I’ve celebrated Pride in over 30 countries, and alongside Sydney and Sao Paulo’s celebrations, Amsterdam Pride is in my top three. This year, the Netherlands’ capital is hosting WorldPride, a global celebration of LGBTQ+ identities that takes place in a different host city every two years. With a commitment to rolling out the rainbow carpet to queer travellers from all over the world, Amsterdam will be hosting 15 days of events from 25 July to 8 August 2026, and is promising a bigger and better festival than has ever been seen before. I’m confident it will go down in the queer history books.
The biggest and most obvious draw is its Canal Parade – instead of a traditional Pride march, Amsterdam does something different and hosts the queer community on its canals. With dozens of boats decked out in rainbow colours sailing alongside the picturesque streets, you can expect eccentric costumes, showers of glitter, and all manner of performers vying for your attention.
