You probably know some LGBT meccas around the world — Berlin, New York, and San Francisco come to mind, for example — but Redditors have been listing the world’s most “most underrated cities for gays” in a recent thread.
Here are the responses so far, with Instagram posts for illustration and explanations from Redditors where applicable.
San Diego, California
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“The city doesn’t have a lot compared to other major cities, but the guys there are very attractive.”
Boulder, Colorado
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“Some smaller cities and towns are remarkably good.”
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Denver, Colorado
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Washington, D.C.
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“Very lucky to have grown up in such a positive environment. Best gay sports bars in the country, in my opinion.”
St. Petersburg, Florida
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Atlanta, Georgia
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New Orleans, Louisiana
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Ann Arbor, Michigan
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Columbus, Ohio
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Charleston, South Carolina
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“[I lived] for a while in North Carolina, and I’ve spent a lot of time in South Carolina, too, and if I had to pick a city to stay in for a while in either state, it would be here.”
Related: 11 still-thriving gay resort towns to help plan your sizzling summer travel
São Paulo, Brazil
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“There are clubs and bars for every taste of men.”
Grimsby, England
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London, England
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“Nobody seems to understand fully how amazing the nightlife is for gays.”
Lisbon, Portugal
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“I think it’s popular in Europe, but Portugal as a whole gets overlooked by Americans. Also importantly, [it’s] very accepting of LGBT people.”
revashayne
Throw in Guadalaja- The gayest city in Mexico.
Paris,France
Antwerp, Belgium.
Bologna-The gayest city in Italy.
Toulouse,France- The gayest city in France.
Istanbul,Turkey.
Tel Aviv,israel.
Dallas,Texas.
AZ71
I’d throw in TUCSON, ARIZONA.
It’s a diverse, blue city in the middle of a red state. Always accepting and tolerant. Has a huge gay retirement population, but the University of Arizona attracts the younger LGBTQ+ members with many services.
pvkalso
I agree with AZ71. Tucson is a very welcoming city.
Dick Gozinia
Portland, OR and Seattle, WA are also great cities for LGBTQ.
TheAbsoluteTRUTH
Hmm..no Wilton Manors Fl on the list, besides Palm Springs Ca the only other city in the country where the mayor and entire city commission is gay
arthurb3
Raleigh, North Carolina
JB
How did Montreal not make it onto this list???
Patrick
Of course New Orleans is one of the best cities for gays! Southern Decadence over Labor Day weekend is amazing! But the gay culture in New Orleans is superb all of the time! And, as a resident of the Denver Metro I can attest to a very diverse & vibrant LGBTQ community!
Gadfeal
Those cities, save Grimsby, are very high up on the radar of cities where one can live with another of the same sex without threat of ostracism or violence. I would not call them “under rated” in the least. The very large cities like London or Sao Paulo with 10 million or more in the region is sure to have zones and groups of great variety, compared to smaller cities. Medium sized cities like Columbus, Ann Arbor where there is a large young adult/student populations are also obvious.
What I did find odd is Grimsby, a small (100k) fishing port in north-east England. It is sometimes listed as the 10 worst places to live in England with it post-industrial, grim feel – especially as the fishing industry is a shadow of former times. The climate is also grim, grey and overcast, and the landscape relatively low and boring – (Have a look at PBS broadcasts of “Vera” set in the region to seek how rare sunshine is and how monotonous the land and buildings are.
Who wrote this?
Heywood Jablowme
Thank you for your comment. I didn’t even know Grimsby was a real place; I thought Elton John & Bernie Taupin made it up!:
Oh oh Grimsby, a thousand delights
Couldn’t match the sweet sights
Of my Grimsby
Oh England you’re fair
But there’s none to compare with my Grimsby
(“Caribou” album 1974)
It’s hard to imagine a city that small has much (if any) gay nightlife or culture. I wonder what they’re basing this on.
johnnymcmxxx
Who compiled this ridiculous list? So San Diego, DC, New Orleans, São Paulo, London, Lisbon, Atlanta, are all underrated cities for Gays? Does the queen who wrote this only travel between San Francisco & New York? Another dumb pointless disconnected from reality Queerty article.
ElPillo
Queerty needs a real editor who understand how to match titles and stories. Underrated gay cities? San Paulo, Atlanta, New Orleans. Those are well established “Meccas” of gayness, darlings
jonasalden
Yeah, I was thinking that a few of these are NOT overrated at all. Laziness, or lack of knowledge?
flrockies30
Boulder should not be on this list. If it weren’t for the college, the town would be just wealthy, conservative white Karens and their families. And as far as Denver goes, the majority of the gay community has been spending the holidays at super spreader events, including Puerto Vallarta. So that lets you know the caliber of gays in this town.
Ginger Tom
Grimsby? WTF.