The "TripOut Gay Travel Awards" Honors Airline Carriers, Luxury Hotels, Bars, Tour Operators and Worldwide Destinations that Best Cater to the LGBT Traveler

Voters Can Review The Winners Starting Today on TripOutGayTravel.com

Logo's Constellation Of Sites Including TripOutGayTravel.com is Up 11% in Unique Visitors and 111% in Video Streams Year-To-Date

NEW YORK, Nov. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Logo, a unit of Viacom's MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), announced today that TripOutGayTravel.com, its comprehensive travel site dedicated to the LGBT traveler and MTV Networks' first stand-alone, travel-focused site, announced the winners of its first ever "TripOut Gay Travel Awards." The awards honor the most stylish, exciting and hottest destinations and services that attract, pamper and market to the LGBT traveler. The awards and winners will be officially celebrated tonight at a reception coinciding with the Community Marketing, Inc. 10th International Conference on Gay and Lesbian Tourism in Boston, MA with select honorees in attendance to receive their award.

The "TripOut Gay Travel Awards" honor the destinations and travel services that deserve such unique titles including "Sexiest Place on Earth," "Best Breakout Destination," "Ultimate Luxury Hotel" and "Best Gay Bar in the World" for the gay and lesbian community. TripOutGayTravel.com recruited an academy of seasoned writers, editors and travel experts covering the LGBT travel market to comprise this year's list of nominations. Over 100,000 votes were cast by the site's dedicated readers and fans to determine the title for the best gay destination, tour operator hospitality service and more. "The voting results showcase the places our community loves to visit, where and with whom they choose to spend their time and money, and which destinations and businesses truly excel in welcoming LGBT visitors," said John Polly, TripOutGayTravel.com's editor.

Reflecting Logo's depth online and its continual commitment to the LGBT audience "The TripOut Gay Travel Awards" were supported by LOGOonline's constellation of sites including LOGOonline.com, NewNowNext.com and 365Gay.com. In addition, Logo's monthly newsletters, TripOut Gay Travel and xoxoLogo, drove readers to vote online for their pick of the top LGBT travel destinations. In 2009, year-to-date average monthly unique visitors and average monthly video streams to the Logo constellation are up 11% and 111%, respectively above the same time period in 2008 (Omniture).

TripOutGayTravel.com launched in May 2009 providing LGBT travelers with the latest on gay travel through its vast editorial features, deep destination guide content and the web's largest gay travel video library. The site also invites users to recommend and comment on destinations, as well as discuss the thousands of travel listings on the site. While TripOutGayTravel.com is part of Logo's larger constellation of web properties, the site operates separately from LOGOonline.com. TripOutGayTravel.com marks the first stand-alone, travel-focused Web property launched by MTV Networks.

The TripOutGayTravel.com community also has the ability to book their next trip through the site, which is powered by Travelocity's booking engine. TripOutGayTravel.com provides a platform for travel aficionados to get informed and connect with other travel fanatics with user recommendations and a gay-friendly ratings system for travel destinations. Additionally the site features a daily travel blog, extensive travel video from LOGOonline.com and editorial features such as "The World's 10 Best Gay Beaches", "Quick & Easy Romantic Road Trips" and "The Most Historic LGBT Places in the U.S."

As a proud partner of the International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association (IGLTA), TripOutGayTravel.com showcases only the most trusted sources for gay travel planning. The site delivers a new style that creates a best-in-breed gay travel planning experience.

For more information about the nominees listed below, please go to TripOutGayTravel.com. A full list of nominees and winners for each category is listed below.

About Logo:

Logo is the world's leading ad-supported cable, satellite, online, mobile and digital entertainment gay and lesbian-themed network, from MTV Networks, a unit of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B). Launched in 2005, Logo's cable channel is in more than 39 million homes across the United States and is complemented by a federation of online properties, including LOGOonline.com, TripOutGayTravel.com, AfterEllen.com, AfterElton.com, 365Gay.com, DowneLink.com and NewNowNext.com. Logo's content is distributed across all leading download-to-own, streaming and mobile services. The most influential brand for the most influential audience, Logo provides a mix of original and acquired entertainment as well as news, social networking and community building that are authentic, smart, fun, entertaining, and inclusive. Logo joins MTV Networks' roster of popular and highly targeted brands which include MTV, Comedy Central, VH1 and Spike TV.

    Winners for the First Annual "TripOut Gay Travel Awards":
    Best Global Destination (City or Country)
    Barcelona
    Buenos Aires
    London
    Montreal
    Rio de Janeiro (WINNER)
    Sydney

    Best U.S. Destination
    New Orleans, Louisiana
    New York City, New York (WINNER)
    Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
    Portland, Oregon
    Provincetown, Massachusetts
    San Francisco, California

    Best Airline
    American (WINNER)
    Delta
    JetBlue
    Qantas
    Southwest
    Virgin America

    Best Hotel Chain (Collection)
    Ace Hotels
    Four Seasons
    Hyatt
    Kimpton
    Joie de Vivre
    W Hotels (WINNER)

    Best LGBT Tour Operator
    Alyson Adventures
    Atlantis Events (WINNER)
    R Family Cruises
    Sweet
    Undersea Expeditions
    Zoom Vacations

    Best Annual Gay Destination Party or Event
    Amsterdam Pride
    Burning Man
    Dinah Shore / The Dinah
    Madrid Pride (WINNER)
    Pride Toronto
    Sydney Mardi Gras

    Best Ultimate Luxury Hotel/Resort (Global)
    Wynn Las Vegas - Las Vegas, NV (WINNER)
    Fontainebleau Resort - Miami, FL
    Four Seasons Maui - Maui, HI
    Park Hyatt - Tokyo, Japan
    Singita Lodge & Game Reserves - Kruger National Park, South Africa
    Mandarin Oriental Dhari Devi Chiang Mai - Chiang Mai, Thailand

    Best Breakout Destination
    Bogota, Colombia
    Croatia
    Curacao, Dutch West Indies (WINNER)
    Mumbai, India
    Santiago, Chile
    Shanghai, China

    Sexiest Place on Earth
    Buenos Aires, the Palermo neighborhoods
    Fort Lauderdale, the beaches & bars
    Las Vegas, any hotel room
    Madrid, the Chueca neighborhood
    Mykonos, Elia Beach
    Paris, the Marais (WINNER)

    Best Gay Bar in the World
    The Abbey, Los Angeles (WINNER)
    Exit, Amsterdam
    Heaven, London
    Le Drugstore, Montreal
    Sidetrack, Chicago
    The Week, Rio & Sao Paulo

    The Gay+ Award for Achievement in Making our World Gayer
    Richard Gray
    "Richard Gray Consulting"

SOURCE Logo

Back to top

RELATED LINKS
http://www.TripOutGayTravel.com