Travel + Leisure has named San Francisco America's best city for gay travel.

In an accompanying story, the travel glossy wrote that being a “gay-friendly destination these days means more than having a selection of bars or a gayborhood.”

“It needs to be more than just putting up a rainbow flag,” said John Clifford, president of agency International Travel Management. “It's about sensitivity and savvy.”

Desiree Sousa, owner of the Gay Travel Information blog, said that it was about the sense of welcome a city conveys.

“I don't fear holding my wife's hand when I walk downtown [Providence, Rhode Island], even late at night,” she said. “And I don't stop myself from introducing her as my 'wife' at local businesses. There is an overall accepting vibe. When I travel, I want to feel safe being myself.”

The top 20 cities for gay travel as ranked by the magazine are San Francisco (1), New Orleans (2), Minneapolis/St. Paul (3), Santa Fe (4), New York City (5), Providence (6), Portland, Washington (7), Seattle (8), San Diego (9), Miami (10), Austin (11), Chicago (12), Savannah (13), Los Angeles (14), Portland, Maine (15), Boston (16), Philadelphia (17), Las Vegas (18), District of Columbia (19) and Honolulu (20).