Houston Gay and Lesbian Scene

(Houston, Texas - TX, USA US)

Since the 1960s, the LGBT scene in Houston has experienced a series of dramatic changes. The earliest gay bars and clubs tend to be based within the area now known as the Midtown district.

During the 1970s and early 1980s, the rather bohemian atmosphere within the Montrose area of the Neartown district resulted in the opening of close to 40 gay bars. The actual number of LGBT residents within Montrose shot up to roughly 20 percent and the whole neighborhood enjoyed something of a hedonistic party lifestyle.

Today, general acceptance of same-sex couples in this part of Texas has seen the decentralizing of the Montrose gay village. Many of its former residents now choose to live within the suburbs and the trendy Houston Heights district, on the northwestern side of the city.

If you are visiting Houston and looking for a lively gay nightspot in Montrose, then the South Beach nightclub on Pacific Street certainly comes recommended, with its busiest period tending to fall between midnight and 02:00. Other popular bars and clubs around Montrose tend to line roads such as Crocker Street, Fairview Street, Genesee Street, Grant Street, the Hyde Park Boulevard, Ralph Street, Richmond Avenue, Tuam Street and Waugh Drive.

In downtown Houston, popular LGBT-friendly bars are concentrated around both Leeland Street and Milam Street, while in the Fourth Ward District, consider a night out at Tony's Corner Pocket Bar on West Dallas Street, with its live entertainment being the main draw card here.

Houston Gay Festivals and Events

• Houston Pride Festival and Parade
  This annual Gay Pride extravaganza was first held at the end of the 1970s and takes place each year towards the end of June, featuring a large parade with amazing costumes and floats. The procession typically heads along Westheimer Road and winds its way through the streets to finish up at Crocker Street. This is an enormous event and easily the biggest LGBT Pride celebration in Southwest USA, attracting more than 200,000 attendees year upon year.
• Q-Fest (formerly named the Houston Gay and Lesbian International Film Festival)
  This yearly ten-day film festival comes along at the end of July and has its roots in the middle of the 1990s. Nowadays, the Q-Fest attracts over 6,000 visitors and sees the screening of all kinds of themed films at venues around the city. These include the Alamo Drafthouse Vintage Park on the Vintage Park Boulevard, the Aurora Picture Show on Bartlett Street, the Houston Museum of African American Culture on Caroline Street, the Museum of Fine Arts on Bissonnet Street, and the Rice Cinema on University Boulevard.

Houston GLBT Community Center
Address: 1900 Kane Street, Houston, Texas (TX), 77007, USA
Tel: +1 713 524 3818