Last year Fort Lauderdale was ranked as the US city with the highest concentration of same-sex couples.īroward County, in which Fort Lauderdale resides, is considered the most progressive in Florida, a state known for a heavy Republican constituency and as such anti-gay sentiments. Year-round Fort Lauderdale is packed with more and more events, from an LGBTI film festival and Gay Days in November, a candlelight vigil for World AIDS Day, a massive gay pride celebration in March, a bear beach weekend in May, and even an annual gay family weekend is in the works for November 2015. The city recently launched a national transgender travel survey, and will shortly be hosting the country’s largest transgender conference. While this might seem boring to some travelers, this is huge news for LGBTI Americans and foreigners.Ĭonsider how many of your home cities are willing or able to promote gay weddings or lesbian bars on the official city government’s website, and you’ll quickly see why it’s such a big deal that Fort Lauderdale is doing things for the LGBTI community that no other city even dares to approach. It helps that the city’s tourism board is not only embracing but also celebrating the local LGBTI community.įort Lauderdale’s tourism board is one of the only cities in the entire USA that has openly and proudly integrated an LGBTI page into their tourism strategy. Out on the observation deck, watch the cruise ships leave Port Everglades.As we clutch our imaginary pearls every time we hear of a favorite gay bar closing in New York and Los Angeles, we also have reasons to throw our handbags in the air: New gay-owned and gay-friendly businesses are opening up in Fort Lauderdale every day, and with good reason.įort Lauderdale, a popular destination with LGBTI visitors since the 1970s for the region’s tropical climate and laid-back locals, is a city where the demand for LGBTI business is booming. Sit, spin (one revolution every 66 minutes) and see from Miami to Boca, along with a magnificent sunset.
Start with the glass-elevator ride (66 seconds to the top). OK, it's not on the beach, but it's this close, and more important, nowhere else can give you such a panoramic perspective on where you live. You can't feel yourself spinning, even when sober, anywhere else but the Pier Top Lounge. Pier Top Lounge, Hyatt Regency Pier 66 Resort, 2301 SE 17th St., Fort Lauderdale, 95. You can't do this from above ground anywhere else on the Strip. You can dance to hits from the '60s through '80s or, better yet, go out to the deck and swing on a chair. Still want some night action? Head upstairs to Atlantis' little-known older sibling, Bell Bottoms. Sit out on the sidewalk patio, watch the scene, be seen. Forget what you've heard about the wee-hours problems. Inside or out, Ireland's Inn is a timeless experience.Īlso worth mentioning, especially if you're in an experimental mood:Ītlantis, 219 S. Most likely, they have been coming here since 1956, when Ireland's Inn opened. If you need a bathroom, you have to step back in time, inside, to the Edgewater Lounge, where a spinning mirror ball bathed in red casts off its light as a pianist croons for a crowd dressed in pastel polyester and white-buckle shoes. If you're coming off the beach, there are showers on the sand or up on the deck by the bar. Come in the early evening, when the beach breezes are in a mood to caress, the moon rises and eventually shines, and the sky turns to a kaleidoscope of hues. Sitting here, there is no road, no cars, no pedestrians.