The Best of the 2009 Vancouver Pride Celebration

If you had any doubts about Vancouver's progressive and diversity-friendly attitude, the 2009 Vancouver Pride Parade and celebration will heartily put them to rest. What started as a courageous and peaceful protest in 1978 has become one of the most grandiose, spirited and outspoken celebrations of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender pride anywhere.

More than 500,000 participants from all walks of life turned out last year, and this year is expected to be as big if not bigger. So if you're interested in taking part in Vancouver's most visually exciting and rainbow-bedecked spectacle of the year, plan to make it to this feel-good festival July 25-Aug. 2, 2009, and read our guide below for enjoying the best of 2009's Vancouver Pride celebration.

• The Theme
• Pre-Parade Events
• Community Celebrations
• The Main Events: The Parade and Festival
• More Information

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The Theme

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  Each year, the Vancouver Pride Society selects a theme for the Vancouver Pride celebration. The theme selected for 2009, "Educate, liberate, celebrate," so accurately gets to the heart of the Pride celebration's purpose that it will carry through as the theme for 2010 and 2011, as well.

Pre-Parade Events

The days leading up to the parade and festival are packed with fun events that are officially part of the fabulous Pride fun.

Among the first is East Side Pride (June 27), a family-friendly event that takes place in the Commercial Drive neighbourhood's Grandview Park. This daytime event is a casual gathering with live music and entertainment, food, local artisans and community groups providing information and services for the LGBT community.

Another great-for-families event is the Picnic in the Park (July 25). For anyone who revels in the joy of a quintessential summer picnic, this gathering in Stanley Park is a must. Each year, the fun is amplified through games like the high-heel shoe toss, a kids-only tent and drag races.

Speaking of drag, few things could make an amusement park more fun than having drag queens on hand. So gear up in red to show your pride and attend Gay Day at Playland (July 18). Discounted admission gives you access to the park's rollercoasters, rides and games, a private beer garden and aforementioned drag entertainment.

Things really kick into high gear with the Pride Weekend Launch (July 31) at the Vancouver Art Gallery. An excellent way to express your support for LGBT rights, the launch event includes a Krispy Kreme doughnut fundraiser, introductions of the Pride Parade's grand marshals and a chance to sign the Declaration of Montreal, an international document advocating for equal human rights.

Pride's penchant for indulgent breakfasts continues with the Terry Wallace Breakfast (Aug. 1), which honours one of the founders of Vancouver Pride with an annual pancake breakfast served by community churches on Davie and Bute streets.

Also on Davie Street, the heart of Vancouver's "gaybourhood," is the popular Davie Street Pride Party (July 31). The street is closed to traffic to make way for unbridled dancing to DJ-spun beats, an oversized game of Twister and other entertainment that gets the party going on the street and propels it into the clubs along David Street late into the evening.

Community Celebrations

Naturally, the enthusiasm of Pride is infectious, and unofficial celebrations also take place all over the city. Visit the official Pride website to learn more about events such as evening party cruises, Global Pride 09's circuit-style parties, cabaret shows and much more.

The Main Events: The Parade and Festival

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  Throughout the Vancouver Pride events, there is a sense of excitement and expectation leading up to the granddaddy event of them all: the Pride Parade (Aug. 2). The parade route was recently extended to central downtown, beginning on Robson and Thurlow, then continuing through the West End on Denman Street to finish at the Sunset Beach Festival Site.

There are approximately 160 parade entries -- floats, dancers, marching groups and more -- which make for a constant stream of entertainment along the route for about three hours. Prepare to be wowed, shocked and inspired with sights such as four-foot-high headdresses, pink fire engines, more rainbow flags than you can count and signs conveying messages of hope and activism.

The levity is temporarily quieted for the traditional moment of silence, usually at 1pm, as a tribute to predecessors who fought for LGBT equal rights, those who are no longer able to celebrate Pride, and LGBT people around the world who remain in various states of oppression.

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  The most memorable part of the parade is always the costumes, which are so elaborate and outrageous that they make a feather boa and go-go boots look tame.

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  Just when you thought the celebration couldn't get any more jubilant, the parade is immediately followed by a giant waterfront bash -- the Sunset Beach Festival. About 100,000 people gather on Sunset Beach to listen to live music (this year by acts such as Kelly and the Kelly Girls, Sugarbeach and Armstrong Jr.), browse vendor booths, kick back in the beer garden, take in sparkling views of English Bay and generally frolic in the festive atmosphere.

Where to find out more:

www.vancouverpride.ca
Also, follow the fabulousness on Twitter.

Where to get tickets:

Many Pride events are free (including the parade and Sunset Beach Festival). Little Sister's Book & Art Emporium, a famous bookseller in Davie Village specializing in LGBT literature, provides sales for ticketed Pride events.

Where to stay:

Vancouver has plenty of gay-friendly lodging. Search here for TAG-approved (Travel Alternatives Group) hotels that meet gay-friendly standards and criteria.