Your day begins here, on the beach, with miles and miles of glorious sunshine!
Maspalomas Pride is one of Europe’s top 10 gay pride events with more than 100,000 attendees.
The Greek writer Homer called the islands Elysium—where the good and great spent an idyllic afterlife. The Romans bestowed the enviable name “Fortunate Islands” on them. Even Shakespeare sang the praises of the isles, gushing that Canary Island wine “perfumes the blood.”
The island has always been a beacon of tolerance. Where mainland Spain held extremely hostile conservative attitude led by the Catholic Church, the Canary Islands were a popular place to exile people who broke social rules and thought differently.
During the harsh, repressive Franco years, Gran Canaria was too far away from the mainland to bother with, so they turned a blind eye to homosexuality there. From the 1960’s, tourism really started to take off, attracting more and more foreigners and therefore even more tolerant attitudes and transforming it into a gay man`s dream. It`s got sun, sea and sex in abundance and what`s more it`s a year round fantasy island. Gran Canaria is the gayest and proudest of the Canary Islands, with lots of history to explore, and plenty of relaxed revelry with a Spanish flair.
Located just 4 hours from most European airports it`s an easy destination to obtain that perfect tan. If you want to get a bit cultural head into the mountains where the scenery changes from volcanic dryness to pine forests and evergreen shrubs. In the North around Arucas, Teror and Santa Brigida the valleys are green from the intensive cultivation of tomatoes, potatoes and bananas. You can drive leisurely around the coast road of the island in one day, with great stops for lunch and photo-shots that`ll amaze your friends on your return.
The islands three week carnival usually happens at beginning of February and it’s a huge glamorous affair with costumes worthy of a place in a Las Vegas casino. Temperatures rarely fall below 21 degress and during summer months the average temperature is 29 degrees! Perfect for slipping on, or off, the swimming trunks and hitting the beach with G & T`s in hand.
If you want something little pinker, then Gay Pride Maspalomas takes place in May and every year it gets bigger and better.
Follow the gay boy in front and wait until you arrive at shack “Number 7”. You have arrived at the Gay Beach in Maspalomas!
Maspalomas has one of the best nude beaches in the world, complete with a gay section near the western end. There’s cruising in the nearby dunes, and shacks where you can buy cold drinks (but not cheap). The beach itself is split into three zones. Towards the lighthouse is the family area, in the middle the nudist section, where most of the gay community hang out and a third, family-orientated nudist area.
The gay section is named for shack “Number 7” – just look for rainbow flags and the guys you saw at the clubs. You’ll see northerners on the sand earlier (craving every ray of sunshine), while Spanish locals tend to come out for a dip, or for a beer at the “chiringuito” later, as the sun gets lower in the sky.
Alternatively, hiring a private yacht, with or without skipper, and sailing around the islands is a great way to spend the day. Or visit the Gran Canaria Diving Club for some underwater action!
The Yumbo centre is the heart of the Island’s gay nightlife, everything under one roof!
The Six Pack Zone within the Yumbo is the home of the biggest parties during Pride.
The centre of gay life is in Maspalomas, all within one large shopping centre! The Yumbo Center, the four-floor epicenter of Playa del Ingles. Here you’ll find much of what’s happening in gay Playa del Inglés. There are scores of gay bars, nightclubs and restaurant/cafes here, plus shops, of varied international flavors and cultural backgrounds. Spend a lazy afternoon, or party the night away. Their business roster changes from season to season, but there’s always another club nearby, and new places usually open as the old ones close.
While the infamous dunes provide opportunities for nudity and lots of all-male recreational fun,there are plenty of indoor cruising places too. Besides two saunas, several sex clubs and with naked nights in dark rooms with slings etc, and porn shop video lounges, there are dark rooms in the discos and in lots of other bars too, especially the men’s clubs.
The Yumbo is also where the annual carnival and gay pride events take place here in the south of the island.
In many ways Maspalomas/ Playa del Inglés is the most laid-back of Spain´s big 4 gay destination. Unlike beach towns “on the Peninsula,” winter doesn’t shut things down, and a cultural separation from mainland Spain makes for a slower pace of life.
Weekdays are slow, building up to the weekends. Sundays involve a lazy brunch, or Sunday roast, and time-out at the pool, and the occasional T party dance during the high season. The scene is broadly international. British/Irish English and German, along with Spanish, are the most often heard languages, with a few French, Dutch, Italian and Scandinavian accents thrown in.
Wunderbar, home to the best in Eurovision!
No, you are not lost, you are in Mykonos, MASPALOMAS!
Parrots Terrace is a great place for kick off cocktails!
Dance the night away at Coco Loco , busy from 1am.
Terry’s has some excellent Spanish drag shows from 10:30pm-1am, which you will love. They have WiFi so you can Shazam all the awesome hispanic tunes they play. Eurovision geeks love hanging out at WunderBar on Mondays and Fridays when they play classics from the show all night long. Otherwise they’re open daily from 8pm to 2am, located on the ground floor.
Sparkles is a show bar open daily from 8pm. Although it’s officially a gay bar, it’s more likely to be full of hen parties and straight couples looking for what they think is an alternative night out. The drag queens seem to have been shipped in from Blackpool. Go on the right night and you’ll see the extremely talented and unique Miss DQ:
Where to Party
Coco Loco is a popular gay bar next to Terry’s on the 2nd floor in Yumbo. Make sure you visit at the right time it gets quite lively – usually after the drag shows at Terry’s finish around 1am.
Mykonos is where the young sexy guys hang out. It’s open from 11pm-3:30am and is one of the larger and more popular bars from all the offerings in Yumbo, playing the best pop music and GoGos.
Tubos is another popular bar, next to Mykonos and also open 11pm to 3:30am. It gets quite packed and the crowds spill out into the corridor outside. Great atmosphere to get warmed up before heading over to Mantrix.
Mantrix is the main gay club in Yumbo, open from 2am till late. Definitely the best club on the island, attracting both locals and tourists. That hottie you met on the beach earlier? He’ll most likely end up here at some stage.
There are literally hundreds upon hundreds of hotel and apartment choices around the resort as well as a handful of very popular gay-exclusive choices. All of the properties close to the Yumbo are gay-friendly and generally the whole resort is gay-friendly.
Gay Owned & Operated
This property is 15 minutes walk from the beach. Within 1.5 km of Maspalomas’s sand dunes, AxelBeach Maspalomas – Apartments and Lounge Club – Adults Only features an outdoor pool, gym and tennis court. This gay and hetero-friendly, adults-only complex also has a hammam, hot tub and sauna. Check rates now!
Great Location
This property is 16 minutes walk from the beach. Located in Playa del Inglés, Sol Barbacan is only 2 km from the nearest beach. The complex features a swimming pool, 2 hot tubs, and free WiFi in all areas. Sol Barbacan offers a buffet restaurant and an a la carte restaurant, as well as a pool bar and an evening lounge with a terrace. Check for rates!
Readers Choice
This property is 12 minutes walk from the beach. Neptuno is an adults-only hotel, next to the Yumbo Shopping Centre, Playa del Inglés. It offers an outdoor pool, spa and free shuttle bus to the beach, 900 m away. All air-conditioned rooms have free Wi-Fi, satellite TV and a furnished balcony. The private bathroom comes with a hairdryer. Check rates now!
Meloneras is where you will find high end hotels and great shopping!
There’s no shortage of great places to eat along the seafront!
Meloneras you´ll find located to the west of Maspalomas. The lighthouse at Faro splits Meloneras from Maspalomas but the two are side-by-side. Definitely THE posh part of Maspalomas and neighbour to Playa del Ingles, lots of hotels, bungalows and villas already here with more on the way and all tend to be 4 or 5 star. The Costa Meloneras is a good example, 4 star, 1,500 rooms and everything you’d expect to, including its very own beach within the complex itself.
The shopping here is the designer-label type. More shops are almost finished in various buildings around the area. Of course, being that close to Maspalomas you’re walking distance from 8km of golden-sand beach and there’s several smaller coves and another of those endless promenades here too.
A visit to La Palma is a must if you want to experience a more authentic side of Gran Canaria.
Pay a visit to the Vegueta district in La Palma with stunning architecture and a timeless ambiance.
The islands capital, La Palma is situated on the north eastern tip of the island with a stunning location on the towns two large bays. Founded in 1478 the important history of the town is best seen in the Vegueta district which attained World Heritage status in 1990. The city has doubled its population in the last 30 years and is now home to 400,000 people and is brimming with Spanish charm and culture.
It’s well worth taking a visit to Las Palmas. It is less touristy and offers some rich history and architecture. The city has some beaches, and local bars and restaurants serve traditional Spanish tapas, small serving of meat, fish, and vegetables – often accompanied with beer.
The Gran Terraza Lolita Pluma (Centrical Parque Santa Catalina) is a Las Palmas landmark, literally a grand terrace cafe named in homage to a local colorful character who fed street cats and sold chewing gum to tourists in the park that faces here.
Sauna Portugal (Calle Portugal 37) has Finland and steam saunas, free cabins and darkroom, plus bar and massage services in Las Palmas.
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