What's it really like?
Gay San Francisco has the highest percentage of LGBT+ people in all of the 50 US states. As such, the entire city celebrates diversity and freedom.
San Francisco’s history with the gay community has been iconic. Back in 1964, Life Magazine crowned it the “Gay Capital of America,” and it proudly still holds that title.
Once the ultimate playground for gay travelers, gay San Francisco may have lost a bit of its luster, but it still shines with two vibrant gayborhoods packed with buzzing bars and wild nightclubs. Gay travelers are welcomed all over San Francisco with wide-open arms, making it easy to vibe with just about everyone you meet.
Transport in San Francisco is first-rate. The BART metro system covers the entire city; it’s equally as good as the London and Paris metros.
There isn’t an absolute best time to visit San Francisco as it’s welcoming all year round. The warmest months are September and October. Spring is also a popular time for tourists from other cities in California because it has much less rainfall.
For gay travelers, Pride Week is gay San Francisco’s highlight of the year. It’s at the end of June, and the entire city comes alive with one of the world’s largest parades at the event’s culmination.
Most of the venues in gay San Francisco are exactly where you’d expect. Castro, Market, and 18th Streets are basically a gay nightlife conveyor belt, lined with bars and clubs just begging for you to stumble from one to the next. Honestly, you could spend an entire night bar-hopping and still catch something new at every stop.
San Francisco’s second gayborhood is the mission district south of market street (known as SoMa); it’s home to Folsom Street, where the legendary Leather Fair is held on the last Sunday in September every year. The venues in this area have more of a bear, daddy, leather, and kink crowd,
Two former gayborhoods, Polk Street in Nob Hill and the Tenderloin district, have been whittled down to one venue left each.
Play.
the pandemic really did a number on gay San Francisco—shutting down almost every venue and leaving just a handful standing. There are no bathhouses anymore.
However, there are still a couple of spots in gay San Francisco where you can let your inner flirt run wild and go for a cruise. It’s not the steamy wonderland it once was, but hey, sometimes less is more… right?
Accommodation is spread out across the city, yet surprisingly there’s not a lot in or around the Castro gayborhood. That’s not an issue, though, as it’s heavily serviced by public transport, and BART stations are located near almost every hotel.
There’s something for every vibe. Luxe travelers can flex at the Fairmonts and Palace Hotels. Prefer something sleek? The W and Intercontinental are calling. Ballin’ on a budget? Gay San Francisco has you sorted with motels, hostels, and those charming 2-star boarding houses.
When choosing where to stay, pick your level of accommodation, and you’ve got your answer.
San Francisco accommodation is different from other gay destinations in the US in that pools are few and far between. Most properties have fitness centers, but only a handful have pools, and they’re reasonably small.
Gays and the Law
Since the 1950s, San Francisco has led the rest of the country in fighting for gay rights. The first pride parade was in June 1972, with 2,000 marchers and 15,000 spectators. It just celebrated its 50th anniversary—because gay San Francisco doesn’t do anything halfway.
Gilbert Baker invented The world-famous rainbow flag in San Francisco in 1978.
Gay marriage has been possible in San Francisco since 2004, only to be shut down a few months later. Finally, in 2015, as in the rest of the state, Proposition 8 was overturned, and gays can freely marry again.
Getting Tested
The San Francisco City Clinic is conveniently located one block from the start of the Folsom Street gayborhood. It offers rapid HIV and many other STI tests at very low rates. The clinic can also provide PrEP for those who need it.
If you need a dose of PEP, Kaiser Permanente has a 24-hour emergency hotline, or visit an ED at any hospital.
Local Neighhorhoods
In the past, San Francisco was the gay playground of the US, and there were four bustling gayborhoods. With the introduction of hook-up ads, plus destinations like Palm Springs growing and becoming more attractive, San Francisco has some competition.
Castro is still the destination for gay party-ers in San Francisco. Castro Street, just off Market Street, has bars and clubs lined up next to each other for a couple of blocks. For a night out in the city with a variety of entertainment, from karaoke to lip-synching drag queens to go-go boys, it can all be found in this area.
For gays into leather and kink, the second gayborhood of Folsom Street is the place for you. The world-famous Folsom Street Fair happens here on the last Sunday of September every year. For the rest of the year, there are a number of venues and two cruise clubs.
The two former gayborhoods of the Tenderloin District and Polk Street on Nob Hill have been reduced to a single gay venue each. If you feel like venturing out of the two fully operating gayborhoods, these bars would really appreciate a visit.
Gayborhoods aside, there are a couple of other areas of gay San Francisco worth visiting. Fisherman’s Wharf to the North is right on San Francisco Bay. The famous Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz Island can be accessed from there.
Union Square, in the heart of gay San Francisco, is the downtown district; shopping, cafe culture, and being seen all happen here. It’s also the central transport hub.
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