Olivia Travel
| Company type | Travel |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1973 |
| Founders | Judy Dlugacz and Rachel Wahba |
| Headquarters | , United States |
| Revenue | $25 million (2007) |
| Website | www.olivia.com |
Olivia Travel is a travel company that creates cruise and resort vacations curated for lesbian and LGBTQ+ women.[1] Olivia was co-founded by Judy Dlugacz and Rachel Wahba[2] as a reimagination of Olivia Records' mission of lesbian representation and freedom.
The Olivia brand was launched in 1973.[3]
The premiere of The L Word in 2004 was hosted on an Olivia cruise. One of it's episodes, Land Ahoy, was set on one of the ships Olivia uses.[3]
Olivia offered its first all-woman cruise in 1990 and remains the only travel company in the world offering cruise, resort, riverboat, and adventure trips curated for lesbians and LGBTQ+ women.
Olivia takes its name from the heroine of a pulp novel by Dorothy Bussy who fell in love with her headmistress at a French boarding school.
Endorsement
The company has attracted attention due to endorsements from lesbian celebrities, such as golfer Rosie Jones (who was the first professional athlete in America to endorse a gay-oriented company)[4] tennis player Martina Navratilova and basketball player Sheryl Swoopes. Entertainers who have performed on Olivia cruises include the Indigo Girls and Margaret Cho.[5]
The company was involved in mild controversy in 1998 when its attempt to buy an ad on the sitcom Ellen's anticipated "coming out" episode was rejected by ABC.[6]
See also
- Gay marketing
- List of gay villages
- R Family Vacations for LGBT families.
- Racquet Club of Palm Springs – a defunct tennis club now owned by Olivia Communities
References
- ^ "Meet the Most Popular Travel Company You Probably Didn't Know Existed". Thrillist. 9 June 2022. Retrieved 2022-11-08.
- ^ "Olivia Team". Olivia.com. 2025. Retrieved June 29, 2025.
- ^ a b Braidwood, Ella (May 22, 2023). "'I stood there with my mouth open. It was a utopia': 50 years of Olivia, the lesbian cruise company". The Guardian. Archived from the original on May 30, 2023. Retrieved December 11, 2025.
- ^ Whitley, David (2004-03-24). "Jones' endorsement could further national debate on gay issues". Orlando Sentinel.
- ^ Saracevic, Alan T. (2005-10-30). "Swoopes' revelation pays off". San Francisco Chronicle.
- ^ "Ad declined for Ellen". Kentucky New Era. 1997-04-11.