In the 1970s gay tours took men rafting in the Grand Canyon and to Rio de Janeiro for Carnival. Gay hotels began opening in Key West, Fla. And destinations like Provincetown, Mass., were creating some of the first marketing to gay and lesbian travelers.
Today, there are tours spanning the globe not only for gay men, but also for lesbian, bisexual and transgender travelers and their children. Major hotel chains like Hilton and Marriott have dedicated L.G.B.T. microsites and vacation packages. And same-sex marriage laws are transforming cities into travel destinations, with tourism boards and hotels sponsoring L.G.B.T. events and funding advertising campaigns with taglines like Las Vegas’s “Everyone’s welcome. Even straight people.”