10 of Europe’s bt statns for LGBTQ+ travellers this Pri season | Gay and lbian travel | The Guardian

Contents:

• OUR 7 FAVOURE PLAC TO EXPERIENCE GAY ITALY
• TIPS FOR GAY AND LBIAN TRAVELERS ITALY
• BT GAY CY ITALY? - ITALY FOM
• IL TURISMO LGBTQ | PUGLIA – ITALY’S GAY SUMMER PARADISE
• GAY ROME
• TIPS FOR GAY AND LBIAN TRAVELERS SICILY
• GAY ITALY TRAVEL GUI
• OUR TRAVEL GUI TO GAY ITALY
• GAY MOSW · CY GUI

OUR 7 FAVOURE PLAC TO EXPERIENCE GAY ITALY

For travelers lookg to have fun one of Rome’s most betiful districts near the Colossm, Via San Gvanni Laterano, the so-lled Gay Street, is a mt: gay-iendly bars, clubs and rtrants all make for a social eveng. Take a stroll to Piazza Bra to admire the Roman Amphheatre and on to the monumental San Zeno Altarpiece by Andrea Mantegna ntug to Porta Nuova, the historic center wh the elegant Lucla Cafe, a gay-iendly hang out and the perfect place for an aperif. The historil gay hangout Catania cy center is Via Alsi, around Nievki: a bar and an alternative rtrant which has been welg to LGBT people sce the ‘70s.

For over twenty years between late June and early July, the cy is flood by the lors of the rabow flag wh a seri of iativ crowng the tradnal Catania Gay Pri Para. Taorma is one of the most gay-iendly statns on Sicily, an ial statn year round, thanks to the d climate and the foc on fun, relaxatn and joie vivre as well as the warm hospaly of the Sicilian people. On the face of LGBT Italy looks somewhat downbeat, but squt a ltle harr and you’ll soon fd a diverse range of gay venu suable for dancg, cisg and dulgg steamy sna meet-cut.

While gay-n bs are few and far between, most nightlife the town is to be nsired gay-iendly, wh Iso Gut Hoe holdg a great reputatn among the LGBTQ+ muny. Said to be one of the most gay-iendly ci the regn, Catania go hand hand wh Taorma for gay travellers seekg culture, herage and low-key partyg. A btlg port cy ma famo by s proximy to Mount Etna and UNESCO-listed baroque archecture, Gay Catania attracts a young and dynamic crowd who breathe life to the old town wh rabow buntg and artsy muny spac.

TIPS FOR GAY AND LBIAN TRAVELERS ITALY

As culture grows more liberal, the vibrancy of the gay muny grows wh , allowg for a sctive mix of gay dance parti, snas and cisg spots among the pal’s many cultural hotspots. A beach day is also an optn while Rome; simply travel southwt for epic sunset views on goln sand beach, stoppg at Ostia, Anz, Sperlonga or wherever tak your your troductn to Gay Rome by fanng out east om the Colossm along Via San Gvanni, a social street led wh gay-iendly bars, clubs and rtrants.

Align your vis wh the summer-long Gay Village ftival, one of the most important events the cy’s gay lendar which se Par l Nfeo and surroundg neighbourhoods bee overn wh LGBT street parti, live mic, performance art, film screengs and more.

On all other ocsns, start off any one of Rome’s highbrow cktail bars and microbreweri, lowerg the tone later on at an unrground fetish party, wild gay club or good ol’ fashned gay dis. Drawg parisons wh Mykonos and Sg, Torre l Lago is a beachsi town offerg lh landsp, gged ast and a ton of gay-iendly nightlife offergs to keep you by. Walk the promena to fd the village’s ma llectn of gay bars, pubs and clubs, an area which serv as both the lotn of the annual Mardi Gras event and gateway to the town’s biggt gay beach.

BT GAY CY ITALY? - ITALY FOM

MilanMol of the term ‘smopolan cy break’, Milan tops the lists of top gay Italy travel statns, thanks to s stat as the high-fashn pal of the world.

Home to the largt – not to mentn the most glamoro – gay muny the untry, Gay Milan offers a vibrant space for LGBTQ divas and fashnistas om all rners of the angl the cy centre nod to some era of archecture; be art nouve around Corso Magenta, ratnalism Piazza San Babila or the futuristic skyle shaped by the lik of Zaha Hadid and César Pelli.

IL TURISMO LGBTQ | PUGLIA – ITALY’S GAY SUMMER PARADISE

While much of the cy’s nightlife is gay-iendly, the clubs and bars around the Porta Venezia district are muny outposts that host nightly gay-themed events.

GAY ROME

To fd out about the next big gay event, pick up a ee py of Zerodue or Milano Pri magaz om stor and fés around town, readg more about the bt gay bars Milan has to offer wh our full Milan travel gui.

Dpe the gay muny here beg somewhat spread out leavg the party scene muted, the Gay Amalfi Coast shows self small nods of acceptance towards same-sex upl and offers romantic vatns for all. In addn to Arcigay Catania, which often anis events and activi at s headquarters Via Sant'Elena, other lser-known associatns have a rich lendar of meetgs and activi.

In addn, between late June and early July, the cy has been flood wh the lours of the rabow wh a seri of iativ that end wh the tradnal Catania Gay Pri para.

TIPS FOR GAY AND LBIAN TRAVELERS SICILY

The Cassero LGBT Center (via Don Mzoni) has been a very active centre promotg many iativ sce 1978, cludg Gay Pri, workshops, nventns, parti and moments of aggregatn general. It is loted wh the medieval walls and took the name of one of the most famo artists and activists of the Bologne gay movement, Stefano Casagran. Not far away are the Garns, where there is the first Italian monument dited to the Nazi persecutn of gays, lbians and Aldi: The buildg which Pier Paolo Pasoli set the exterr shots of his last film, "Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom".

GAY ITALY TRAVEL GUI

If you want to know where to fd gay bars and clubs Italy, a popular queer meetup spot is Nievki, where you’ll see people of all backgrounds enjoyg each other’s pany and mglg.

OUR TRAVEL GUI TO GAY ITALY

One such remendatn is the Siste Chapel, where you n see pictns of LGBTQ+ reprentatn the great (and supposedly homosexual) Michelangelo’s artwork. Combed wh the super buff, tanned, and almost nu gladiators who fought the Colossm thoands of years back, some might say Rome was a cy sted for gayns. Ask any LGBTQ+ traveler who has been to this betiful untry about which cy do Pri the bt, and they’ll likely tell you that Milan is the most gay iendly cy Italy.

But ’s not jt the fashn that mak Milan a super gay-iendly cy Italy, 's the overall acceptance of the LGBTQ+ muny that mak the cy so special. Here is where you'll see the bt gay bars Milan and even some LGBT+ themed nightclubs that are btlg wh people lookg to mgle and have a great time. Did you know that Florence was the first cy Italy to not only abolish the ath penalty, but also to abolish crimal punishments for homosexualy?

GAY MOSW · CY GUI

As for support, LGBTQ+ travelers n fd fort and solace wh the Internatnal Associatn of Gay & Lbian Tourism (AITGL) which seeks to make travel for LGBTQ+ tourists safe and excg.

It’s one of only five untri to make queer rights equal at a nstutnal level and holds first place on ILGA-Europe’s Rabow Europe Inx, which ranks untri on LGBTQ+ my last vis, a gay gui showed me round the wdg medieval streets of Valletta and Rabat, potg out sential bars and rtrants om Michel-starred Noni to the Monaliza Lounge drag bar, as well as the nightclub Michelangelo lively Paceville. This spir filters down to Dubl’s many LGBTQ-iendly tablishments: two personal favour are iendly bnch spot Social Fabric Café Stoneybatter, one of the cy’s most tertg neighbourhoods, and Street 66 bar, a eful cktail spot before a night at inic LGBTQ+ stutn The southsi is gay-owned Gutter Bookshop (named after the famo Osr Wil quote), and the weekly “big gay dis” Sunday Social at Farrier & Draper; or cross the river for the Outhoe LGBTQ+ muny rource fe on Capel Street and PantiBar, owned by drag queen, activist and performer Panti Bliss.

Enjoy bnch at Osr bar and fe, before a beer at one of Europe’s olst gay bars, Centralhjor, which hosts drag and Sunday jazz ssns venu clu Bøssehet Christiania, home to theatre, performanc, exhibns and parti – a well-suated boutique hotel is SP34 (doubl om £133) the Lat Quarter. The cy’s olst gay bar The Waterloo dat back half a century, while another classic spot is the Unrground bar, equally fun for drag or karaoke.