Vacationers of the Week: 27 Travels
Our Vacationers of the Week are native New Yorkers Shanna Sciara and Gabrielle “Gabi” Meit, who currently live in the Park Slope neighborhood in Brooklyn. Shanna, 30, is a videographer and video editor, and Gabi, 27, is a photographer and artist. But together, the couple has visited more than 20 countries, and in the travel realm, they are known as content creators and influencers, 27 Travels.
The number “27” symbolizes the date of the couple’s anniversary and it reminds them that every trip they take together is to learn more and more about themselves, their relationship, and the world around them. To the young lesbian couple, traveling isn’t about ticking destinations off a bucket list, but “it’s about growing, learning, and becoming more and more open-minded by experiencing new and different cultures all over the planet.” Find out more about Gabbi and Shanna, our Vacationers of the Week!
Vacationer: At what age did you receive your first passport? What was your first trip?
Gabi Meit: I received my first passport on my first trip to Curaçao when I was around one year old. My dad is from the island and my grandmother and other family members still live there. We’ve visited Curaçao every year to see family since we’ve been dating.
Shanna Sciara: I got my first passport at age 21 when I visited my best friend who lives in Sweden. That trip was what inspired my love for travel, and I have had the travel bug ever since!
What inspires you to travel?
Shanna: What we both love about traveling is exploring new places, learning new cultures, and becoming more open-minded because of it. We love seeing how different everything can be in a new country or city, but also how we all have a lot in common, too.
You identify yourselves as a lesbian couple. Does that influence the way you travel?
Being a part of the LGBTQ+ community definitely impacts the way we travel because we have to do a lot more research before visiting a new country. For example, we always have to look to see if there are laws against homosexuality in a country to determine if it’s okay for us to show that we are a couple. In general, our safety is important traveling as two women.
We still travel to countries where homosexuality/same-sex marriage is not legal, but we always need to know the information first before we can make a decision. We also look for LGBTQ+ businesses, hotels, restaurants, etc. in whatever destination we are visiting to support the local community and feel safe at the same time.
Describe your idea of the perfect travel companion.
We love traveling with each other because we are always down to do the same types of things. We love being out exploring all day, walking everywhere, and eating great vegan food, and we don’t need luxury accommodations to have a good time. We think the best travel partners are people who travel similarly. For example, if Gabi wanted to relax at a resort all day and I wanted to go out exploring, our relationship would not work. Haha!
Is there a travel destination that most queer travelers think is not safe to visit, but you’ve visited and enjoyed it? If so, where? What made it a memorable experience?
Even though same-sex marriage isn’t legal in the Philippines and it’s a pretty religious country, we had an amazing time there. The people of the Philippines were the nicest people we have ever come across in our travels, and no one seemed to care that we were a couple. They would always say “hi” to us while we were walking, they offered to help us if we ever needed anything, and we felt safe exploring the islands as a couple.
What’s the best tip you’d offer travelers?
Download Google maps offline on your phone! That way even if you don’t have cell service you can still navigate around whatever place you’ve visiting.
What are your top 3 favorite places to visit?
Shanna: Greece, Curaçao, and The Philippines
Gabi: Curaçao, South Africa, and Sweden
What three places are still on your bucket list to visit?
We would love to explore more of Asia. So for us, Taiwan, Japan, and Thailand are all on our immediate bucket list.
What’s one thing you never forget to pack in your suitcase?
A power strip. Even if we only have one international plug adapter, we can charge all of our equipment!
You’re going on a road trip. What singer or band is always on your playlist?
Shanna: Taylor Swift
Gabi: MGMT
What travel trend or travel industry change would you be excited to see happen?
We would love for it to be safe for all LGBTQ+ people to explore every country in the world. Right now that isn’t the case and that is why we are so visible about LGBTQ+ travel online. We want every single person to feel safe and comfortable traveling the world.
There are still over 70 countries where homosexuality is illegal and there are still even countries where homosexuality is punishable by death. We want to be able to feel free to be ourselves in every single country in the world, and we hope that one day we can.
