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One holiday down… a season to go! And if there’s one thing we made sure to give thanks for at our table yesterday, it’s the bevy of queer cheer Europe provides this time of year – two Pink Christmas festivals alone.
Kicking off December 1 with a World AIDS Day gala (TicNet.se), Stockholm brings the festive flavor all month long with parties, shows, and seductive Santas. Highlights include a mondo lesbian party December 11 at Södermalm clubs Momma and Roxy and an all-night affair celebrating Saint Lucia, the queen of light, on December 12. If last year’s festivities are any indication, different bars will take a non-traditional slant on the theme before Lucia “herself” drags it up, dressed in white with a crown of candles before dawn on the 13th. For more info on Pink Christmas and the whole Pink December festival, check out QX magazine (QX.se/gaymap) or Stockholm’s LGBT blog (StockholmTown.com/gay-lesbian), which will have all up-to-date info as it’s released.
Down in the Netherlands, Amsterdam’s Pink Christmas December 17–26 offers a cultural program akin to a wintry Pride. Highlights (like the live queer Nativity tableau, pictured above) include:
- Pink Ice Party skating fest in Rembrandtsquare
- Glühwein-fueled Fashion Show sponsored by the gay bars on the Zeedijk
- Political debate about Amsterdam’s gay future
- Lesbian literary walking tour in the Jordaan
- Drag winter Olympics
- Queer&Asia film night with sing-a-long Christmas karaoke and caroling
The main event is the first-ever Christmas Canal Parade December 23, which features floats bedecked with artist-inspired sparkly wonderment based around a “Lights of the World” theme. Visit PinkChristmas.nl for full details and more events as they're added.
And if you just want to absorb the best part of winter in Europe – the outdoor, oh-so-romantic Christmas markets – Munich offers a gay version December 3-23 in the picturesque Stephansplatz with the traditional handicrafts, bratwurst and steaming cups of mulled delights being sold from pink and purple pagodas instead of wooden huts. Special cabarets and lives shows benefit local AIDS charities as well. Visit Pink-Christmas.de for more info.
Find great seasonal offers on our special Holiday Travel Deals page.
