Iconic Tel Aviv Pride Parade returns

The Tel Aviv Pride Parade will be one of the first mass parades worldwide to return in a physical, in-person format – courtesy of Israel’s high vaccination rates and lifting of restrictions following the country’s emergence from the pandemic.

The Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality has announced the return of its iconic Tel Aviv Pride Parade on Friday, June 25, representing the first mega-event in the city since the COVID-19 pandemic hit last year.

The famous parade marks the climax of the annual Pride Month celebrations that have been taking place in the city of Tel Aviv-Yafo every year in the month of June since 1998. The Pride celebrations in Tel Aviv have attracted hundreds of thousands of visitors and Israelis who join in the citywide festivities every year. The 2019 Tel Aviv Pride Parade was attended by over 250,000, making it one of the leading events on the global LGBTQ calendar and the largest event of its kind in the Middle East.

The parade, featuring party trucks and DJs, will start at midday from Tel Aviv’s Bograshov Beach, before continuing southwards along the seafront promenade, finishing at Charles Clore Park – where a huge party overlooking the Mediterranean Sea will host performances by leading artists on two main stages.

This year’s theme ‘A Community That Creates Change’ will be at the centre of the Pride Month events, born of the desire to strengthen social involvement and shared activities within the LGBTQ+ community groups and wider society. The cultural sector will assume a prominent place in the Pride schedule. The city will salute gay artists in the fields of music, visual arts, writing, drag and more, who have always stood at the forefront of the LGBTQ campaign for equality and repeatedly proved that culture creates change and has a veritable impact on our reality.

A few key events taking place during Pride month 2021 are the beach parties at Hilton Beach, Wigstock Drag Festival 2021 and the ‘Subculture’ Festival – Temporary Farewell to the Tel Aviv Municipal LGBTQ Community Centre.