world-famous Cologne Cathedral and Kolsch beer, Cologne has something to offer to art lovers, history lovers and beer lovers alike.

This welcoming community has no problem with couples of all sorts showing affection in public and has a well-established, highly visible LGBT population. Cologne is proud to be the host of the 2010 Gay Games and home to more LGBT bars, clubs, restaurants, cafs and other establishments than any visitor could experience in a single gay vacation. To display how LGBT-friendly this city truly is, the KolnTourismus Service Centre even offers a Pink WelcomeCard, which provides discounts on LGBT clubs, bars, saunas and shops, as well as free public transportation and discounts for local attractions, such as river cruises, opera, theater and museums.

The cosmopolitan city of Berlin is also home to a strong LGBT community and numerous LGBT establishments. Travelers that partake in gay travel to Berlin may want to consider visiting during Pride season when Berlin holds the annual Lesbisch-Schwules Stadtfest, or Lesbian and Gay City Festival, which is the largest event of this type in Europe. The following weekend, the Berlin Gay Pride Parade and Christopher Street Day Pride Festival draw hundreds of thousands of LGBT participants and friends of the community, making this a great time for gay vacations in Germany.

Whether you are goinr to Germany alone or traveling with a group of friends, a gay vacation to Germany will surely be filled with opportunities to learn about Germany’s LGBT community, meet new friends and make lifelong memories. To get as much as you can out of your travels, you may want to participate in gay adventure vacations with a travel agency with experience arranging Germany gay vacations.

This article about gay tours for Germany was written by Howie Holben. Howie’s company, Spirit Journeys, has offered gay spirituality events since 1992. You can learn more at www.spiritjourneys.com

The Pacific paradise of Hawaii has long held an exotic allure that draws travelers from all corners of the globe to its picturesque shores. With a population that is warm and welcoming and comprised of a remarkable blend of white European, Polynesian and Asian cultures, Hawaii is a popular vacation spot for both straight and gay vacations. Hawaiis LGBT community is low-key and not necessarily highly visible, but those who that go to Hawaii as a gay travel destination will find a higher level of acceptance than many places in the U.S., due in large part to an overall welcoming and accepting atmosphere created from generations of several cultures living together without one dominant culture or religion imposing its will.

Oahu is home to the state capitol, Honolulu, the popular tourist destination, Waikiki, and 70% of Hawaiis population. If you plan to visit Oahu on your gay holidays, you will not want to miss La Cucaracha, an LGBT-friendly Mexican caf with authentic Mexican cuisine, margaritas and great music, or the LGBT novelty, book and clothing store, 80% Straight Inc., located in the Waikiki Grand. There are also a few bars and clubs for those interested in the scene, including Hulas Bar & Lei Stand, Fusion Waikiki, In-Between and Angles Waikiki. If heading to the beach is more your style, Queens Surf and the area below the lighthouse at Diamond Head are the two spots where the community can be found any day of the year.

Those who choose a gay tour to Maui might not find a vibrant scene, other than a small area of Little Beach in Makena, but exploring quaint villages, watching the sunset atop Mount Haleakala and sunbathing near waterfalls all make Maui an enticing locale for gay travel retreats. If exploring what is considered the most tropical and scenic island of them all is part of your plans, Kauai is sure to deliver no matter what time of year you visit. Kauai is home to a clothing optional LGBT-friendly bed and breakfast, as well as an LGBT-owned villa with a Japanese flair and a clothing optional lagoon pool, and is an ideal setting for exploring waterfalls, amazing cliffs and vast canyons.

The Big Island is another friendly option with plenty of LGBT-friendly lodging options, as well as several businesses and restaurants and one bar. Gay vacations on the Big Island include everything from visiting an active volcano or strolling on black sand beaches to exploring a rain forest and gazing in wonderment at the snow on Mauna Kea.

Hawaii is the most remote chain of islands anywhere in the world and is a tropical paradise that everyone should visit at least once in their lifetime. In a single trip to Hawaii you can snorkel or scuba dive around coral reefs, tour a pineapple farm, visit a volcano, learn the hula, participate in a luau and ride on horseback along black sand beaches. To take full advantage of all that Hawaii offers, consider visiting Hawaii with gay vacation tours, or arranging your trip through a travel agency accustomed to organizing Hawaii gay travel.

Vacations are something that everyone takes in order to get themselves out of the hustle and bustle of the real world for a little bit of relaxation and rejuvenation. This time away is very important to both our physical and mental health. There are many different types of vacations that one can take in order to fill these needs.

You can vacation alone, with friends or family, or you can travel with a group. You can also choose to travel with a group of people that have similar backgrounds and interests. Gay vacations and travel is one choice for gay people.

On gay vacations, our gayness is one thing we all have in common. This shared life experience can only add to our vacation experience. Bonds are quickly formed in the group due to our shared experiences in life.

People we have just met can quickly become friends and confidants. This makes gay vacations all the more special and meaningful. We’re able to share our vacation experience with others that we know understand us.

Being understood allows us to open up, relax more and let our guard down. This vulnerability lets more of the vacation into our hearts and minds. The more we feel the vacation, the more we recover from the strains of life at home.

A vacation with men and women that also share our intentions for the vacation deepens our sense of recovery. Spiritually connecting to the world around us and to ourselves is one shared intention. Now we share two important things, being gay and a desire to grow spiritually.

Visiting sacred sites all over the world combined with a desire to grow spiritually can open doors never before seen. With other group members helping us, we can face old fears and become a little freer. And isn’t feeling freer the main goal of a vacation?

This article about spiritual gay tours was written by Howie Holben. You can learn more about gay vacations with meaning at www.SpiritJourneys.com.