Finding Gay Packages Online is the Best Way to
Compare and Get the Best Vacation Available.

It makes sense to shop around before you put down the money for your next vacation. The Internet makes it easier to find various companies that offer similar gay vacation packages, but it's still difficult to know just how to compare them. What you want to be sure of is that you're comparing like packages.  Here are some tips for not only comparing vacation costs but also the gay features these travel packages offer.

Top Picks:

Vacations for Gay Travelers at Travelocity. You can plan your trip on your own or get help and advice from one of their gay and lesbian travel experts.

Gay friendly travel online at Orbitz. Now offering great deals to the top holiday shopping destinations, including New York, San Francisco, Miami, and Los Angeles. Just Shop, Orbitz and Go!

Compare your final costs, not just list prices. Find out what is included with the package and what you're going to have to pay extra for. Fifty dollars here, a hundred dollars there, and soon the trip that looked cheaper is actually the more expensive one.

If a trip starts in the morning, or ends in the evening, you may have little choice but to spend the night in the hotel that the operator offers as an add-on option. Will it be expensive to get from the airport or train station to the starting point? Are there transportation costs during the trip which are not included? How many breakfasts, lunches, and dinners are included with your package? If they aren't be sure to estimate the cost before booking. Is wine (or other alcoholic beverages) included with dinner? Most of the time any alcohol is extra, you'll rarely find a package where it is included. Rarely do tour companies include tips in their list price. Some have a mandatory add-on for tips while others provide guidelines and leave it to your discretion.

If some activities wouldn't be of interest to everyone on a trip, the tour operator may treat them as extra options, for which you pay a fee. That's fair enough, but know what those extras are. What activities that you want to do will not be included? How much is the fee? You need to budget out all expenses like this to see the full cost of your holiday.  

Talk with people who have been on this trip. If you have several friends who took it or even a different trip with the same company. The tour company should also be happy to supply you with names of past customers. If they will not do so, perhaps citing a reason such as confidentiality, beware! Any company that's doing a good job can easily get permission from many past customers to serve as references. For those that won't, there's most likely a reason. Get opinions from at least two past travelers.

Be careful as you compare the length of two trips. Nights, not days, are the simplest way of measuring. A 7-night trip generally includes 6 full days and portions of two days at the beginning and end. Many companies call this an 8-day trip, some call it a 7-day trip. But do also compare the number of days, once you find out what portion of the beginning and ending days are really vacation time.

With the right help (usually from a travel agent) you can find accommodations that are gay and lesbian friendly and will leave travelers wondering if they ever left their own front door. You can have the choice of eating out or preparing your own meals. You can enjoy the luxury of entertaining in your own living room and then later, sinking back into an overstuffed sofa and relaxing, surrounded by the comforts and charm of a fine home. Best of all, you will be able to enjoy all this at up to half the cost of comparably-appointed upscale hotels.

Mandatory surcharges are just one of the factors to consider at before you settle on a vacation package. Make sure you check all the angles so you get the best gay vacation package tour available. And have FUN!