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The aforementioned Sushi descends from the New Orleans' balcony on New Year's Eve. It is about a 15-20 minute walk from the Island House and Equator resorts to the gay bars on Duval Street but if you prefer to be right in the middle of the party, the New Orleans House Inn ( ) is on Duval and its pool is part of the Garden Bar in the 801 Complex, at 801 Duval. Since Pearl's Rainbow went mainstream six years ago, there are no exclusively lesbian resorts on Key West, but the fabulous Alexander's Guesthouse ( is marketed exclusively to gays, lesbians, and friends of the LGBT community.
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The resort is not open for day passes and includes a free continental breakfast. The property took over the adjacent Coral Tree Inn a few years ago, expanding the resort to 34 units with two pools and hot tubs. If you prefer a mellower atmosphere, check out the beautiful Equator Resort ( ), which is just down the street from the Island House. The daily complimentary early evening happy hour is always very popular. It is also a great place to meet locals who frequent the resort. The 34-room clothing-optional property includes a 24-hour cafe and bar, gym, indoor and outdoor hot tubs, dry and wet sauna, and a large pool surrounded by upstairs and pool level sundecks. The gay men's hotel, Island House Key West ( ), ranks at the top or near the top of lists of the best gay resorts in the U.S. While many of the formerly gay resorts have since gone mainstream, Key West still has a handful of gay hotels that deservedly have a loyal repeat clientele. Beginning in the 1970s, gays helped revitalize businesses along Duval Street, the city's main drag, and a bounty of gay resorts sprung up in place of run-down smaller hotels in the city's historic Old Town. While Cuba is warming to the concept of gay friendliness, it can't compare to Key West, which was LGBT-friendly long before it was fashionable. Several tour companies are talking about launching ferry service to Cuba, making it feasible to take day trips to the once-forbidden Caribbean island. Just 88 miles to Cuba, the city on the southernmost point of the continental United States may soon become even more popular because of the U.S.'s warming relationship with Cuba. You can drive back or with a one-way car rental, fly back to the Bay Area with a connection in Miami or Fort Lauderdale. The ride through to the Florida Keys to Key West takes about 3.5 hours from Miami. After spending a few nights in Fort Lauderdale, you could continue on with a 45-minute drive south to Miami. Virgin America and United also have nonstops from San Francisco and you can catch connecting flights to Fort Lauderdale from Mineta San Jose International and Oakland International. JetBlue is the airport's biggest carrier with two daily nonstop flights from San Francisco. If you want to combine all three cities, you could easily start by flying into the Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood airport. That gay influence is woven into the political and cultural tapestry that continues to keep those cities hot tourist destinations. Gays have been a big part of the revitalization of South Florida beginning in Key West in the 1970s, Miami's South Beach in the 1980s, and Fort Lauderdale in the 1990s.
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Just be sure to allow yourself at least two or three nights in each city. Miami and Fort Lauderdale have also long been LGBT-welcoming, and, if you can, it's easy to combine all three in one trip. The New Year's celebration is held in the gayest part of Key West, which has long been one of the country's gayest cities. It effectively adds a dash of quirkiness to the traditional ball drop in Times Square and other run-of-the-mill celebrations around the country. Gay South Florida will take center stage this weekend when Key West's famed drag queen Sushi will descend from a balcony in a giant high-heel shoe as a cheering crowd counts down the new year.ĬNN traditionally broadcasts the shoe drop live.