Gay area of philadelphia

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Also held during Pride Month: the Philadelphia Dyke March.

The Philly Black Pride festival, a four-day weekend of celebrations and community building across the city, was first held in 1999. Explore more of the city and check out out trans-owned bakery, Cake Life Bake Shop! Owner Jourdan Porter designs apparel and merchandise for queer and trans people of color.

Philly is full of creatives!

Anonymous” John E. Fryer, M.D. and marriage equality activist Edie Windsor.

Over and over again, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania has been at the forefront of this civil rights movement, helping to bend history just as it always has.

That same year, a Rittenhouse Square diner was the site of one of the nation’s first LGBTQ+ sit-in protests.

Then in 1979, the first-ever national march for LGBTQ+ Rights was organized at Arch Street Meeting House.

Today, visitors can discover the city’s famous Gayborhood and explore important LGBTQ+ landmarks like Philly AIDS Thrift @ Giovanni’s Room (the oldest LGBTQ+ bookstore in the nation) and Tavern on Camac (Philadelphia’s oldest operating LGBTQ+ bar), along with fantastic shopping and dining.

The Art Mart features 100+ Philly-area artists and other creatives.

BONUS: Support even MORE LGBTQ+-owned businesses in Philly with our Guide2Goods!

Things to Do

A hub for the LGBTQ social scene, the Gayborhood offers many community events and celebrations!

During National Pride Month in June every year, thousands of people come to the city for the Philadelphia Pride March and Festival.

The neighborhood is also the site of Giovanni’s Room, the nation’s oldest LGBTQ+ bookstore, and Duross & Langel, a hotspot for handmade facial, skin and body care.

Many more LGBTQ+-owned and -friendly spaces ring the city, from South Street’s Workshop Underground, Queen Village’s Philly AIDS Thrift, Fishtown’s Cake Life Bakeshop and Fabrika to Dankbaar in East Passyunk.

Events & Festivals

The 100,000-attendee-strong Philadelphia Pride March & Festival has been held annually since 1972, and is one of the nation’s oldest.

It is also the oldest LGBTQ and feminist bookstore in the country.

In the market for locally designed apparel?

An Essential Guide to LGBTQ+ Philadelphia

Philadelphia, the nation’s birthplace and one of the most welcoming cities for the LGBTQ+ community, is proud of the historic roles it has played — and plays still — in the founding, advancement and celebration of the LGBTQ+ Civil Rights movement.

In 1965 Philadelphia hosted the country’s first major demonstration for gay rights, the Annual Reminders protests outside Independence Hall.

Set in the heart of Washington Square West, this neighborhood is an iconic LGBTQ+ community scene—complete with shopping, dining along 13^th Street, and everything in between. Originally offering LGBTQ fiction and non-fiction works, Philly Aids Thrift has expanded its selection to music, art, comics, books, and more!

Campus Philly’s 2025 Mini-Guide to the Gayborhood

HAPPY PRIDE!

This month, plan your visit to one of our favorite neighborhoods in Philly: The Gayborhood! The 16-square-block area offers a slew of LGBTQ+-owned and -friendly bars, restaurants, shops, theaters and institutions, plus 36 rainbow street signs and two rainbow crosswalk intersections.

LGBTQ+-Inclusive Dining & Shopping

Many of Philly’s most popular LGBTQ+-inclusive dining and nightlife spots dot the Gayborhood, including restaurants like Bud & Marilyn’s, Winkel, Mission Taqueria and Oyster Bar, as well as bars like Woody’s and Tavern on Camac, arguably the city’s oldest LGBTQ+ bar.

The Gayborhood is tucked in Midtown Village and spans Pine Street to Chestnut Street, as well as 11^th Street to Broad Street! Map it here, and check out some highlights for Pride Month (and beyond!) below.
Dining
The dining experience is central to the Gayborhood, with local restauranteurs (like Marcie Turney and Valerie Safran!), bringing incredible dining experiences to the area and helping to launch the Gayborhood into its current glory.

Imagine if a Sports Bar downstairs met a Dance Club met a Cabaret met a Roof Deck… a.k.a: this three-floors-of-entertainment space is meant for FOR EVERYONE!
Plus, looking for something sweet? Take a quick trip just outside of the Gayborhood to check out this local favorite, the South Street Art Mart. It’s one of our favorites here at Campus Philly.
Shopping
Full of small businesses to support, there’s no shortage of shopping in the Gayborhood.
A highlight of the neighborhood is Philly Aids Thrift at Giovanni’s Room.

Only intended to be a holiday pop-up shop in November 2018, this artist-run retail shop received an overwhelming amount of support and was able to stay open. Naturally Queer has you covered! The neighborhood also hosts annual events like the Philadelphia Pride March and Festival and OURfest.
Check out this itinerary of Philadelphia’s essential LGBTQ+ sites — past and present.

Founded on principles of equality, Philadelphia is a welcoming and inspirational place for LGBTQ+ travelers, offering inclusive arts and nightlife, vibrant shopping and dining, and a long history of LGBTQ+ activism.
A Welcoming Place
Three centuries ago, William Penn founded Philadelphia as a place where freedom, tolerance and equality would thrive.
In that tradition of Brotherly and Sisterly Love, the city has long welcomed LGBTQ+ residents and visitors to this inviting destination, thriving social hub and historically significant locale.
The Gayborhood
The Gayborhood in Midtown Village has been Philly’s center of LGBTQ+ life and culture since the 1950s.
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The lively neighborhood is home to a significant portion of Philadelphia’s 60,000 LGBTQ+ residents.

The current version has been running since 1988 and is now one of the largest in the nation. And OURfest (known as OutFest from 1995 to 2022) celebrates National Coming Out Day (NCOD) features the nation’s first-ever NCOD parade.
A Deep History of LGBTQ+ Rights Activism
In Philadelphia, the birthplace of democracy, freedom and independence, the crusade for LGBTQ+ equality began in earnest in the 1960s.
It was here that teens led successful sit-ins at Dewey’s Restaurant with discriminatory policies against people they dubbed “homosexuals.”
And it was here on July 4 right in front of Independence Hall that some of the nation’s first gay rights protests took place during the Annual Reminders (1965-1969).
Philadelphians who have played significant roles in the struggle for equality include activist and founder of Philly Gay News Mark Segal, the “Mother of the LGBTQ+ Rights Movement” Barbara Gittings, “Dr.

Along the parade route, performers adorn the streets of the city, along with live music, food trucks, artists and vendors, and so much more.
The festival is full of dancing, food, and fun for everyone!
Plus, a great space for support, social wellness programming, and to find more events is the William Way LGBT Community Center. The couple opened Mediterranean-style Barbuzzo, along with the mid-century-inspired American eatery, Bud and Marilyn’s—and both spots are must-trys in Philly.
Highly acclaimed for its nightlife, the Gayborhood also features places like 254 Philadelphia.