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Vive la France!
Sure, I’ve made it my business to give you the inside scoop on the best Pride places and parties to hit, and sure, I’ve billed this or that event as “the” thing to go to…but only in that country or city. This time around, I’m going to bill “the” party to go to for an entire continent. The Continent, in fact.
EuroPride is held in a different city each year, and like the Olympics, it is hotly contested. And this year, it is actually going to be hot, too: On July 10 – 20, in the sunny Mediterranean city of Marseilles, a place whose economic foundation is beautiful people all with a nasty habit of going and loosing their clothes (repeatedly) is EuroPride, when all 47 European countries have one collective go at having a gay ol’ time.
It may seem that I am pumping up EuroPride 2013 a little early, but there is a method to my madness. Three of them, actually: Firstly, Marseilles is already the summer capital of France; secondly the city is this year’s European Capital of Culture; and thirdly, EuroPride has a funny habit of commandeering other events—this year, the annual Les Voix du Gaou, a world-renowned music festival that draws its own crowd, got roped into the fabulousness. Things are going to be busy, and hotels are going to be booked, even if EuroPride wasn’t there. A little forethought will go a long way with this one.
Events, parades, and symposia take place all over Marseilles, and they are all big—it’s a good this thing this is spread out over 10 days. There are three separate parades! The opening concert on Marseilles’s famous esplanade is a celebration of EuroPride’s 20th birthday, but also of the new gay rights that have been gained, particularly in France. On top of this, club kids will find their Nirvana, as electro music and club culture, which Europe tends to take far more seriously than the New World as artistic, gets its time in the spotlight.
Recommendations are tough with this one, since there is a concerted effort to make every party one for the ages. The best DJs have been pulled in from all over France and Europe, after all. After the opening ceremony, and all the parades, I’d lean towards the Bastille Day event on July 13 at the Olympia as a good bet, along with the Pride Boat Trip on the 18th, when the fun goes for a cruise.
And for cruising. I mean, really, this is a country that gave its name to a kiss, for God’s sake.
For more information, go to europride2013.com. Steele Luxury Travel can assist with all of your travel needs to France including discount business class and economy class airfare as well as great hotel deals and value added perks! Visit www.SteeleTravel.com to learn more!