GayCities Announces Its Best of 2022 Awards

December 2, 2022 Vacationer Staff

As part of a prize giveaway contest, GayCities invited their readers to take part in a poll in order to determine their “Best of GayCities 2022” award winners. Covering a multitude of categories including favorite beaches, nightclubs, and resorts, the following is a roundup of some of the key categories and their winners.

Timeless ‘Hood

Castro, San Francisco

Castro Theater in San Francisco (Photo Credit: CanY71/iStock)

When asked what their favorite queer neighborhood is in the US, no surprise, readers voted for San Francisco’s Castro neighborhood for the win. There is no denying the appeal and history that is contained within the Castro in addition to the awesome bars, restaurants, and entertainment available on the legendary strip. Chicago’s Northalsted and New York City’s Hell’s Kitchen came in second and third, respectively.

Fun in the Sun

Black’s Beach, San Diego

Black's Beach in San Diego, California — Black’s Beach in San Diego (Photo Credit: Tristan Loper via Flickr)

The criteria for the best gay beach were limited to areas that enjoy year-round sunshine and tourism and of those, Black’s Beach took the cake. Check out our roundup of gay beaches in the US and some of our favorite nude beaches around the world right here on Vacationer.

Insta-Travelers

Nomadic Boys (@nomadicboys)

Stiges, Spain (Photo Credit: Nomadic Boys) — Sitges, Spain (Photo Credit: Nomadic Boys)

This was a tough category for us because so many of our favorite Instagram influencers were up for the honor, but we are more than thrilled that our friends Sebastien and Stefan aka The Nomadic Boys won the title!

Nightclub

Sidetrack, Chicago

The competition was stiff for the best nightclub, which included NYC’s 3 Dollar Bill, Piranha in Vegas, and Twist in Miami, but Chicago reigns supreme this year with Sidetrack.

Lesbian Hangout

Jolene’s, San Francisco

A category near and dear to our hearts, we celebrate all lesbian nightlife spaces here at Vacationer. Jolene’s is fantastic but we also recommend any one of the establishments mentioned by our friends at the Lesbian Bar Project.

Stay Gay

Island House, Key West

GayCities readers have proclaimed Island House in Key West as their favorite gay resort. The property has the most incredible staff and creates such a lively, welcoming environment that this comes as no surprise.

Small Town Pride

Sitges Pride, Sitges

Sitges Pride Parade (Photo Credit: Sitges Pride)

Bigger isn’t always better when it comes to Pride celebrations. Sitges topped the list of the smaller Pride celebrations that were up for the honor. Other nominees included Blue Ridge Pride Festival in Asheville and Utah Pride Festival in Salt Lake City.

For a complete list of categories and winners head on over to GayCities.