Seattle has a long-standing history of being an LGTBQ-friendly city, with 2024 marking 50 years of Seattle Pride. With one of the largest LGBTQ communities in the country, there’s no shortage of fantastic queer-owned businesses, spaces, and events to experience.
Shop small at local businesses, attend a live performance, explore the vibrant Capitol Hill neighborhood, enjoy Seattle’s many green spaces, and so much more. There’s something for art and music lovers, outdoorsy folks, and foodies alike, and many of these activities can be enjoyed year-round.
Whether you’re planning a visit for Pride Month in June or just looking for a weekend escape, there’s so much to see and do in this welcoming city.
LGBTQ Seattle Guide
Explore Capitol Hill
If you’re new to Seattle, consider starting your visit in Capitol Hill. This diverse and inclusive neighborhood has long been an epicenter for the LGBTQ+ community in Seattle, with a number of bars, boutiques, live music venues, public parks, and activities to explore.
For breakfast, grab plant-based specialty donuts from Dough Joy (locations in West Seattle and Ballard as well). Their offerings are great for folks looking for egg-free, dairy-free, and nut-free treats, including rainbow donuts during Pride.
For nightlife, stop into Wildrose Bar, one of the oldest lesbian bars on the West Coast (celebrating 40 years in 2024). Check out their weekly events, including queer songwriter night, trivia, and karaoke. At Queer/Bar, enjoy the weekly Mx. Drag Show on Fridays and Saturdays with rotating gogo dancers and drag queens. During Pride, they also host the Queer/Pride Festival, which features drag queens from Rupaul’s Drag Race.
Find community and fresh, seasonal dining at Kamp Social House, a gathering space and restaurant. They host a Lesbian Night every Friday as well as social hours and brunches. Don’t miss their two weekly flavors of soft serve made with seasonal ingredients.
In addition to Capitol Hill, you’ll find tons of gay-friendly and gay-owned businesses throughout the city.
Experience Arts and Culture
As a queer film institution, Three Dollar Bill Cinema is committed to highlighting queer stories and creating space for LGBTQ+ filmmakers. The community can engage with filmmakers and their work during panels, screenings, community meet ups, and workshops.
You can also see a show by the Seattle Men’s Chorus and Seattle Women’s Chorus are among the largest LGBTQ-identified choruses in the world. Since their inception, these groups have been committed to advocating for the queer community and welcoming guest artists.
For a self-guided art tour, explore the city’s murals and discover works by artists like Stevie Shao, Ten Hundred, and Vivid Matter Collective. The best part about murals is that they’re always evolving, so take a note of how different art walls and pieces change or grow over time.
At LGBTQ-owned Crystal Lounge by Crystallography Gems (Downtown), you can browse crystals, minerals, and stones before enjoying a local craft beer or non-alcoholic beverage in the lounge. Stop by Doll Parts (West Seattle) to discover vintage clothing and housewares.
Housed in a retired 1920s firehouse, Station 7 (Capitol Hill) is full of thoughtfully curated handmade goods like stationery, jewelry, and books. This is a great place to grab a gift for loved ones or a souvenir for yourself.
Dine Out
Seattle’s food scene is as diverse as its residents, with many fantastic LGBTQ-owned bars and restaurants to support year-round. Here are just a few to try during your visit.
Flora Bakehouse (Beacon Hill): The spot to get freshly baked pastries and enjoy a rooftop deck. They’re known for their kouign amann, hand pies, and seasonal offerings of soft serve sundaes, twice-baked almond croissants, and jam buns. During the month of June, they also offer rainbow cake slices and donate the proceeds to LGBTQ+ nonprofits.
Frelard Tamales (Green Lake): Head here for handmade tamales using a family recipe with options like mushroom and cheese with chipotle, sweet potato or chicken mole, and pork loin in a chile de arbol sauce. Owners Osbaldo Hernandez and Dennis Ramey are proud to be an interracial gay couple and run this family business.
Biang Biang Noodles (Capitol Hill): Come for the hand-pulled dry and soup noodles with spicy beef, pork, chicken, and tofu, plus handmade dumplings and crispy baos.
A La Mode Pies (Ballard, West Seattle): One of the largest queer-owned businesses in the Pacific Northwest uses reinvented recipes from owner Chris Porter’s mom. Dive into sweet and savory pies with seasonal fruit like cherries, rhubarb, and marionberry as well as classic flavors like cookies and cream, key lime, and apple. During Pride Month, they offer rainbow cheesecakes.
Tres Lecheria (Wallingford): This takeout-only spot is a Food Network competition-winning bakery. Kevin Moulder sells slices of tres leches inspired by his grandmother’s baking and his Mexican heritage. Look for flavors like dulce de leche, sweet corn and honey, pistachio, and more.
Get Outside
If you want to get out and enjoy the sunshine, rent kayaks at the Waterfront Activities Center or enjoy the walkways at the Washington Arboretum and Japanese Garden.
The city also has plenty of parks and walking and biking paths to explore. Wander the trails at Discovery Park, rent bikes, and set out on the Burke-Gilman Trail, walk through the Olympic Sculpture Park, or pack a picnic and head to Gas Works Park or Alki Beach for scenic views.
Looking for company? Queer Mountaineers hosts climb nights regularly at Edgeworks, Seattle Bouldering Project, and more, while outdoor organization OutVentures brings the LGBTQ+ community together for hiking, camping, and kayaking.
Trail Mixed Collective is also committed to connecting women of color in their outdoor adventures through park walks and sensory hikes, climbing nights, and strength training classes, among other activities.
Explore more outdoor activities in Seattle.
Celebrate Pride in Seattle
During Pride Month in June, visitors can experience a range of events and activities celebrating the LGBTQ+ community.
The Seattle Pride Parade (June 30, 2024) is a hallmark of celebrating in June with 250+ organizations coming together for one big day of celebrations to end the month, and Pride in the Park will kick off the month with performances, food trucks, nonprofit booths and vendors, and more.
PrideFest (June 29 – 30, 2024) is a Pride celebration filling up blocks of Capitol Hill with activities like drag queen story time, performances, beer gardens, and pop-ups with local businesses.
Trans Pride Seattle (June 28, 2024) celebrates with performances, music, community speakers, and a resource fair. The event is organized by the advocacy group Gender Justice League and other organizations supporting transgender and gender-diverse communities.
Queer Prom (June 22, 2024) is a place where the LGBTQ+ community can celebrate authentically with dancing, DJs, vendors, performance, and more.
Union Pride Block Party (June 28 – 30, 2024) is a block party for all with music galore. Celebrate at this outdoor event, which has no cover charge!
Black Pride (August 23 – 25, 2024) focuses on creating space for people to reflect, learn, and create space for Black LGBTQ+ folks
Stay Close to the Fun
No matter what time of year you visit, you’ll find plenty of welcoming, inclusive hotels. If you’re visiting during Pride Month, consider basing yourself in Capitol Hill or South Lake Union. The Pan Pacific Hotel usually offers a Stay with Pride package (based on availability at check-in) that includes cocktails for two, discounts on the Queen Bee Salon, parking, and complimentary drop-off car service.
In South Lake Union, Level offers spacious apartment-style rooms and amenities like an outdoor pool. Book using the Pride rate and enjoy 15% off. As a bonus, 5% of your rate will be donated to the Pacific Northwest Queer Arts Foundation, which supports LGBTQ+ artists.
Kimpton Monaco is located on the route of the Pride Parade. The Trevor Project rate code is available year-round and gets you 15% off their best flexible rate. A donation of $10 per night of your stay will go toward the project, which provides 24/7 crisis intervention and suicide prevention for LGBTQ youth.
For stays booked until June 30, 2024, The State Hotel offers a Seattle-themed welcome amenity for Pride. It’s also located right next to Pike Place Market and a short bus ride away from Capitol Hill.
For 2024, The W Seattle also offers a package to honor 50 Years of Pride with a room on a high floor, a $50 food and beverage credit, and a bottle of wine from LGBTQ-owned winery Aluel Cellars.
About the Author
Aleenah Ansari is a Seattle-based writer covering travel, entrepreneurship, mental health and wellness, and representation in media for Insider, The Seattle Times, Byrdie, and more. You can usually find her searching for murals in Seattle and beyond, reading a book by a BIPOC author, and planning her next trip to New York. Learn more at aleenahansari.com.
Featured Image by Nate Gowdy