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There's only one Asian country where gay marriage is legal, but the race is on for second place!

Asia offers so much for gay travellers. Whether you’re looking for rich cultural experiences, magnificent natural wonders or exciting gay parties, Asia’s got it all.

We’ve put together all our experiences and adventures from our travels in Asia including travelling on the Trans-Siberian Railway through Russia, camping with Mongolian nomads in the Gobi Desert, hiking with Sherpas in the Himalayas of Nepal, partying in the awesome gay bars of Bangkok, trying fried scorpions and tarantulas in Cambodia and standing in awe at the Great Wall of China outside of Beijing.

Is Asia safe for gay travellers?

Asia is generally a very conservative continent and not as gay friendly as Europe and America. It therefore pays to be careful in Asia, particularly in countries where homosexuality is illegal (like in Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Myanmar, Malaysia) or it’s such a taboo that being open can get you into a lot of trouble (like in Indonesia and Russia).

On the whole, we generally found Southeast Asia to be more welcoming towards LGBTQ travellers, with pockets of fabulousness in East Asia (like Japan and Taiwan) as well as in South Asia (like Nepal and India).

Our top pics for gay havens in Asia which welcome LGBTQ travellers the most include: Taiwan, Thailand, Japan, Nepal and Cambodia.

Our favourite gay destinations in Asia

Some of our favourite places that we’d go back to in a heartbeat for the gay parties include the Songkran Circuit parties in April in Bangkok and Taipei Pride in October – the largest gay event in Asia. As foodies, we were particularly enthralled by the thalis of India, the curries of Sri Lanka, anything Japanese(!), and the delicious street food across Thailand and Malaysia. As divers, we loved the coral reefs around Indonesia’s Komodo National Park, Japan’s tropical southern Yaeyama islands and El Nido in the Philippines.

Some of our most popular gay travel content about Asia includes:

Gay travel to Asia: our latest posts

Below you’ll find our latest content relating to gay travel in Asia, from city guides, country travel guides, inspiring content detailing our experiences, and more!