It's no secret that local deals sites like Groupon and LivingSocial offer great ways to save some dough on unique experiences in your hometown. But with a little planning, they can also be a boon to the savvy traveler who exercises some patience and foresight. Consider the latest and greatest – and the only one out there geared for and curated by the gay community – The Daily Hookup. If you're heading to gay hubs San Francisco, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, or New York City they've got a deal for you (and we're not talking out-of-the-way spas, second-tier restaurants, or Crocheting for Dummies 101).
Say you're currently on vacation in NYC or planning a trip in the next few weeks. Log on now and score yourself a $100 gift certificate for only $50 to anything at preppy men's atelier John Bartlett in the West Village. Buy it now; use it by July 31. Simple.
Follow the jump for previews of upcoming sales.
If partying is more your thing – and you need a place to show off those new duds – The Daily Hookup will be offering a $25 open-bar bracelet (45 percent off the retail price of $55) for Privé at 49 Grove, a Wednesday gay night at a speakeasy-type basement bar in the heart of the West Village.
Or for souvenirs back home, a members-only discounted offer for Les Etoiles du Soleil, a French boutique in the heart of Chelsea, that sells amazing home goods (pillows, deck chairs, chaise lounges) and upholstered items using fabrics imported directly from France. Think Hamptons by way of Provence.
CEO Mario Correa also gives a preview of his plans to levy their staff of sexy “curators” (basically connected gay guys in each city who vet each deal) to create members-only experiences and one-of-a-kind events that could not only enhance a vacation but also help you connect with the locals. Or, as he says, “a real-world, social component to our social buying service – a way for gay guys to translate their interests into meaningful, real-world interaction.” Dare we say, the offers create an authentic travel experience:
- a multi-day wine tour of Napa Valley curated by Yigit Pura, winner of Top Chef: Desserts and Peter Denny, a culture vulture for the San Francisco MOMA.
- a spectacular evening at a Malibu beach house (read: party) hosted by Orlando Soria from HGTV's Secrets From a Stylist
- gay trips on interesting cruise routes in conjunction with SmartCruiser.com
- homo takeover nights at various Broadway shows
- member-only trunk show-style experiences and champagne shopfests with design showrooms and high-end department stores
To find out more, you need to sign up. Added bonus: The Daily Hookup donates a percentage of each sale to local LGBT charities.
Until ShermansTravel gets into the local deals game later this year, sign up for our weekly Top 25 newsletter and use our Travel Search price comparison tool to find the best deals on hotels, airfares, car rentals and more.