While any pride is worthwhile, the small-town pride festivals listed below punch above their weight with creative parties and events in unique locales that challenge the perception of where queer people can thrive. Ranging from ragers on beaches to celebrating the Indigenous two-spirit peoples, these pride parties provide plenty of evidence that our queer community knows no bounds. We are everywhere, and we belong anywhere.
And, no, this isn’t just a list of Provincetown, Palm Springs, and Fire Island. They’re amazing, but it’s time to shine the light on the other small-town queer getaways.
While it’s crucial to support all queer people, it’s also impossible to ignore the ongoing legislative attacks on our community in certain states. Several of these destinations are within red and conservative states that have and are actively passing harmful laws. It’s vital to celebrate LGBTQIA+ communities that are making a home against hostility. Still, anyone planning to travel should do their research and plan accordingly to gauge where they’re comfortable visiting.
The East Coast hosts a cornucopia of small queer communities, and Ogunquit in Maine is a shining, if also hidden, gem of a destination. Just north of Portsmouth, this quaint, queer village by the sea is home to a healthy handful of queer-owned and operated businesses within its four square miles. Considered the Maine answer to Provincetown in Massachusetts, their Pride proves size doesn’t matter. With hot air balloon rides, a picnic in the park, a tea party, and burlesque on the beach, Ogunquit is always a great time by the lagoon in June.
A queer haven on the flyover coast of Michigan, Saugatuck is a tucked-away lakeside destination for Midwestern Pride. Having hosted the queer community for nearly a hundred years ever since the Art Institute established an arts colony on the shores, Saugatuck has had plenty of practice in perfecting Pride. With a collection of gay resorts on or overlooking the dunes and shoreline of Lake Michigan, June sees the town come even more alive with parties and a parade. In addition to fantastic bathing weather and access to the beautiful blue waters of the lake, there’s a Pride bowling night (of course) for those craving a reason to plan an outfit around the iconic footwear of the sport. Saugatuck challenges the assumption that you need salty seas for a beachy-keen Pride.
As the home of the University of Kansas, Lawrence continues the collegiate tradition of being a progressive haven in a conservative state. Lawrence is well known as one of the most queer-friendly towns on this side of the Kansas River, inviting students and townies alike to make a home out on the plains. While the students are on summer break, local friends of Dorothy come out for a technicolor parade every June. With drag performances, a block party, and vendors with locally made merch, Lawrence Pride proves there is a home for us all without going over the rainbow.
Between the Pride behemoths of the Bay Area and Southern California lies a sleeper hit of a festival in San Luis Obispo. A trip to the over-the-top campy Madonna Inn is reason enough to go to SLO, but the Central Coast Pride festival that covers not one but two whole months is a reason to slow down and stay a while. With 60 days of pride, there’s something for everyone. Birders can go birding, yogis can expect weekly yoga courses, and D&D players can nerd out, all while plenty of parties offer a chance to shake it up in San Luis Obispo.
Hiding in the Ozark Mountains is a hippie refuge under the shadows of a 70-foot-tall Jesus statue. The Victorian getaway town has long been an artists’ hideaway, and artists’ hideaways tend to foster a community welcoming towards LGBTQIA+ people. And Eureka Springs especially so, as it’s the site of one of the first legal gay marriages in the South.
The small mountain town continues to pull in big names to celebrate in true Ozark style, with comedian Tig Nataro headlining this year’s festival. With drag performances from RuPaul’s Drag Race alum and a parade winding its way down the hillside town, Eureka Springs is worth the hike for Pride.
Maui may not be a “small town,” but the island is full of places celebrating during Pride as LGBTQIA+ festivities cover every corner of the island. From the Maui Pride Festival on Market Street in Wailuku to guided hikes and a sunset cruise, the island is packed with activities. Official Pride events are in towns and in more rural areas, for those who would like to break from the typical big city celebrations. For those looking out to the horizon, the Pride Sunset Cruise offers a different kind of cruising for an evening sailing and snacking out on the Pacific, but you’ll need to book your spot in advance.
Southeast of Tucson lies an Old West mining town turned queer destination with an estimated 60 percent gay population, making it a rainbow oasis in the Grand Canyon state. Bisbee’s pride shines bright, with a mile-high elevation that avoids the typical June heat, making it an incredibly cool escape in the desert. Beyond the parade and open-air, all-day festival, expect a bingo night hosted by the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, a drag extravaganza, and a street dance hosted in the middle of the town for a cinematic moment of magic in Arizona.
Deep inside the Rockies, Missoula provides shelter for the queer community inside the Treasure State. With the secret out on this mountainous college town (and plenty of out-of-staters moving in) the growth has spurred a blooming and vibrant LGBTQIA+ scene. As such, Missoula Pride has blossomed into a key event for Montana queers as the weekend festivities of dancing, drag, burlesque, and a pride fun run invite people from all across the Rockies to converge and connect in Missoula.
This year, the first annual Missoula Pride Two-Spirit Powwow will connect the present with the past and hopeful future of the Indigenous Two Spirit peoples and their land. With traditional powwow dancing, drumming, Indigenous vendors, and food trucks, Missoula Pride is proving that everyone is welcome to come out and celebrate in Montana.
At the southernmost point of the continental US is a pride festival that feels like the center of the world. With a history of being a safe port for queer people to dock and settle down, the island of Key West comes together for seven sinfully delicious days of celebrations with tea dances, a purgatory party, a poolside dive-in movie, a sunset sail, and, of course, Sunday mass to wash the sins of the week away. Prepare to be swept away by the sheer volume of events packed into the one-mile-wide island and see why Key West is key to an unforgettable Florida Pride celebration. 