The Best LGBTQ Travel Appsย 

A white man with black glasses, dark hair and a beard looks at a smartphone at the best LGBTQ travel apps.

Iโ€™m a big travel planner. For me, planning a trip is part of the fun. 

Along with my own personal travel itinerary filled with queer-friendly things to see, I rely on gay travel apps to help me make the most of a destination. 

Whether Iโ€™m visiting somewhere LGBTQ travel safety is a concern, or just looking to connect to the local queer community, having the right LGBTQ travel apps downloaded on my phone helps me make the most out of any vacation. 

Want to make your next trip more LGBTQ-friendly? Add these 11 gay travel apps to your device before your next trip!  

1. MisterB&b

Misterb&b is a favorite of many gay travelers. Itโ€™s essentially an accommodations app just for LGBTQ-owned hotels and LGBTQ-friendly hotels and vacation rentals. 

Since Misterb&b also has local city guides, you can make the most of queer Paris, London or Bangkok with recommendations from gay locals. 

While Airbnb is also gay friendly (more on that below), itโ€™s helpful to have an alternative thatโ€™s built by queer travelers for queer travelers. 

Despite the โ€œMisterโ€ in its name, Misterb&b isnโ€™t just for gay and bi men โ€“ it strives to be an inclusive travel app for the entire LGBTQ travel community.

2. Spartacus International Gay Guide

The Spartacus International Gay Guide started back in the 1970s as a printed guidebook to gay travel. Spartacus later became a digital guidebook and eventually a gay travel app, helping the queer community travel safer and smarter. 

Spartacus provides detailed information about LGBTQ rights in countries around the world. 

I check this information ahead of time, so I know what to expect โ€“โ€“ but for spontaneous travelers, Spartacus sounds like a useful tool. 

If youโ€™re wondering which countries are LGBTQ-friendly, what rights and protections local people enjoy in a destination youโ€™re visiting, or the most LGBTQ-friendly cities in a particular country, give Spartacus a try and let me know what you think!

Two men sitting together in a hostel lobby.

3. Everywhere is Queer

Everywhere is Queer started as a free public database of queer-owned businesses around the world. 

Everywhere is Queer has over 9,000 LGBTQ-owned businesses around the world: everything from gay bars and gay hotels to queer-owned thrift stores and boba tea shops. 

This year, the team launched a queer travel app to help you discover LGBTQ-owned hotels, restaurants, clubs, bars, and so much more. 

I used Everywhere is Queer to look up queer things to do in Las Vegas before my recent trip. Sadly, several of the businesses I found on the map had closed. 

Now that there’s an app version of Everywhere is Queer, I’m hopeful it will be kept updated, funneling gay and lesbian travelers to the queer-owned businesses that are still open โ€“ and need our support!

4. Arch


Arch
is a gay travel directory with over 10,000 recommendations for gay bars, restaurants, Pride events and more. 

Use the in-app map to identify queer-friendly places near you. You can also read reviews from other gay travelers or write your own reviews. 

While Arch is a great idea, this LGBTQ travel app hasn’t been updated since 2019. 

Given how many LGBTQ-owned businesses closed in the pandemic, I’d skip this one in favor of the recently-released Everywhere is Queer.  If Arch updates their gay travel app, I’ll let you know here! 

5. Scruff/Grindr

Full disclosure: I don’t use Scruff or Grindr. I’m not in their target audience. But after talking with gay travel bloggers Nomadic Boys, I learned how these gay hookup apps help gay travelers discover new destinationsโ€ฆand not necessarily in that way! 

The Nomadic Boys shared with me how these apps kind of become the LGBTQ scene in countries where it’s unsafe to be openly queer. 

They told me Grindr helps gay travelers connect with locals, learn about underground parties, and find safe and affirming places to go. 

Learn more about how they use apps like Grindr for travel, and why they recommend doing so in places where LGBTQ identities are criminalized.

After talking to them about Grindr as a travel app, I was inspired to search for Grindr alternatives that nonbinary and lesbian travelers could use. In a way, our conversation inspired this post! 

6. HER

HER is a queer dating app built by queer women for queer women, gender expansive and nonbinary people. While I haven’t used HER since I’m happily partnered, it sounds like it would offer a similar experience to Grindr for shes and theys looking to connect with local queer folks. 

HER includes a community feature listing LGBTQ events, local queer meetups and more.

7. Lex


Lex
is a queer social app designed to help folks connect to their local LGBTQ+ community. You can use the app to discover what’s already happening near you and tap into queer meetups, LGBTQ book clubs, lesbian hiking groups, and so much more. 

Lex was designed to be used locally, but it also sounds like the perfect LGBTQ travel app! I love discovering queer bars, drag brunches, and other LGBTQ hotspots when I travel. I’m excited to give Lex a try on my next trip and see what else I might uncover happening around me.

A group of black women sitting around a table enjoying a meal.

8. Airbnb

Many LGBTQ travelers prefer vacation rentals as a travel safety matter. Vacation rentals are private, so there are no awkward interactions or misgendering when youโ€™re on your own in a rented house. 

I was a loyal Airbnb user for over a decade. 

I intentionally put my sexuality in my profile so hosts could decline me if they weren’t comfortable hosting an LGBTQ person. This helped me feel safe while traveling solo or with a same-sex partner. 

Because Airbnb was budget-friendly, it made travel accessible to me. 

I loved Airbnb so much, I even became a host. So if you’re wondering is Airbnb gay friendly, I can personally assure you – yes, it is! 

These days, I seldom use Airbnb for vacation rentals. Personally, I’ve gotten fed up with the high cleaning fees, lack of transparency, and mediocre accommodations on Airbnb – the bland sameness journalist Kyle Charka calls โ€œairspace.โ€ 

 I do keep Airbnb on my phone. These days, I use it for its Experiences feature. 

Searching Experiences, I’ve discovered LGBTQ walking tours in New Orleans, Montreal, and Tokyo. 

Sometimes I’ve booked these tours, giving money directly to queer locals who enjoy showing gay and lesbian tourists around their community. Other times, I took the DIY approach and visited the places listed on my own.

A Pride flag hangs outside Goldfinger bar in Tokyo, which has a gold door and sign reading Goldfinger girl meets girl.

9. Booking

When I stopped using Airbnb for accommodations. I turned to Booking. I prefer their transparency and โ€“ depending on what you book โ€“ flexible cancellation policies. 

Booking has some LGBTQ friendly features. Through their Travel Proud program, accommodations can get inclusive hospitality training. This helps hotel staff to make sure queer and trans travelers feel welcome during their stay.  

Hotels that have gone through the Travel Proud program get a badge displayed on their listing, which helps me find affirming hotels through their app or web search. 

10. Agoda

My wife and I discovered Agoda on our Thailand honeymoon. We tend to use it when traveling internationally, since Agoda isn’t as popular in the US. We have found some great stays through the app – but is Agoda LGBTQ friendly? 

I’m happy to report – yes! Agoda has an affinity group for LGBTQI employees called Agoda Colors. Read some of the moving and inspiring stories of Agoda’s LGBTQI employees and you might be inspired to give this hotel booking app a try! 

Bungalow accommodations in Thailand, with a courtyard full of palm trees and banana plants.

11. Google Maps

Google Maps is one of my favorite LGBTQ travel tools. 

Recently, we started creating Google Maps for our trips. We save our hotels and any planned things to do, like a museum, a restaurant we’ve made a reservation for, or the meeting place for an LGBTQ walking tour. We also save restaurants, gay bars and other attractions. This way, it’s easy to tell just by opening Google maps when we’re near something of interest. 

Using Google Maps this way helps us quickly and discreetly see what’s nearby โ€“ without taking out our travel agenda, a paper map, or a guidebook.

I have nothing against maps or guidebooks, but sometimes as queer travelers it’s better to blend in than stand out, and Google Maps lets me be discreet! 

I also use Google Maps to get directions and public transit options. In Japan, we used Google Maps to navigate the complex Japan Rail system. In Greece, Google Maps helped me explore everything from Athens to Meteora to the beautiful UNESCO gem of Zagorohoria.

Newsletter subscribers get a list of my queer travel maps to help with their trip planning. Sign up here to gain access!ย 

To make the most of my Google Maps, I always save an offline version to my device. This way, I don’t need to be connected to hotel WiFi or pay for a local SIM. I can see what I saved anytime, anywhere. 

A three-arched stone bridge in the Zagori region of Greece, with a dry riverbed full of stones below.

Do you know of any LGBTQ travel apps that should be added to this list? If so, please send me your favorite recommendations and I’ll keep this list updated so we can all travel with greater ease.