In the very heart of the Middle East, there’s something immense about the power Tel Aviv has as an LGBT+ destination: surrounded by territories which broadly condemn queerness, the city has become a safe space for people that feel different.
Of course, the city’s open-mindedness extends way beyond the LGBT+ community. Teeming with exciting fusion food, beautifully preserved Bauhaus architecture, glorious beaches and eye-catching street art.
But there’s something particularly alluring about its LGBT+ scene as a playbook for tolerance and equality in a part of the world that’s largely conservative.
In fact, Tel Aviv’s impressive LGBT+ history is really a microcosm of the city’s more generally inclusive feel.
“We refuse to choose between our identities,” says one queer woman I met at a fully-funded LGBT+ Community Centre in the city — far more than my home city of London offers our own LGBT+ community. “Orthodox, religious, trans inclusion: we’re proud to be Jews and Arabs in one community.”
In Tel Aviv, change and liberal thinking has been the work of a remarkably strong people’s movement. “It goes people, municipality, power,” another local tells me. “Not government, not institutions: it’s people. They will do everything to come this Friday.”
As to what was happening that was so important on that particular Friday, I was visiting the city for Tel Aviv Pride, a yearly symbol of the city’s tolerance. It’s the ideal time to visit Tel Aviv, taking place in June with an international LGBT+ community to mingle with — this year’s event will be taking place on June 12.
But whenever you visit, here’s what to look out for.
Tel Aviv’s best bars
If you haven’t been to Tel Aviv before, there’s no particular LGBT+ area, but that’s kind of the point. Much like in Berlin, LGBT+ culture is as prominent as straight culture in the bars, so ‘gay bars’ also double as just good bars, with everyone welcome.
Try Shpagat for excellent cocktails in a theatrical setting. Found in the Nahalat Binyamin district, levels of seating are raised around the main dancefloor so there’s an area for you no matter your mood.
A 20-minute walk away, new opening La Boheme on HaArba’a Street has the city’s best drag shows.
A more modern trend in Tel Aviv is for house parties. The popular app Atraf is where LGBT+ people meet online, before hosts reveal where any parties may be that night.
But there are alternatives to the culture of meeting online too. Another new bar called Don’t Tell Mom in Florentin has been founded on the principle that it’s important to meet new people in real life, so there’s more of a relaxed dance floor and bar set up to encourage interaction.
Tel Aviv clubs to try
Bars may close around midnight but that’s far from the end of the night. Tel Aviv has a thriving party scene which lasts well into the following morning.
To party with locals, don’t miss Lima Lima on Saturdays in the energetic Rothschild district that’s perfect for bar-hopping. Amazonia also near the Rothschild Boulevard area is great for a diverse LGBT+ party crowd (ie one that’s not mainly men). Check the opening hours though, as they’re slim.
Or for somewhere more geared towards the male scene, Apolo in Allenby has generous dancing space and a darkroom too.
And if you’re a serious clubber, The Block is a proper house and techno venue, and has more of a stripped-back feel where the focus is around new and classic dance music.
Beaches to try
The Hilton Beach near the Tel Aviv Marina offers the best of both worlds; live DJs, a dancefloor and an image-conscious crowd on one side of the headland, while on the other there’s a more relaxed vibe. Here you’ll also find more of a mixed, non-male crowd.
Restaurants lie beyond the sand while roller-skaters scoot past in scenes reminiscent of a Miami beachfront.
To get away from the seas of people entirely and focus on the bathtub-warm sea instead, stroll further down the beach until you reach Frishman Beach. There are lifeguards and loungers to rent, as well as a fitness trail for anyone who fancies a sunny workout.
March the Parade with the locals
“The Pride Parade is a sign of freedom in Israel, the symbol, the feel of what freedom is,” explained one man I met at the start of the Pride Parade. Unlike London, the Parade in Tel Aviv also attracts straight families and couples as well as a throng of LGBT+ defining locals and foreign tourists.
One criticism is of ‘Pinkwashing’, where the government play up their gay credentials to get extra gay tourists, but taken less cynically, I’ve never seen a city authentically come together in a way quite like this.
Best is that anyone can march in the Parade without needing to register officially — perhaps the ultimate mark of inclusivity.
The Parade starts around midday with live performances in Meir Park (with welcome shade under a treetop canopy from the 30 degree heat), plus opportunities to buy beer for around £1.50 before the Parade begins.
Others skip the chance to join at street level in order to dance on balconies along the route. I’m playfully sprayed by with water pistols more than a dozen times from the apartments either side of me, lining the route through the city centre.
Along the pavements, there are offers of free ice lollies (there’s no time to see who exactly is offering them), roadside beer top-ups, street food and — finally — at the seafront, the floats.
After the Parade, Charles Clore Park on the beachfront is the entertainment beacon. A covered main stage offers queer acts from around the world including former Eurovision contestants and it’s free to enter.
Every year a famous guest is welcomed as an official representative of Tel Aviv Pride: in 2019 that was actor Neil Patrick Harris.
“You’ll see me dancing with my top off!” he exclaimed from a press conference the morning before the Parade took place.
The following day, he was dancing indeed – although he kept his top on, perhaps wisely in the summer heat.
Like this? Sign up for more with our JC Life newsletter.
From fabulous recipes, to parenting tips; travel and West End entertainment; insightful interviews and much more: there’s more to the JC than news
