Chicago offers all of the excitement of a bustling American city with unique neighborhoods, great art and culture and nightlife, a vibrant LGBT and leather community, and a big Midwestern heart.

When you hear Tahiti, the typical response is to say, "far." But, in actuality, the amazingly authentic islands of French Polynesia are only a few extra hours from Hawaii, the go-to tropical island destination for many Americans.

Make a cool escape to the Pacific Northwest’s Portland and Seattle.

If you’re looking for a lazy weekend with some specks of city flavor, perhaps a car ride north to the Russian River Valley can give you the "R & R" you desire without feeling too far from your city roots.

We’re having a traditional Thai massage under a palm tree on the beach at Jomtien, south of Pattaya city on the Bay of Thailand. Big, strong Thai masseur, big, strong hands, he twists Out There up into a salty little pretzel.

Businesses in Guerneville are optimistic for a busy summer season this year. The famed Triple R resort reopened a little over six months ago with a new name, r3, and its bar reopened on New Year’s Eve.

Larger than life, gay and lesbian Australians offer a warm "G’day, mate," to their LGBT American counterparts as well as a variety of adventures and experiences for queer travelers.

If you are like most people from the USA, you probably have never heard of Torremolinos, but it is one of the gayest vacation towns in the world.

Opened this past July the market is one of several new upscale stores setting up shop in Sonoma County’s gay getaway resort town along the Russian River. The establishments are injecting a bit of city life into the tranquil country setting.

Long a destination for weddings, Hawaii extended the aloha spirit this year to civil unions and wedding planners are anxiously awaiting the stroke of midnight on December 31 when LGBT couples take advantage of the new law

"Half of the people here are homosexual," said the narrator on the TMZ Hollywood Tour bus video, adding, "the rest are just gay."

On a beautiful spring day in the oft-rainy city of Vancouver, British Columbia, where Out There was there doing a little gay reconnaissance, it seemed the whole urban populace was outside, enjoying the natural light.

Just a 90-minute drive from San Francisco, the Russian River has a long history of being one of the Bay Area’s favorite getaways. "It’s gays meet hippies meet rednecks - and we all get along," says one Guerneville resident.

"Do you know the way to San Jose?" Dionne Warwick famously asked, channeling Burt Bacharach and Hal David . Yes, Out There does, but truth be told, we don’t find ourselves driving SJ-bound all that often.