We were there, VACAYA’s inaugural cruise, August 2019, living it, loving it, kissing it, sometimes spanking it, pulling out of NYC for a week of boys, boys, boys, some girls but mostly boys, sailing up to Canada then right back down to New York again, via a sleepover in Provincetown just in case this ship wasn’t gay enough already.
The new gay cruise kid on the block (well, LGBT+, but the G’s totally in italics), VACAYA has quickly established itself as one of the biggies – partly because of their pedigree, clever people pooled from a bunch of the other gay cruise biggies, but mostly because they do things differently. They see your other cruises, they raise you diversity, friendliness, gorgeous hi-spec ships, entertainment with turns you’ve actually heard of (we had Kristin Chenoweth, Katharine McPhee, Leslie Jordan off-of Will & Grace, names, names, names on ours), daily themed parties with more costume changes than a Real Housewives sponsored trip to Dubai, plus destinations and itineraries that *checks notes* break the mould.
That P’Town cameo we mentioned was a first for a big gay cruise ship, and now, emerging out of Covid like Diana Ross through dry ice, VACAYA has launched a calendar of stellar cruises (and the odd dry-land jolly), but most kick-ass is their Antarctica voyage. Setting sail in December 2022, it’s the first LGBT+ full ship charter to Antarctica, on one of the most luxurious expedition ships out there, Ponant’s Le Boreal. Ten days exploring Antarctica with a pre-cruise night in Buenos Aires and round-trip flights to Ushuaia (where the cruise begins and ends) thrown in, it’s a total game changer for big gay cruises. Did somebody say kick-ice?
Now, what are we going to wear? We have these cute Burberry snow boots with faux-fur lining that will just make the snow pop…
See more Briefings