Orlando is the most LGBTQ-friendly travel destination in the US
Orlando won out over Palm Springs and San Francisco due to its variety of LGBTQ events, affordable hotels, and wealth of nightlife options
Orlando has been named by ParkSleepFly as the most LGBTQ-friendly travel destination in the U.S. for 2021.
“The first thing that comes to most people’s minds when it comes to Orlando is theme parks, and with good reason!” the travel website states.
“But Orlando is also one of the most gay-friendly cities in the country with a large LGBTQ+ population.”
The City Beautiful’s LGBTQ+ score of 7.1/10 comes from its safety, variety of LGBTQ events, affordable hotel prices and high numbers of bars and clubs (40 per 100,000 people) and hotels (nearly 9,000 per 100,000 people) due to its proximity to Walt Disney World.
Orlando has championed LGBTQ+ tourism for the past two decades, according to VisitOrlando.com.
The site notes that O-Town — GayCities.com’s first-ever “City of the Year” — has a perfect score from the Human Rights Campaign’s Municipal Equality Index, which measures how inclusive a city’s laws, policies and services are toward LGBTQ people who live and work there.
On Saturday, the city will host its annual Come Out With Pride Festival, a day of love for Central Florida and beyond.
In June, Orlando becomes home to Gay Days at Walt Disney World, one of the world’s largest pride celebrations; the Annual Pulse Remembrance Ceremony,
honoring the 49 people fatally shot at the gay nightclub on June 12, 2016; and RED Shirt Pride Day, a long-running tradition at Magic Kingdom.
Right behind Orlando on ParkSleepFly’s list are Palm Springs and Fort Lauderdale. Other cities in the top 10 include New York, San Francisco, New Orleans and Austin.
Globally, ParkSleepFly ranks Lisbon, Portugal; Porto, Portugal; and Cologne, Germany as the top-three most LGBTQ-friendly destinations.
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