Pride Week is coming to Europe! The best part is, it’s not all happening during the same week. This is an amazing opportunity for Pride-Hopping all over Europe (if you can keep up…)
The Pride Parade always takes the spotlight, as the most straight-friendly event. But there is a multitude of events surrounding the parade wherever the floats are, as varied as the community that’s organizing them.
We picked up two of the most outstanding parades to start with, and continued with intriguing and unique events in the days before and after, in some of our favorite European cities.
We wish everyone an amazing Pride, full of love, acceptance and happiness!
Paris – The Parade Must Go On
The French national Assembly-Bourbon palace decorated with rainbow LGBT flag
Leaving from Place de la Concorde and ending at the Place de la République for the Grand Podium de fin de Marche, the 3-hour march is the prelude for the massive 5-hour party. Obviously, nobody is going to sleep at 10pm when the Grand Podium ends – the party continue through the city’s numerous gay clubs. The Pride Parade has been happening in Paris since the 80’s and it’s one of the most momentous ones.
Parade: 29 June, 2 – 10pm
London – #PrideJubilee
Marking the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising, this year’s London is promising to layout the proudest Gay Pride ever. Over a million people joined last year’s parade, and this year the five-and-a-half hours event is destined to top that. From Portland Place and finishing at Whitewall, expect the most diverse, extravagant and meaningful parade London has witnessed.
Parade: 6 July, 12 – 5:30pm
Madrid – Where the Party Never Ends
Rainbow lights reflected on the Cibeles fountain in Madrid
If you’re sold on the parade, you’ve got plenty of other cities to choose from. But if you’re in it for the party, then Madrid is definitely your city. Sorry, we mean parties. 5 days of ongoing 6 parties in the largest scale imaginable. The best DJ’s, the largest crowds and the most spectacular productions. Not for the faint of heart.
Parties: 3 – 7 July, various venues around the city
Barcelona – Where the Family is the Proudest
Casa Batlló in Barcelona shining its façades with the rainbow flag to celebrate World Pride.
In stark contrast to its sister city, the Catalonian princess devotes this year’s Pride to families. Celebrating the diversity of the gay family, Barcelona is welcoming with open arms the entire family to celebrate together. So if you wish to celebrate together with your kids, Barcelona offers multiple kids-friendly events. The main one will be held in Tibidabo, the city’s centennial amusement park (yes, it was opened in 1905!), a whole day of fun for the entire family, with a focus on the kids of course.
16 June, 12 – 8pm
Tel Aviv – It’s All About the Beach
Of course Tel Aviv has a parade, and it’s as colorful as you can imagine. And of course there’s a huge outdoor party at its end – right on the beach, at Charles Clore Park, kicking off at 2pm and no one really knows when it ends… But for the days before and after the parade, there’s always the beach and specifically Hilton Beach. Picked as one of GayCities’ top 10 gay beaches in the world, it is a must; gay, straight or anything in between.
Parade: 14 June, 12pm / Party: 2pm
Milan – Pride Square
In the center of the Porta Venezia district, Pride Square masquerades as a gay village for three days (27-29 of June) with live shows, concerts, food and drink stands and hundreds of thousands of visitors. It’s a multicolored/vibrant stationary parade adorned with Milan’s unmistakable sense of style and glamour. If you dare to compete with those chiseled Italians, you can join the Miss Drag Queen or Mister Gay competition.
27 – 29 June, all day & all night
Dublin – The Cultured Approach
On top of the parades and the parties, Dublin is also taking a more cultured approach to Gay Pride, with thought-provoking events. There’s An Evening with David Norris, whose challenge to the Irish state led to the discrimination of homosexuality (24 June, 7pm @Christchurch Cathedral). There’s the play Casa Valentina by Harvey Feirstein, the fiery writer of Hairspray and Kinky Boots (1-8 July, 7:30pm @Teacher’s Club). And there’s the B+ Ireland Pride MeetUp, an afternoon of board games for all those that fall under the Bi umbrella (23 June, 3pm @Street 66). We can’t sign off without mentioning the Dublin Bears Pride Float (29 June, 12:30pm @Parnell Square).
