Pride 2025: 11 most LGBTIQ+-friendly cities in the world

Everybody say, “Love!”

We’re headed around the world in pursuit of exciting cities that embrace the LGBTIQ+ community with open arms (not to mention sequins and confetti). These are the kinds of places that understand that life is meant for celebrating – whether through rowdy drag shows that thrill with sass, joyous street parties that bring out crowds of thousands or thumping dance clubs that party on till sunrise.

Follow us to some of the most progressive, inclusive and accepting destinations around the world. Places where you can truly show your spirit of pride.

1. London, United Kingdom

Pride 2025: The biggest Pride celebration in the UK, and one of the largest in the world, London Pride takes place this year on July 5.

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Must-visit LGBTIQ+ neighborhood: Soho in London’s West End has historically been the city’s epicenter of queer life. To this day, it remains a hub of the city's LGBTIQ+ bars, shops and clubs.

London has been a most prominent center of queer culture for hundreds of years, dating all the way back to the city’s 18th-century Molly Houses, meeting places for LGBTIQ+ people. London remains a massively queer city and is known for a brimming underground scene that can be found at rotating parties.

A must-visit for any LGBTIQ+ traveler is the Admiral Duncan, a gay pub in Soho that was the site of a bombing perpetrated by a homophobic neo-Nazi in 1999. In the aftermath of the tragedy, it became a site of resistance and resilience – and remains so to this day.

2. Provincetown, Massachusetts, USA

Pride 2025: Provincetown’s 8th annual Pride celebration takes place from June 6–8, with a diverse lineup of events, including the town’s famous parade. At the time of publishing, Provincetown Pride hasn't yet released its 2025 lineup, so check the website for updates.

Must-visit LGBTIQ+ neighborhood: The entire town! Provincetown is a flourishing place for queer life. Located at the easternmost tip of Cape Cod, P-town has been a summer escape for the LGBTIQ+ community for over 60 years. From riotous parties at A-House to (technically illegal) nude sunbathing at Herring Cove Beach, there’s no shortage of fun to be had here. If you don't make it there for Pride, plan your visit to align with one of the town’s many queer festivals, including Bear Week, Girl Splash, TransWeek and more.

3. Auckland, New Zealand

Pride 2025: Being in the southern hemisphere, Auckland held its Pride celebration in the month of February. But it’s not too early to plan a trip for 2026!

Must-visit LGBTIQ+ neighborhood: Karangahape Road – or “K Road” to locals – is where you'll find most of Auckland’s LGBTIQ+ nightlife. Many Aucklanders make a night of it by starting at The Eagle, a local, unpretentious watering hole that welcomes all comers from the LGBTIQ+ community. Next is an inevitable stop at Family Bar, located conveniently across the street, which has more of a club vibe, complete with bustling dance floor and weekly drag shows.

New Zealand has long been known as a friendly and welcoming country, with robust anti-discrimination laws and legalized same-sex marriage since 2013. Since then, the nation as a whole, and especially its major cities like Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, have become known as some of the most LGBTIQ-friendly places anywhere in the world.

4. Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

Pride 2025: Puerto Vallarta Pride takes place from May 17–25, and is one of Mexico’s biggest Pride celebrations, drawing a fun mix of locals and visitors.

Must-visit LGBTIQ+ neighborhood: Emiliano Zapata (also called Old Town) is where you’ll find the vast majority of Puerto Vallarta’s queer nightlife. But the entire city is an LGBTIQ+ vacation magnet, so it’s virtually impossible to find any section of town that isn’t welcoming.

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Throughout the years, Mexico has become more and more LGBTIQ-friendly, and the oceanfront resort town of Puerto Vallarta is one of the nation’s most progressive cities. All the big-brand resorts are LGBTIQ-inclusive, and there are even LGBTIQ-exclusive hotels, like the Almar Resort. For socializing and meeting other members of the community, the options are endless. From the beachy, indoor/outdoor Mr Flamingo, to the comic book–inspired Blondies Loft + Slushbar and the sleek and trendy La Noche, there’s no shortage of places to find fun. And that’s not to mention all the fantastic beaches, with Playa de los Muertos known as PV’s “gay beach.”

5. Barcelona, Spain

Pride 2025: June 28 to July 20. Barcelona Pride’s official 2025 lineup and event details are still to come.

Must-visit LGBTIQ+ neighborhood: In the heart of Barcelona, L’Eixample is one of the biggest LGBTIQ+ boroughs in all of Europe. (It’s even been lovingly given the nickname “Gaixample.”) Here, you’ll find LGBTIQ-owned beauty salons, bookshops, saunas, cafes, bars, restaurants, sex shops and everything in between.

Spain has long been at the forefront of LGBTIQ+ rights. The nation legalized same-sex marriage back in 2005 and has since enacted numerous laws that ensure equality and protection for the queer community, including those who are nonbinary and trans. Platja de la Mar Bella is Barcelona’s premier gay beach – and it also happens to be clothing-optional, with most beachgoers baring it all. Among the numerous other LGBTIQ+ hotspots, Arena Classic is a popular lesbian bar that’s a staple to the local community, while Warhol-inspired club Candy Darling sees partygoers dance nightly until the early hours of morning, and sometimes until after the sun comes up. This is Spain, after all.

6. New York City, New York, USA

Pride 2025: One of the largest Pride celebrations on the planet, NYC Pride kicks into high gear toward the end of June, culminating in the annual Pride March on June 29, which draws up to 2 million revelers. Youth Pride will take place on June 28. If that’s not enough, kick off the month with Queens Pride in Jackson Heights, a fabulous parade and street party that takes place in one of the most diverse neighborhoods in the world.

Must-visit LGBTIQ+ neighborhood: No LGBTIQ+ visit to New York City would be complete without a stop in the West Village. It’s here that the Stonewall uprising took place during the summer of 1969, after police raided the Stonewall Inn and began arresting patrons and bartenders. When the LGBTIQ+ community fought back, the modern gay rights movement was born.

New York has a deep history and profound connection to the LGBTIQ+ community – both painful (this was the epicenter of the HIV/AIDS crisis) and joyous (Harlem gifted the world ball culture). No queer traveler here can fail to feel it.

These days, LGBTIQ+ travelers and locals tend to turn up in Hell’s Kitchen, on the west side of Manhattan, whose main drags of Ninth and Tenth Avenues are packed with LGBTIQ-owned restaurants, barbershops, cafes and bars (denoted by frequent rainbow flags). Go-to HK nightlife spots include the wildly popular Industry bar and the campy, country-themed Flaming Saddles, where short-shorts-wearing bartenders frequently two-step on the bar.

7. Berlin, Germany

Pride 2025: The culmination of Berlin’s month of Pride festivities (which kick off on June 27) is Christopher Street Day on July 26. Germany’s largest Pride celebration, the annual festival is named in honor of the Manhattan street where the historic Stonewall Inn is located.

Must-visit LGBTIQ+ neighborhood: The heart of Berlin’s LGBTIQ+ scene is in Schöneberg, which has had gay and lesbian bars since the 1920s, making it one of the oldest gay boroughs on the planet.

Berlin has a fascinating LBGTIQ+ history. In the ’20s and ’30s, queer culture flourished in the city, before being almost completely eradicated by the Nazis during World War II. After the war, the community was forced to rebuild from the ground up, ultimately creating the buzzing and beautiful scene of today.

Berlin is famous for being a city where people stay out clubbing until the sun rises at institutions like GMF or Berghain (good luck getting in). But Berlin has so much more than dance floors. The city is also home to the Schwules Museum, one of the only museums in the entire world dedicated to researching and preserving the history of LGBTIQ+ cultures around the world.

8. Sydney, Australia

Pride 2025: Taking advantage of southern-hemisphere summer, Sydney’s annual Pride extravaganza is the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, which took place in February. Mark your calendars now: the next edition runs from February 13 to March 1, 2026.

Must-visit LGBTIQ+ neighborhood: The heart of gay Sydney is Darlinghurst, which is conveniently located near Sydney’s central business district and is easily accessible by the city’s mass-transit system.

Australia has long been a welcoming place for the queer community, with Sydney in particular earning a global reputation for its inclusivity. Not only does the city have excellent LGBTIQ+ nightlife – such as the expansive, three-story Stonewall Hotel – but it also has a rich cultural scene that celebrates LGBTIQ+ art and history. The Darlinghurst Bookshop has been selling queer books, magazines and films since the ’80s, and the city hosts the yearly Queer Screen film festival.

9. Toronto, Canada

Pride 2025: Toronto’s Pride celebration consists of a parade, dance parties, film screenings and a popular street fair from June 26–29.

Must-visit LGBTIQ+ neighborhood: Queen St has been Toronto’s main LGBTIQ+ stretch for decades. (You might recognize it as the filming location of the US version of the groundbreaking drama Queer as Folk.)

Canada as a whole is known for being welcoming and is considered one of the friendliest places on the planet. Church St’s oldest LGBTIQ+ establishment – Woody’s – dates to 1989 and remains one a staple of Toronto’s queer culture. For something you can only find in Toronto, visit the Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, a queer performance space and cabaret that transforms into a nightclub on non-show nights. 

10. Amsterdam, Netherlands

Pride 2025: July 26 to August 3. Amsterdam Pride is one of the world’s more unique celebrations, since its parade takes place on boats floating along the city’s famous canals.

Must-visit LGBTIQ+ neighborhood: While you’ll find LGBTIQ+ venues throughout this famously progressive city, much action is centered within the Reguliersdwarsstraat neighborhood, located in the center of town.

The Netherlands was the first country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage, in 2001, and has remained one of the most LGBTIQ-inclusive countries on the planet thanks to its numerous anti-discrimination laws and policies that protect civil rights for the queer community.

First opened by flamboyant lesbian impresario Bet van Beeran in 1927, Cafe ’t Mandje remains a staple of the city’s queer scene, with its eclectic interior and friendly crowd (it's currently closed for renovations, but we have our fingers crossed for a 2025 reopening). If late-night adventures are your style, check out EXIT Café, a thumping LGBTIQ+ bar that welcomes all comers and allies. Best of all, EXIT is open later than most bars in the city, making it perfect for night owls and those looking for an epic night on the town. First-time visitors should stop in at the Pink Point, a dedicated LGBTIQ+ information booth that provides travelers with tips, recommendations and information on all things queer in the city.

11. Palm Springs, California, USA

Pride 2025: Thanks to the city’s year-round warm weather, Palm Springs Pride takes place much later than most, this year from November 6–9.

Must-visit LGBTIQ+ neighborhood: All of Palm Springs is an LGBTIQ-centric neighborhood. In fact, Palm Springs has such a queer presence that even adjacent towns like Cathedral City and Palm Desert have drawn growing LGBTIQ+ populations and are holding their own, discrete Pride celebrations.

During Hollywood’s heyday, actors, actresses, directors, producers and agents escaped to Palm Springs to relax and let their hair down. Heavily represented among these visitors, legend has it, was a heavy contingent of LBGTIQ+ artists, in search of privacy and discretion. This vibe still exists in this desert town to this day, with numerous LGBTIQ+ resorts dotting the town, many of them clothing-optional. For a bit of the city’s famed nightlife, be sure to check out longstanding staples like Chill Bar and Hunters.