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Sanjay Surana
It might be surprising to think that the modern-day Pride movement, which honors and celebrates the LGBTQ+ community’s efforts toward acceptance, recognition, equality, free expression, and respect, is a little more than 50 years old. The genesis of Pride celebrations goes back to 1970, specifically the month of June. Back then, marches in cities across the country recalled the shocking events of a year earlier, when the police conducted a raid on a gay bar in New York’s Greenwich Village, leading to days of protests and scuffles with law enforcement, a watershed moment that acted as a catalyst to the LGBTQ+ movement.
Pride continues to be observed each month in June in the United States, while that spirit of remembrance and self-respect has since spread throughout the globe, generating celebrations and demonstrations in countries near and far. As a result, many countries across Europe commemorate Pride, though not always in June, featuring vibrant parades, live music, and a host of ancillary events. Here are some European Pride celebrations you shouldn’t miss.
Barcelona
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This cool Spanish city is a popular stop in its own right, with world-class sights and underrated attractions, it’s a destination that is worth visiting any time of the year. During the summer, Barcelona comes alive with Pride BCN, running from July 3-15. The main focus is on the last two days when several concerts and events take place. The celebratory parade will wind along the streets of Barcelona on July 15.
First started in 2008, Pride BCN is a huge undertaking, and it’s hugely popular too, with a quarter of a million visitors descending on the Catalan city each year for the event. In addition to the marquee moments of the last two days, the extravaganza also features discussions, exhibitions, conferences, and more, with the focus each year placing one specific, critical topic under the microscope. Previous years have looked at lesbian visibility, homophobia in sports, and support for same-sex marriage; at press time, this year’s theme was in the process of being finalized.
Berlin
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In the German capital, this parade is named for Christopher Street, a homage to the location of the New York bar that was raided in 1969, and that kick-started a global campaign that gains strength every year. Berlin’s Christopher Street Day (CSD) Parade, which takes place on July 22, 2023, is the icing on a month of Pride events (it runs from June 28 to July 23). The Barcelona Pride parade makes a route through the city before terminating at the iconic Brandenburg Gate. It’s a day filled with joy, love, creative expression, and playful celebration, with everyone welcome, which is why it draws crowds from all over the planet.
In addition to the parade, CSD Berlin, as it’s sometimes called, features speeches from members of the LGBTQ+ community, an awards ceremony that recognizes individuals and organizations that have played a key role in furthering equality of the community, and live musical performances that get the crowds energized and excited to be out and proud.
Budapest
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While not as gargantuan as some of the Pride events in Europe over the summer, Budapest Pride is the largest celebration of its type in Hungary, a country whose autocratic Prime Minister stands firmly against LGBTQ+ rights. Part ecstatic celebration of the community, part political statement, Pride here comprises a number of events, with the headline coming on July 15, when the 28th Budapest Pride March weaves around the capital, 30,000 participants strong. Though this year’s particulars were still under wraps at press time, some of last year’s high points are likely to be replicated.
Expect rousing, inspiring speeches from activists and grass-roots organizations at the Civilian Village, while tunes spun by DJs will keep the atmosphere popping. The village is also where to find associations that support the community, and Budapest Pride-branded swag, so you can bring a little bit of your experience back home. The march itself fills the streets with levity and laughter, with floats and cars pumping out music as marchers stamp and weave along. After the parade winds down, a huge outdoor party gives nightlife a whole new meaning. One of the benefits of the small parade is that it doesn’t necessitate draconian street control or miles of barricades along the route, and participants can join or leave the procession at any point.
Brussels
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One of the earlier weeks in the calendar, the Belgian capital stages its pride festivities in the spring. From May 10-19, known here as Pride Week, the political aspects, conferences, ardent activism, and deep discussions on LGBTQ+ topics take place across the city, looking at the state of the community in Belgium and beyond, what strides it has made, the challenges it continues to face, and the ways in which it can move forward. The big day is May 20, when the parade finally happens and when Pride Village, home to pop-up booths from organizations like the European Parliament, Greenpeace, healthcare providers, and local NGOs, welcomes visitors.
This is also the day when concerts and performances take place at two venues — Mont des Arts and Bourse — a mix of styles and sounds, hence everything from an LGBTQ+ choir to house and techno beats from European DJs. The parade starts at 2 p.m. and is open to anyone and everyone. The festivities curve around the streets of Brussels with floats, music, dancers, and mirth.
Cologne
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A multi-week fiesta, ColognePride runs from June 24 to July 9, 2023, with the express aim of greater recognition of the LGBTQ+ community without any conditions or restrictions. Expect events smartly spread over weeks in this German city. The first part of the pow-wow has happenings all over Cologne, but the festivities really ramp up in the last three days, with street festivals throughout Cologne’s old town making it the largest public party in the city all year. But it’s not all about fun, with discussions, forums, and information sessions peppered between live performances by German and international acts.
On the last day, July 9, the Cristopher Street Day Demonstration is when the area fully comes alive — it’s not so much a protest as a parade that celebrates the community. It’s a monster moment, with more than one million visitors packed into the Old Town’s streets and alleys, while marchers, floats, trucks, and vehicles blasting music and festooned in decorations navigate the tight roads. Sounds chaotic, but expect archetypal German efficiency.
Copenhagen
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The Danish capital isn’t a city where heat is generally a topic of conversation, but the weather during the Pride Parade, which is held in August each year, is still bliss — temperatures in the high 60s/low 70s, with a mix of sun and clouds. Pride Week here runs from August 12-20 with the parade on August 19 promoting the ideals for universal rights, equality, and acceptance for the LGBTQ+ community in Denmark.
People that care to join the March, either on their own or in small coteries, can just show up and partake in the festive atmosphere, but larger groups and corporate entities, which regularly get involved, need to register. The parade is especially notable this year, as it will be the very first Pride March in history where all the vehicles during the procession will be fully electric, a move that reflects policies in place for the city as a whole, which plans to be carbon neutral by 2025.
Frankfurt
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From July 13 to July 16, 2023, the streets of this major city come to life. Frankfurt is an important transportation and business hub in the continent and is home to the headquarters of the European Central Bank. Known as CSD Frankfurt, the pinnacle of the four-day celebration will be the demonstration (the name given to the parade here) on July 15, with about 250,000 participants and onlookers expected to congregate at Konstablerwache, a key plaza in the heart of the city.
Travelers can expect to enjoy a street party, plenty of vocal affirmations of equality, and some fabulously dressed individuals. Close to Konstablerwache, the heart of the Pride events centers around a grand bazaar, with community groups, initiatives that further the causes that underpin pride, activism, and also plenty of retail offerings. There are also radio broadcasts and live performances of cabaret and poetry, as well as blasting dance music during the festivities.
Helsinki
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Pride in the Finnish capital starts shortly after the summer solstice, running from June 26 to July 2, 2023. The theme of the week changes from year to year, and this time round, Joy and Riot is the theme for the proceedings. The Joy aspects celebrate how the LGBTQ+ community is a richly diverse group, one made stronger and prouder when recognized as being equal to all others, while Riot examines the activist part of the movement, for it to be not hidden in the shadows and to be treated justly, humanely, and sensitively.
These two threads will recur throughout the week, reflected in the programs that are put on and the content that informs them. While the bulk of events begin later in June, pride kicks off with a free opening party on June 2, 2023, held at Valkoinen Sali, a hip, hugely popular event space in the heart of Helsinki, directly across from the city’s cathedral.
London
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Pride in London, a non-profit that works tirelessly to promote equality for the LGBTQ+ community in the United Kingdom, is the driving force behind the raucous revelry during the annual Pride Parade. But this main event isn’t the only large-scale endeavor it works on, also putting together Pride’s Got Talent, a showcase for the myriad skills and capabilities within the community, held at different settings across the city. It’s an actual competition, with the pool winnowed down to finalists that perform at a show held on June 27, 2023, at the Adelphi Theatre, in the heart of London’s West End.
The winner of the contest takes the spotlight during the pride parade on July 1, 2023, appearing at one of the four stages along the route. The March itself winds through some of London’s prime territory, starting at the iconic roundabout Hyde Park Corner and shuffling along Piccadilly to Piccadilly Circus, down past The Mall (the road that leads to Buckingham Palace), before ending up in Whitehall, near Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament, with 30,000 attendees bringing life and love to historic parts of the city.
Lisbon
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Beginning at 4 p.m. on June 24, 2023, and ending in the early hours of the following morning, Arraial Lisboa Pride is the largest of such commemorations in Portugal. Now in its 25th edition and part of the Festivals of Lisbon, a month-long celebration that occurs each June, it is a real feast for the senses, a huge street party full of merriment, color, and acceptance, open to all and supported by the local city council as well and other organizations.
Held in the main city square, it’s a massive draw not for only Portuguese, but also international visitors, with 100,000 people attending the free event last year. Expect plenty here to keep you engaged and ecstatic, with stages where musicians, DJs, dancers, drag queens, and activists keep the tempo and energy at pulsating levels. Pride Center is where visitors can learn more about the efforts made by the organizers of the event and associations that fight for LGBTQ+ equality and rights.
Madrid
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There is much to amuse and excite travelers in the Spanish capital at the start of summer during Madrid Orgullo (the Spanish word for “pride”). Running from June 23-July 2, 2023, the celebration holds events staggered throughout the period, though the real thrills kick in on June 28, with the festival opening. This marks the time when the atmosphere gets electro-charged and when venues around the city host music jams, parties, and other bashes. A high-heel race solicits plenty of laughter from crowds, while on June 30, the ever-popular Mr Gay Spain contest hits the city for its 16th edition.
The following day, on July 1, Pride Parade turns the streets of Madrid into one giant party venue, supported by local LGBTQ+ organizations and starting at the central Atocha station before winding down the central Paseo del Prado on its way to the Plaza de Colón. With a grand finale party on July 2, Madrid Orgullo is expected to welcome more than one million visitors this year.
Milan
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On one of the longest days of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, Milan Pride hits the fashion capital of Italy with a parade that shakes up its streets. Planned for June 24, it will feature some fabulous costumes, not surprising given its location. But that’s not the only thing on the calendar that month that celebrates the LGBTQ+ community, there are other happenings around town for the whole of June.
For visitors that want to hit the real highlights, the bulk of action unfolds on June 22-23, with the base of operations in squares in the Porta Venezia part of town. Come here for political discussions, art exhibitions, family initiatives, healthcare information sessions, book readings, DJ sets, and some unforgettable nightlife. And smart visitors can take advantage of a special Pride Card that affords them discounts at shops and services that support the movement’s core, fundamental message of equality.
Oslo
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Nine days of festivities culminate in a parade on July 1 at the Norwegian capital. The extravaganza is broken up into four pieces of a puzzle, with the main parade clearly the defining event of the whole shebang. Mini Pride looks at the cultural and social facets of pride, with programs to foster inclusivity and a sense of place for the LGBTQ+ community, and to teach children about this, via artistic performance across many genres, debates, and art exhibitions. At Pride House, from June 24-28, lectures, hands-on workshops, and lively debates will place the politics of the community on center stage.
From June 28 to July 1, Pride Park is the main hub of the nine days, constructed from scratch in the center of the city, and home to stages for performances, bars for friends to mingle and reconnect, stalls run by groups that support the movement, and a shop to buy all that great paraphernalia. And then of course, the final segment, the parade is where all that joy and color pour out, with visitors welcome to join in at any point, though after the parties around town every night beforehand, they might be just as content to watch from the sides.
Paris
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More than 90 organizations are involved in the staging and success of the largest LGBTQ+ event in France. The capital holds this year’s parade, known as the Marche de Fiertés, on June 25, with half a million people expected to throng the streets of the City of Love. It’s a vital event for the hospitality industry, and in terms of scale, it’s one of the top three events of the year, alongside the Techno Parade (held in September), and the Paris Marathon (run in April). While the parade itself is a passage that is relentlessly fun, with crowds and tunes bouncing along the streets of Paris, for some attendees, nothing beats the celebrations at the end of the route.
The March usually terminates at the Place de la Bastille or Place de la République, where the organizers arrange a giant stage for performances by artists, some French, others from elsewhere, some local legends, and others international icons. Since the shows are free, in the true spirit of inclusivity, expect the place to get packed.
Prague
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Visit the Czech city during the second week of August for the Pride celebrations here, where rainbow flags proudly flutter around the city, including in front of City Hall at the press conference launching the event. Occurring on August 7 to August 13, 2023, at the height of the tourist season, Prague Pride, whose main Parade marks the end of the week of events, features the usual roster of entertainment, with live bands, sets by DJs, art exhibitions by LGBTQ+ artists, workshops and forums for discussion on pertinent issues, and there are also stalls where vendors sell gifts, clothing, snacks, and even cotton candy to visitors.
The festival is run by Pride Prague, an organization that runs programs throughout the year to educate society about the LGBTQ+ community, hence things like Filip20, held in early June, where students from middle school can come together to discuss their lives and learn from each other, as well as create a support network. The event honors a 14-year-old who took his own life after constantly facing homophobia (it was first held in the month and year when the boy, named Filip, would have turned 20).
Rome
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Some consider the Piazza della Repubblica an architectural masterpiece. Designed at the end of the 1800s by Gaetano Koch, an architect from Turin, it’s a gorgeous circular space, with pretty colonnaded buildings forming a crescent on one side, the church of Santa Maria across from them, a comely fountain in the center notable for its statues of nymphs and animals, and an undeniable sense of grandeur coursing through the whole scene. It’s also where all the action takes place during the big parade event of Rome Pride, on June 10, 2023.
The celebrations actually play out for more than one day, with festive happenings, music, performances, political debates, and programs arranged beforehand, taking place at the Terme di Caracalla, a complex of Roman baths that are almost 2,000 years old. The parade winds past some of Rome’s most photographed places, including Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II, and Piazza del Colosseo, before unloading into Piazza della Repubblica, where the crowds will let loose to do, since they are in Rome, as the Romans do.
Stockholm
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The heart of the Pride movement in the Swedish capital is Pride House, a space where organizations, groups, corporate entities, politicians, and even people off the street, can come together to talk about what is working for, and what isn’t, the LGBTQ+ community, as well as its needs, its goal of equality, and how to help. This space also hosts talks from writers, debates between groups and experts, art shows, and workshops to help people learn and build networks, and teach the persecuted how to handle the challenges they face. It opens this year from July 31 to August 4 and welcomes everyone.
The parade, the largest pride event in Scandinavia, happens on August 5, 2023, with many thousands of people in attendance, either on the route or watching from the sides, starting at 1 p.m. and taking about two hours to weave along its almost-three-mile route. The weather is optimal, and the views are beautiful, starting near City Hall and looking onto the water as attendees cross over the City Hall Bridge. Revelers, of course, will gravitate toward Pride Park, open from August 2-5 at the sports ground Östermalm’s IP, and featuring food, music, exhibitions, drinking, parties, and tons of fellow merrymakers.
Vienna
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More than two weeks of celebrations lure visitors to the Austrian capital. Filling the calendar from June 1-18, and with a quarter of a million expected to descend on the city for the events, Vienna Pride is a real spectacle, set among the stunning architecture of the city. One of the earlier events is the Pride Run Vienna, on June 3, a way for the city to show support and acceptance of the LGBTQ+ community and also burn some calories (both the runners and those cheering them) in the process.
Other special celebrations include a pool day on June 4, held at the Olympic-size pool in Schönbrunn Palace Park, where visitors can cool off with a dip and then relax on a grand sweep of grass listening to mellow DJ-spun tunes. Pride here also means dedicated cinema nights, and even a wedding day while the main Parade, taking place on June 17, winds around the Ringstrasse, perhaps the most famous street in the city, calling attention to the ongoing struggles for equality and respect.
