LGBTQ Travel Guide: San Francisco
Bay Area boasts wide range of options for queer visitors
BY HEATHER CASSELL
I never get over looking out of
the plane window from my
seat and seeing the Golden
Gate Bridge and the City of
San Francisco perched on the edge
of the bay.
San Francisco always inspires
adventure and excitement for me.
From its heady Gold Rush days to
today’s technology boom, the city
is known for adventure, experimentation,
and innovation. It is
also the gateway to multiple experiences
throughout the Bay Area,
especially in California’s premier
wine regions of Napa and Sonoma.
I’m a little bit biased, though,
since San Francisco is my home.
On any typical weekend, I dine
and drink with my girlfriend in the
city, wine country, or around the
Bay Area, where we enjoy many
LGBTQ events and cultural offerings
with our friends.
San Francisco, Sonoma, and the
greater Bay Area are once again
welcoming visitors and events.
Here is an insider’s guide for a fabulous
week of exploring San Francisco
and Sonoma.
What’s happening
Pride Month is right around the
corner. Visitors can check out Pride
events in San Francisco (June 24-
26) and Sonoma (June 3-5), along
with Out in the Vineyard, Pino on
the River (dates to be determined),
The Laugh Cellar (year-round),
and the many themed weekends,
such as Women’s Weekend (May
20-22), Lazy Bear Week (August
1-8), and the gay rodeo known as
Best Buck in the Bay. If you’re in
San Francisco in September, the
leather crowd will gather for the
Folsom Street Fair.
“We’ve got some gay going on,”
Gary Saperstein, a former New
Yorker who has called Sonoma his
home for more than 25 years, said
about the LGBTQ events in Sonoma
this season.
A gay wine hospitality and travel
company, Out in the Vineyard, is
kicking off its season April 9 with
Black Vines. Guests will sip wine
crafted by gay winemaker Jérôme
San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge at sunset.
A carnival dancer at San Francisco Pride.
Chéry at Fog Crest Vineyards, a
Black woman-owned winery in the
Russian River Valley.
Later this year, Out in the
Vineyard will host Pink Saturday
(May 14), a day celebrating rosé,
and Gay Wine Weekend (July 15-
17), which has attracted LGBTQ
wine afi cionados. Saperstein said
more smaller events might be announced
throughout the season.
The Laugh Cellar’s annual Wine
Country Comedy Festival is one
of the hottest events. Prior to the
pandemic, it drew up to 1,200 people
at some of Napa and Sonoma’s
iconic wineries. The festival’s 2022
dates and comedian lineup are
on the verge of being announced.
Check The Laugh Cellar’s website
for festival updates.
San Francisco
Get the San Francisco experience
when you arrive. Book a bay
room at the Harbor Court Hotel,
which is perfectly situated on
the Embarcadero and features a
YMCA. It is steps away from the
world-renowned Ferry Building
ADOBESTOCK/HEYENGEL
SAN FRANCISCO TRAVEL ASSOCIATION
and provides easy access to the
Castro and popular neighborhoods
like Union Square, North Beach,
Chinatown, the Mission District,
and the Haight Ashbury.
There are some must-do things
in San Francisco, especially for
LGBTQ visitors: Explore the Castro
and Transgender District, go
on the Cruisin’ The Castro Walking
Tours, visit the GLBT Society History
Museum, and check out a new
gay-owned art gallery, Schlomer
Haus Gallery, in the Castro.
Stop in at lesbian-owned cafes
like Equator Coffee, the newest location
at the Golden Gate Bridge’s visitor’s
center, and refuel at the Dolores
Park Café on the edge of the Castro
and Mission neighborhoods.
Get a different view of the city
from the observatory Ferris wheel,
SkyStar Wheel, in Golden Gate
Park. The wheel will be open
through March 2025.
At night, enjoy the neighborhood’s
lively nightlife, from the
historical landmark, Twin Peaks
Tavern, to Harvey’s, named after
TRAVEL
Harvey Milk. Head out to dinner
and dancing at AsiaSF.
On weekends, get your drag on
at Oasis or enjoy drag brunch at
The Vault Steakhouse.
The San Francisco Bay Area is
a gastronomic paradise. It’s hard
to go wrong dining here. Some of
my favorite restaurants in the city
are Boulevard, Fiorella, Foreign
Cinema, Mandalay Restaurant,
Ozumo, Kabuto, Osha Thai, Fior
d’Italia, and Harris Ranch.
Sonoma
Regardless of the style and vibe
you are going for, you can fi nd it
when you cross over the Golden
Gate Bridge for the hour-long drive
to wine country. Check into the
Flamingo Resort for a cool retro
chic vibe in Santa Rosa or try the
Duchamp Hotel in Healdsburg for
modern wine country. The Kenwood
Inn and Spa offers the classic
wine country experience. Other
options include the lesbian-owned
Boon Hotel + Spa or gay-owned
The Carriage House at Olive Queen
Farm in the Russian River Valley.
Delight in California’s food and
wine offerings with guided and
self-guided food tours with Sonoma
Food and Wine Tour and Savor
Healdsburg. Alternatively, venture
out on your own on the California
Cheese Trail.
There are so many great restaurants
to select from in Sonoma.
When I get hungry, one of my favorite
places is Boon Eat + Drink.
I also head to Brava Bar de Tapas,
Spoonbar, Campo Fina, Catelli’s,
Girl and the Fig, El Dorado Kitchen,
or Salt and Stone.
To get my day started right,
there’s no place like The Spinster
Sisters or queer couple-owned
Brew Coffee and Beer House.
To satisfy my sweet tooth I like
to get an ice cream cone or pie at
gay-owned Noble Folk.
I pair the great food with amazing
Sonoma wines from Black gayowned
Corner 103. The owner,
Lloyd Davis, truly elevates the wine
tasting experience in downtown
Sonoma. There are more than 425
wineries and many LGBTQ winemakers
in Sonoma.
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