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Gay guesthouses in Wilton Manors

The gay guesthouse is South Florida's great hospitality tradition: small, adults-only, clothing-optional resorts built around pools, sunshine, and the radical idea that a vacation should involve zero explaining yourself. Here's how the tradition works — and all twelve verified places to book it in and around Wilton Manors.

Why a guesthouse instead of a hotel?

Because the guesthouse is part of the trip. A beach hotel gives you a room near other people's vacations; a gay guesthouse gives you a pool deck full of your own people, a jacuzzi that doubles as a social club, and mornings where the only decision is which lounger. Most run adults-only and clothing-optional — a policy that sounds scandalous exactly until hour two, when it becomes the most normal thing in the world. By day three, guests are planning next year's dates.

Staying in Wilton Manors itself carries a practical bonus: the Drive. Every bar, brunch, and drag stage on the strip sits within walking or two-minute-ride distance, which means nobody's night ends early because somebody has to drive back to the beach.

The full-scale resorts

The Cabanas Guesthouse & Spa — the flagship

Voted Best Gay Guesthouse & Resort eight years running, and the biggest operation in town: two heated pools, a jacuzzi, a tiki bar, and a men's day spa, clothing-optional throughout. If you want the full resort version of the guesthouse experience, this is the booking. East side of the city, a short ride from the strip.

Inn On The Drive — the three-pool one

Adults-only and clothing-optional with three pools — a quiet one, a social one, and one in between at any given hour. Steps from the strip on NE 7th Ave, running strong since 2014.

Ed Lugo Resort — the bungalow compound

Renovated 1950s Florida bungalows scattered through the heart of the entertainment district, adults-only and clothing-optional. More privacy than a guesthouse room, with the Drive around the corner.

The intimate houses

Casa806 Men's Guest House — the social one

A smaller clothing-optional property for gay men with a heated pool, hot tub, and the kind of scale where guests actually know each other by the first evening. Residential west side, a two-minute ride to the Drive.

Fantasy Island Inn — the owner-hosted B&B

Men-only, clothing-optional, and personally hosted — one of the town's top-ranked specialty stays, just off the Drive at friendly rates.

Manor Inn — the four-room one

Gay-owned and men-only with just four rooms, a heated pool, and a clothing-optional sundeck; owner Kip lives on site. One block from the strip.

Kiki Corner — the casita hideaway

Four casitas around a heated pool, all-male and clothing-optional, two blocks off the Drive. With four keys total, it books out fast in season.

Design & luxury

Casa Hermès — the stylish one

A luxury guesthouse in a modern mansion steps from the Drive, gay-owned and owner-run since 2019. The high-design end of the tradition.

Solstice at Wilton — the one that throws parties

Apartment-style suites and a Cabana House around a pool and jacuzzi — and the regular host address for community events like Tropical Bear Week and FlockFest weekends. Strongest pick for groups and longer stays.

Beyond the classic formula

Billy's Resort — the saltwater one

Men-only and clothing-optional around a saltwater pool on the quiet west side — space and calm, five minutes from the strip by rideshare.

Men Only Clothing Optional Guesthouse — the literal one

The name is the policy. Private casitas around two pools, rated 9.1 on Booking.com — technically just over the line in Fort Lauderdale, under half a mile from the Drive. Two-night minimum.

Wilton River Suites — the gay-owned hotel

Not clothing-optional, not a guesthouse — a gay-owned, adults-only suites hotel on the Middle River with free bikes and kayaks and a 2026 Travelers' Choice award. The answer when the classic formula isn't your speed.

Booking notes from the locals

Book direct with the property — nearly all keep their best availability on their own sites. Winter is high season and the big weekends (Stonewall Pride in June, Wicked Manors at Halloween — seethe first-timer guide) sell out well ahead; summer brings softer rates and quieter pools. The smallest houses — Manor Inn, Kiki Corner — sell out first.

Want more options? The greater Fort Lauderdale area runs deep with gay resorts — bigger compounds like Pineapple Point and The Worthington sit closer to the beach — we cover them inour gay Fort Lauderdale guide, but they're a drive away from the Drive. The twelve above are the ones in (or steps from) Wilton Manors, verified by us, walkable or a two-minute ride to everything ontonight's list.