Detours Gay Travel Blog
Four Special Departures Worth Planning in 2027.
- Aug 28, 2026
Whenever you take time off work, we've probably got a trip that fits your schedule. Detours departures go out across the whole calendar, from ten-day trips between Christmas and New Year's to mid-summer departures across Europe. Most of the planning is picking a country, not fighting your work schedule to make the dates line up.
Tucked into a handful of our trip pages is a different kind of departure. A few times a year, a set of dates gets built around something specific: a festival, a parade, or a holy month. Book one of those and the rhythm of the destinations shift around whatever's happening outside your hotel.
We've got four of those windows coming up. Here's where they land, and what you'd be walking into.
10 Days in Argentina & Brazil
This 10-day trip begins in Buenos Aires. Think proper asado dinner with wine pairings, queer tango lessons, and the colorful La Boca neighborhood. From there we head north to Iguazú Falls, one of the most unbelievably overwhelming waterfalls you'll ever stand in front of, straddling the border with Brazil. Once we cross into Brazil, we slow down in Paraty, a colonial port town of cobblestone streets and baroque churches, before closing the trip in Rio de Janeiro. There we find Christ the Redeemer and Ipanema's gay beach before our farewell dinner.
One departure trades the usual ending for something bigger. Book the January 31 – February 9, 2027 departure and instead of a few nights in Rio, you get three nights in the heart of Copacabana during the main weekend of Carnival. This is arguably the biggest party on the planet. That weekend, samba schools parade in full costume at the Sambadrome, blocos take over entire neighborhoods with their own live bands and crowds, and the city barely sleeps until it's over.
Explore the itinerary, departure dates, and full trip details → 10 Days in Argentina & Brazil
10 Days in Australia
This 10-day trip starts in Brisbane with a visit to Australia Zoo and a day trip down to the Gold Coast, then heads south to Melbourne for laneways, galleries, and an optional wine day in the Yarra Valley. The trip wraps in Sydney: a harbour cruise, Bondi Beach, a walk along the coast to Coogee, and the Bridge Climb if you're up for it. Because any one of the three cities could carry a trip on its own, we gave each of them equal time instead of rushing through.
Book the February 27 – March 8, 2027 departure and end in Sydney in time for Mardi Gras. The parade typically falls on the first Sunday of March, which lines up with our final days in the city, so the trip closes with one of the largest Pride festivals in the world instead of just wrapping up a vacation.
Explore the itinerary, departure dates, and full trip details → 10 Days in Australia
11 Days in Ireland & Scotland
New in 2026, this 11-day trip begins in Dublin with the Guinness Storehouse and the chance to walk through through Kilmainham Gaol, then heads north to Belfast for an optional visit to the Titanic Museum and a coastal day at Giant's Causeway. From there it's into the Scottish Highlands for Loch Ness, Urquhart Castle, and a stop at Eilean Donan Castle on the way to Edinburgh. The trip closes with a castle tour, a proper walk through the old town, and a farewell dinner.
Time this one against the Edinburgh Fringe Festival (August 7–31) and those closing days in Edinburgh turn into something else. The Fringe is one of the most iconic theatre festivals in the world. Expect the city to come alive with performances spanning theatre, comedy, music, drag, and circus as it takes over every corner of Edinburgh.
Explore the itinerary, departure dates, and full trip details → 11 Days in Ireland & Scotland
10 Days in Egypt
This 10-day trip starts in Cairo with the Pyramids of Giza, the Sphinx, before a flight south to Aswan for a felucca crossing to the Temple of Isis. From there we spend several days cruising up the Nile: Kom Ombo, the Valley of the Kings, Karnak, before flying back to Cairo for the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization and an afternoon getting pleasantly lost in the Khan al-Khalili bazaar.
Ramadan in 2027 runs February 7 to March 8, and it changes the texture of the trip more than the schedule. Streets go quiet during the day and come alive after sundown; a few sites close a little earlier, though it barely affects us since we visit most of them in the morning anyway. If that sounds appealing, our January 29 departure puts you there right as it begins. If you'd rather visit outside it, our March 17 departure starts once Ramadan has ended.
Explore the itinerary, departure dates, and full trip details → 10 Days in Egypt
And If You're Planning Around the Holidays Instead
Not every calendar-driven trip is about a festival. If you'd rather spend Thanksgiving, Christmas, or New Year's somewhere that isn't your usual living room, we put together a full lineup of Holiday Trips for later this year: Argentina & Brazil over Thanksgiving week, and Costa Rica, South Africa & Zimbabwe, and New Zealand & Australia for Christmas.
Explore the holiday trips, departure dates, and full details → 2026 Holiday Trips
Book the Date, Not Just the Destination
These departures only come around once a year, so don't miss out. Got questions? Reach out. We're always happy to help you decide, or head to detourstravel.com to lock in your spot.