This is just a starting point to help you with your annual travel planning. Feel free to add other suggestions for your fellow readers in the Comments section. This is a big dick website so I tended to list more adult themed events -- drinking, nudity, sex. There are many worthwhile flower and tea festivals I'm sure. I did not list those.
For more travel suggestions and tips, join The Travel Group. http://www.lpsg.org/groups/175-travel+group/
JAN
New Year's Eve (OK that's technically Dec.)
Best: Times Square, New York Bring a piece of cardboard to stand on. You'll be amazed how it will keep your feet from getting as cold.
2nd: Jackson Square, New Orleans (but much better weather)
New Year's Day
Mummer's Parade, Philadelphia
14 hour parade down Broad St. Everyone goes. Bars are hopping with people coming in to warm up. Order the vegetarian stromboli to go at Pine Street Pizza. Lots of gay folk watch the parade at the Spruce St. intersection.
Rose Parade, Pasadena
More family oriented
1st weekend
AVN Adult Entertainment Expo, Las Vegas
Pornopalooza. Get autographs from your favorite stars and free calendars, DVD's, sex toys, etc.
Hustlaball, Las Vegas
Rentboy.com's annual porn star and male escort extravaganza. Feast on the eye candy. And bring cash.
3rd Sunday
Superbowl, rotating locations
Legendary tailgating.
Last Saturday
Gasparilla Pirate Festival, Tampa
One of the biggest parades in the country. All demographics but lots of college kids drinking, puking, passing out. Fun.
FEB
2nd Saturday? Seems to vary.
Ybor City Night Parade, Tampa
A more adult parade in the bar district. Beads, beads, beads.
2nd Monday
President's Day weekend
Suggestions??
Date varies widely
Mardi Gras, New Orleans
Carnival, Rio de Janeiro
Much more nudity at Rio, but you can't have a bad time on Bourbon Street (unless you get arrested).
MAR
1st weekend
Gay Rodeo, Fort Worth. Yee-haw! Ride 'em Cowboy.
March 17th or the Saturday before
St. Patrick's Day
Legendary parties in Boston, Savannah, Chicago
Varies
Spring Break
Too many places to list
3rd weekend
SXSW (South by Southwest), Austin
100 bands, thousands of music fans
APR
2nd weekend
White Party, Palm Springs
Gay dance party extraordinaire
(Fly into Ontario for cheaper fares)
Lots of fun resorts for guys to stay at. Who doesn't love an active steamroom?
Last weekend
Coachella Music Festival, Indio CA
225,000 attendees so big names as well as rising stars
MAY
5th
Cinco de Mayo
Suggestions??
1st Saturday
Kentucky Derby, Louisville
(Fly into Cincinnati for MUCH cheaper fares)Infield used to be wild. They've cracked down in recent years. Try Preakness instead if you want hardcore partying.
3rd Saturday
Preakness, Baltimore
Wild infield scene and hot college crowd. Also known as The Freakness. "Drink till you piss like a racehorse" the t-shirts say.
3rd Sunday
Bay to Breakers Run, San Francisco
Get drunk and run naked with thousands of your friends.
Last Monday
Memorial Day weekend
International Mr. Leather, Chicago
Thousands of the hottest men in the world at a 4 star hotel plus the largest leather, porn, and sex toy market you will ever see.
Party Cove, Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri
Three days of uninhibited exhibitionism and floating hedonism.
JUN
Almost every Sunday somewhere
Gay Pride Parades
New York, L.A., Chicago, Toronto are the big ones but almost every city of any size has one.
2nd full weekend
Bonnaroo Music Festival, Tennessee
80,000 descend on a 700 acre farm to camp out and listen to music for 4 days
Varies
Wet N Hot, Palm Springs
Biggest gay watersports party of the year. Reserve early if you want to stay at the host hotel.
JUL
4th of July
Too many options to list but I'm willing to listen to your suggestions of standouts
2nd week of July
Party Naked!! It's national Nude Recreation Week. Head to your local nude beach or nudist resort.
Last Sunday
Up Your Alley Festival, San Francisco (sometimes erroneously called Dore Alley Festival). Leather and fetish event. Not as large as Folsom (see Sept.) but not as many tourists or looky-loos either.
AUG
1st Week
Biker Week, Sturgis SD
Half a million attendees!
1st Weekend
Market Days, Chicago
Gay street festival
3rd week
Gay Naturists International
700 naked gay men camp out for a week in Pennsylvania. Lots of wholesome outdoor fun including canoeing, volleyball, and sex.
3rd weekend
Big Muscle Weekend, Las Vegas
Bodybuilders galore at Blue Moon gay resort
SEP
1st Monday
Labor Day
Burning Man, Nevada desert
Cannot be adequately described. Hardcore alternative partiers, some nudity, and sex is widely available.
Other suggestions?
Last Sunday
Folsom Street Fair, San Francisco
Gay leather community's huge street festival. Third largest event in California (aftrer the Rose Parade and San Francisco Pride). Magnitude dance party has dedicated play space to indulge your erotic urges.
OCT
1st or 2nd weekend
Great American Beer Festival, Denver
Largest beer festival on the planet
1st or 2nd weekend
Red River Rivalry
Texas - Oklahoma game played at the Cotton Bowl during the State Fair of Texas
2nd weekend
Austin City Limits Music Festival, Austin
Live music capital of the world puts on an outdoor music festival.
2nd Monday
Columbus Day weekend
Suggestions??
3rd weekend
Exotic Erotic Ball, San Francisco
Last Saturday
World's Largest Cocktail Party, Jacksonville
They don't call it that anymore for legal reasons, but the Florida - Georgia game weekend is for serious partiers.
Last Saturday or the 31st
Halloween (many locations)
Standouts:
Fantasy Fest, Key West
Wild costumes and partial nudity
West Hollywood Costume Carnival, 500,000 attendees.
Also the gay districts of many large cities have parades.
NOV
3rd weekend
Mr. Olympia, Las Vegas
THE bodybuilding contest. Lots of prime beef to admire even in the audience
Varies
Michigan - Ohio game
Probably the biggest college football rivalry. Alternates between Ann Arbor and Columbus. The better parties are the Columbus years due to local geography.
For more travel suggestions and tips, join The Travel Group. http://www.lpsg.org/groups/175-travel+group/
JAN
New Year's Eve (OK that's technically Dec.)
Best: Times Square, New York Bring a piece of cardboard to stand on. You'll be amazed how it will keep your feet from getting as cold.
2nd: Jackson Square, New Orleans (but much better weather)
New Year's Day
Mummer's Parade, Philadelphia
14 hour parade down Broad St. Everyone goes. Bars are hopping with people coming in to warm up. Order the vegetarian stromboli to go at Pine Street Pizza. Lots of gay folk watch the parade at the Spruce St. intersection.
Rose Parade, Pasadena
More family oriented
1st weekend
AVN Adult Entertainment Expo, Las Vegas
Pornopalooza. Get autographs from your favorite stars and free calendars, DVD's, sex toys, etc.
Hustlaball, Las Vegas
Rentboy.com's annual porn star and male escort extravaganza. Feast on the eye candy. And bring cash.
3rd Sunday
Superbowl, rotating locations
Legendary tailgating.
Last Saturday
Gasparilla Pirate Festival, Tampa
One of the biggest parades in the country. All demographics but lots of college kids drinking, puking, passing out. Fun.
FEB
2nd Saturday? Seems to vary.
Ybor City Night Parade, Tampa
A more adult parade in the bar district. Beads, beads, beads.
2nd Monday
President's Day weekend
Suggestions??
Date varies widely
Mardi Gras, New Orleans
Carnival, Rio de Janeiro
Much more nudity at Rio, but you can't have a bad time on Bourbon Street (unless you get arrested).
MAR
1st weekend
Gay Rodeo, Fort Worth. Yee-haw! Ride 'em Cowboy.
March 17th or the Saturday before
St. Patrick's Day
Legendary parties in Boston, Savannah, Chicago
Varies
Spring Break
Too many places to list
3rd weekend
SXSW (South by Southwest), Austin
100 bands, thousands of music fans
APR
2nd weekend
White Party, Palm Springs
Gay dance party extraordinaire
(Fly into Ontario for cheaper fares)
Lots of fun resorts for guys to stay at. Who doesn't love an active steamroom?
Last weekend
Coachella Music Festival, Indio CA
225,000 attendees so big names as well as rising stars
MAY
5th
Cinco de Mayo
Suggestions??
1st Saturday
Kentucky Derby, Louisville
(Fly into Cincinnati for MUCH cheaper fares)Infield used to be wild. They've cracked down in recent years. Try Preakness instead if you want hardcore partying.
3rd Saturday
Preakness, Baltimore
Wild infield scene and hot college crowd. Also known as The Freakness. "Drink till you piss like a racehorse" the t-shirts say.
3rd Sunday
Bay to Breakers Run, San Francisco
Get drunk and run naked with thousands of your friends.
Last Monday
Memorial Day weekend
International Mr. Leather, Chicago
Thousands of the hottest men in the world at a 4 star hotel plus the largest leather, porn, and sex toy market you will ever see.
Party Cove, Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri
Three days of uninhibited exhibitionism and floating hedonism.
JUN
Almost every Sunday somewhere
Gay Pride Parades
New York, L.A., Chicago, Toronto are the big ones but almost every city of any size has one.
2nd full weekend
Bonnaroo Music Festival, Tennessee
80,000 descend on a 700 acre farm to camp out and listen to music for 4 days
Varies
Wet N Hot, Palm Springs
Biggest gay watersports party of the year. Reserve early if you want to stay at the host hotel.
JUL
4th of July
Too many options to list but I'm willing to listen to your suggestions of standouts
2nd week of July
Party Naked!! It's national Nude Recreation Week. Head to your local nude beach or nudist resort.
Last Sunday
Up Your Alley Festival, San Francisco (sometimes erroneously called Dore Alley Festival). Leather and fetish event. Not as large as Folsom (see Sept.) but not as many tourists or looky-loos either.
AUG
1st Week
Biker Week, Sturgis SD
Half a million attendees!
1st Weekend
Market Days, Chicago
Gay street festival
3rd week
Gay Naturists International
700 naked gay men camp out for a week in Pennsylvania. Lots of wholesome outdoor fun including canoeing, volleyball, and sex.
3rd weekend
Big Muscle Weekend, Las Vegas
Bodybuilders galore at Blue Moon gay resort
SEP
1st Monday
Labor Day
Burning Man, Nevada desert
Cannot be adequately described. Hardcore alternative partiers, some nudity, and sex is widely available.
Other suggestions?
Last Sunday
Folsom Street Fair, San Francisco
Gay leather community's huge street festival. Third largest event in California (aftrer the Rose Parade and San Francisco Pride). Magnitude dance party has dedicated play space to indulge your erotic urges.
OCT
1st or 2nd weekend
Great American Beer Festival, Denver
Largest beer festival on the planet
1st or 2nd weekend
Red River Rivalry
Texas - Oklahoma game played at the Cotton Bowl during the State Fair of Texas
2nd weekend
Austin City Limits Music Festival, Austin
Live music capital of the world puts on an outdoor music festival.
2nd Monday
Columbus Day weekend
Suggestions??
3rd weekend
Exotic Erotic Ball, San Francisco
Last Saturday
World's Largest Cocktail Party, Jacksonville
They don't call it that anymore for legal reasons, but the Florida - Georgia game weekend is for serious partiers.
Last Saturday or the 31st
Halloween (many locations)
Standouts:
Fantasy Fest, Key West
Wild costumes and partial nudity
West Hollywood Costume Carnival, 500,000 attendees.
Also the gay districts of many large cities have parades.
NOV
3rd weekend
Mr. Olympia, Las Vegas
THE bodybuilding contest. Lots of prime beef to admire even in the audience
Varies
Michigan - Ohio game
Probably the biggest college football rivalry. Alternates between Ann Arbor and Columbus. The better parties are the Columbus years due to local geography.
