Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Best
Gay & Lesbian
To call Amsterdam a gay capital doesn't express just how welcoming and open
the scene is here. After all, this is the city that gave the world
Butt
magazine. It's
also the city that claims to have founded the world's first gay and lesbian bar, and
hosts one of the world's largest and most flamboyant Pride parades.
Party Zones
Five hubs party hardest. Warmoesstraat in the Red Light District (between the Dam and
Centraal Station) hosts the infamous, kink-filled leather and fetish bars. Nearby on the up-
per end of the Zeedijk, bright crowds spill onto laid-back bar terraces. In the Southern
Canal Ring, the area around Rembrandtplein (aka the 'Amstel area') has traditional pubs
and brown cafes, some with a campy bent. Leidseplein has a smattering of trendy venues
along Kerkstraat. And Reguliersdwarsstraat, located one street down from the flower mar-
ket, draws the beautiful crowd (though financial and legal problems have taken a toll on
many venues here recently).
't MandjeAmsterdam's oldest gay bar is a trinket-covered beauty. (
Click here
)
Top Tips
›
Gay Amsterdam (
www.gayamsterdam.com
)
lists hotels, shops, restaurants and clubs, and provides maps.
›
The Pride Festival (
www.weareproud.nl
) rages the first week in August.
›
Located behind the Westerkerk (
Click here
), Pink Point (
www.pinkpoint.org
)
is part information kiosk, part
souvenir shop. Get details on GLBT hangouts and social groups.
Getto
A younger crowd piles in for cheap food and Red Light people-watching. (
Click
