Florence is a destination for culture vultures. The capital of Tuscany and the province of Florence, the crowded Italian city has been a centre for art and music for 800 years. It is the birthplace of the renaissance, with a rich history of politics, philosophy, business, fashion, painting and sculpture. It’s not all lofty guidebooks and dusty art museums, though; there is plenty of gay nightlife to indulge in after a hard day’s education in the finer things in life.
Florence’s Queer Aboard is an annual event jam-packed with gay fun to suit every type of traveller. Held in January at the Viper Theatre, the event includes exhibitions, live music concerts and a party.
As the first ever Italian gay bar, Tabasco attracts visitors from across Italy as well as around the world. The club plays a variety of music, from techno to vintage rock, and often hosts art shows, leather nights drag and cabaret to suit a varied clientele. Open six days a week, entry is normally relatively cheap and drinks are affordable too.
Culture
Where do you start with culture in Florence? There is, of course, Michaelangelo’s statue of David at the Galleria Dell’Accademia; no self-respecting gay man could miss a chance to see the statue of the ultimate man. Then there’s the Biblioteca Laurenziana, commissioned by Pope Clement VII; the world-famous Uffizi Galleries where you can take in the works of Da Vinci, Botticelli and Michaelangelo; the Giardino de Boboli palace gardens for the beautiful Italian weather; and of course, the luxurious historic properties of the Medici family, who ruled the city in the late Middle Ages. If all of that sounds like too much thinking to do on a holiday, there are numerous street markets to shop in, and gay cafes and restaurants such as the Piccolo Café. At night, there are plenty of gay bars and clubs such as the Crisco Club and the Tabasco Bar. If you like your travels hot and steamy, the Florence Baths is a men-only gay sauna with a bar and movies provided.
Equality
Whilst homosexuality is legal and discrimination on its grounds is illegal in Italy, some attitudes remain conservative. There is a strong campaign to legalise same-sex marriage, but this has yet to succeed.
Travel Information
Reaching Florence by air normally involves landing in Pisa’s Galileo Galilei airport and taking a train to Florence, which takes just over an hour. A small number of flights, however, land in Florence’s Amerigo Vespucci airport. Within Florence, taxis are plentiful, buses run regularly in the city centre to the outskirts, and there are some nightbuses for clubbers on a budget.
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