Stockholm gears up for a ‘Big Gay Summer’

Summer in Stockholm, the ‘gay Capital of Scandinavia’ is always an exciting time; but this year, visitors to the Swedish capital will experience an exhilarating ‘Big Gay Summer’, kicking off with the ever growing Stockholm Pride and extending into Eurogames, one of the world’s largest LGBT sporting festivals and landmark events in the global LGBT calendar. It is also a proud winner of this year’s British LGBT Award for ‘Destination of the Year’.

Stockholm is “where narrow streets meet open minds”, a breathtakingly beautiful capital city built on 14 islands connected by 57 bridges. Its stunning buildings (and people), fresh air and proximity to the water makes it a wonderful place to spend the extra long summer days.

It’s also a truly open-minded and diverse capital city, making it a perfect destination for gay travellers and a wonderful holiday destination for modern families. The city is celebrating six glorious years of equal marriage, backed by the Church of Sweden, making it a perfect setting for gay and lesbian weddings and honeymoons. Here’s what’s on offer during Stockholm’s upcoming Big Gay Summer:
STOCKHOLM PRIDE

Stockholm Pride is the biggest of all the Nordic Pride festivals and an event that draws LGBTQ people from across the world. Pride features an action packed, week-long festival and celebration of all things LGBTQ.

27 July – 01 August 2015 |  #stockholmpride
EUROGAMES

EuroGames is among the world’s largest LGBTQ-events (held just three times each decade), founded by the European Gay and Lesbian Sport Federation (EGLSF) in 1992 to combat discrimination and promote the right to engage in sport, politics and culture – regardless of sexual orientation, gender, religion, age, ethnic origin, political beliefs, or athletic or artistic ability.

EuroGames Stockholm is expected to attract over 5,000 participants and more than 250,000 visitors. Previous host cities include Barcelona, Paris, London and Antwerp. The games will feature an exciting range of events, both sporting and cultural – as you would expect of the event in a world-class city. However, there are some unique Swedish touches this year, including the first ever LGBTQ Ultra-Marathon, a staggering 50km, taking in some of the city’s landmark sights.

Its Sporting Ambassadors include Swedish National Football team player and QX LGBTQ Person of the Year, Nila Fischer, fellow team-mate Victoria Sandell Svensson, German National Football Player Thomas Hitzperger and and Swedish National Handball player Tobias Karlsson. Other equally important Ambassadors include actress and transgender activist Aleksa Lundberg, politician Birgitta Ohlsson, and Artist Lars Lerin. Also, Sweden’s Minister for Sports Gabriel Wikström is also a proud ambassador to the Games.

05 August – 09 August 2015 |  #eurogamessthlm

STOCKHOLM GAY AND LESBIAN NETWORK

The Stockholm Gay and Lesbian Network, a project within Stockholm Visitors Board is unique – funded by partners who are passionate about gay and lesbian travel into the city – and arguably the only network of its kind in the world. Find out more about the goings-on in gay Stockholm, hotels, restaurants, places to see – and download the gay guide to the city.  | #outinstockholm