01 July 08

Features

Swede Harmony

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To finish it all off, there’s the Pride Parade on Saturday 2 August. Starting in Humlegarden, a park in the Norrmalm district, a huge carnival will snake its way past the major landmarks of the city and finish off in Pride Park, where the biggest acts of the week will perform. This will be the busiest and most exciting day, so if you can only make it for a short period, coming this weekend is highly recommended.

Yet Stockholm has a huge amount to offer outside its Pride events. Alongside Amsterdam, it is the most gay-friendly city in Europe, and arguably the world. Yet there is no gay scene as such. Gay people go completely unnoticed in non-gay venues, while the handful of gay bars and clubs that do exist have a healthy proportion of straight customers. The Malar Paviljongen (64 Norr Malarstrand, www.malarpaviljongen.se) is a case in point, as is the Nordic Light Hotel (7 Vasaplan, www.nordichotels.se).

Malar Paviljongen is a beautiful waterside bistro, with its restaurant on the banks of the lake, and a bar that floats on a jetty alongside. There’s a small rainbow flag hanging discreetly by the kitchen and the odd same-sex couple canoodling by the lake. But this is firmly an establishment for all of Stockholm’s beautiful people.

The Nordic Light Hotel is one of Stockholm’s premier design hotels, one of a handful working in co-operation with EuroPride. What makes it so special is the way each guest is able to create different colour schemes using a series of lights in their room. For EuroPride they explain how to make your room the colours of the rainbow. For more gay and gay-friendly bars, try

For more gay and gay-friendly bars, try Torget (13 Malartorget, www.torgetbaren. com) and Leijonbaren (5 Lilla Nygatan, www.leijonbaren.se). For gay clubs, head to Club G (Kolingsborg, 2 Sodermalmstorg) and Lino (19 Sodra Riddarholmshamnen, www.linoclub.com). But best of all is Patricia (152 Stadsgårdskajen, www.patricia.st), a boat docked on the lake, whose Sunday night parties have a reputation for being the best gay/mixed nights in Stockholm. Undoubtedly, this is where everyone will go to celebrate on Sunday 3 August, the last night of EuroPride. Don’t be surprised if you see Swedes skinnydipping in the waters of Lake Malaren after the party’s over. This is common in the summer months and demonstrates the very best of Swedish Sin, Breaking Borders.

Bite-size EuroPride
Long weekend

While there is more than enough to keep you entertained for the full 10 days of EuroPride, cutting your visit down to a long weekend (31 July–3 August) could be more practical.

THURSDAY 31 JULY
Schlager (pictured below) will dominate the festival on 31 July, and from Pride Park to club nights, EuroPride will be going crazy for the music. You have been warned.

FRIDAY 1 AUGUST
With no big events today, it’s the perfect time to enjoy the various happenings at Pride House and Pride in the City.

SATURDAY 2 AUGUST
The culmination of the festival is today’s Pride Parade – the biggest,most exciting event of EuroPride.

SUNDAY 3 AUGUST
Nurse your party hangover at the many restaurants in Pride Park, then start all over again at Patricia – Stockholm’s best gay night.