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Welcome to the most up-to-date gay guide to Warsaw.
We regularly visit all Warsaw gay bars, clubs, and saunas, so our gay guide is always up-to-date and reliable. We also include some information on sightseeing but we have much more besides information. We offer gay accommodation in our guestrooms, a practical package of a gay map and a tourist discount card with hotel delivery, and guided city tours. We doubt there is a city (or a website) more hospitable to gay visitors. If you have any questions, you can text us on Skype, just click the button below.
Poland was the first country in Europe to decriminalise homosexual acts, in 1932. When mayor of Warsaw said no to gay pride in 2005, he lost in the court. Two years ago Poles chose gay writer and journalist couple as a "couple of the year" in a popular magazine contest, the award ceremony was broadcast live by public television. The National Museum opened an exhibition of homoerotic art (details below). This year in July Warsaw will host Euro Pride, the biggest gay and lesbian event on the continent. There are sandy beaches at the river banks, two of them are gay. We doubt if any other European capital has that. Enjoy gay Warsaw as much as we do :-)
Gay Guide update
On 21 August Utopia threw its last party.
The club is going to reopen in a new location. Two new places, Glam and Heaven opened this year. More details in our Gay Guide.
Euro Pride 2012
With much less people than expected, it can hardly be called a spectacular event.
Media report that between 8 000 and 20 000 people took part in the march. Undoubtedly, the biggest failure factor was the unbearable heat. A lot of people decided to escape the heat wave already some time before and went for holidays. Those who stayed in Warsaw were certainly discouraged from marching though the streets by extremely high temperatures. 35 degrees were reported in the shade, temperature in direct sunlight was much higher.
We didn't expect any support for the Euro Pride from the city council, dominated by a conservative PO party. But in the relentless sun, they could have made at least a small gesture of providing a water cart for people walking in the heat. We hope that the gay population of Warsaw - approximately 100 000 voters - will vote against narrow-minded politicians who sweep gay and lesbian people under the carpet. Local elections are in slightly more than a year from now.
Ars Homo Erotica
The National Museum in Warsaw, 11 June - 5 Spetember
The Museum itself says: "Although lesbian and gay art has belonged to the canon of museology since 1970s, there has not been yet such a comprehensive exhibition of homoerotics in any world museum. It is also the first show of the queer art in Central and Eastern Europe." Ars Homo Erotica will present over 250 artworks, from Greek vases with frolicking youths to contemporary LGBT art (one of contemporary works below). The exhibition will be accompanied by a series of lectures, meetings, and discussions. Unfortunately, all of them are in Polish (if you are nevertheless interested you can have a look at the detailed program) but guided museum tours are readily available in English.
Yasen Zgurovski Rose, 2008, vector illustration, 100 x 120 cm
2010 edition of Spartacus
The guide publishes incorrect information about Poland and Warsaw again.
"Homosexuals in Poland live in climate of hatred and fear that has grown worse since the far right League of Polish Families (LPR) entered Poland's governing coalition" (page 688). LPR ceased to exist in 2007. Spartacus' editors had three years to find this fact in the internet.
Spartacus also manages to include numerous errors: Barbie Bar has closed two years ago, Bizariusz in spite of advertiser's intentions has never been gay, Lodi Dodi is not an internet cafe, Fantom has no dancefloor, Fantom Sauna has no workout equipment available, M25 is not a gay disco, Tomba Tomba has closed, and Żurawia street ceased to be a "cruising area frequented by hustlers" years ago. Additionally, three new places opened when Spartacus 2010 was in print. For up-to-date information see our Gay Guide.