The Bloggers
Subscribe to this Blog

Traveling for a Civil Union?

Gary Lee

How much has the debate over civil unions and same-sex marriage affected travel habits?

New Hampshire recently became the fourth state allowing civil unions between same-sex couples in the U.S. The others: Vermont, Connecticut and New Jersey. And Massachusetts allows same-sex marriage. The movement for same-sex legal unions has been embraced abroad more readily:Some countries where gays can wed include Canada, Spain and South Africa.

At the same time, several dozen states have passed defense-of-marriage acts that define marriage as a ceremony between a man and a woman.

We wondered how much the positions these states or countries have taken will influence where people vacation. For example, with the passage of civil union laws, some chapels, lodges and resorts are offering packages for couples interested in commitment ceremonies.

Has this movement affected your travel plans? Are you more inclined to journey to New England since it has a concentration of locales allowing marriage? Anyone more reluctant to venture into the area? Does the stance foreign countries take on this issue make them more or less inviting?

By Gary Lee |  May 3, 2007; 9:53 AM ET  | Category:  Gary Lee , Gay and Lesbian
Previous: Delta's Widget | Next: Zagat Does Disney

View or post comments

Comments

Please email us to report offensive comments.



Where we live, where we work, where we get married, and where we decide to raise our kids will be completely dependent upon if it is a "friendly" state or area. Of course, I would not totally rule out vacationing somewhere that wasn't inviting, but it does come into play. In the end, I want to go to a place where we can be ourselves, and be seen as just another couple looking to get some R&R from the daily grind. Would I travel far and wide in order to get married? You betcha. For example, Canada has not only become an opportunity to get married, but it is now also on the list of places to move to. That's how important it is (at least to us).

Posted by: eek | May 4, 2007 11:26 AM

My dream is to go on an African safari, but much of Africa is dangerous for GLBT people. So when choosing where in Africa to go, we decided South Africa would be the safest place to go, and while we're there, we could get married. So yes, it's definitely affecting our travel plans.

Posted by: NotYourBroom | May 7, 2007 1:31 PM

I am straight and married and will not give my money to resorts or hotels that have an anti-gay stance, so it affects me, too.

Posted by: Anonymous | May 7, 2007 3:07 PM

My travel plans are dictated more by what I want to see, than necessarily what I agree with. I don't have a partner, so running off to get "married" isn't on my list of vacation want-to-dos. But on reflection, I don't have any desire to spend much time in the Caribbean, which has an anti-gay reputation and places in the states that I perceive to be unsupportive aren't exactly on my must see before I die list...Utah, Texas, most of the South. Then again, there are some gay friendly places I have no desire to return to either, such as Key West, South Beach, or Palm Springs. And you'd never catch me on a gay cruise (ugh, please!). For me, even San Francisco is losing its lustre. Dirty, expensive, crowded Give me New Zealand over any of those. Not marketed as gay friendly or a reputation of gay hostile. It does have what I like in a vacation, a variety of activities from skiing to kayaking to doing nothing on the beach, clean air, friendly people.

Posted by: Chris | May 8, 2007 12:24 PM

The comments to this entry are closed.

 
 

© 2008 The Washington Post Company