Whereas many cities celebrates Gay Pride in late spring or summer, Palm Springs - which endures through brutally hot summers - has the good sense to hold its Greater Palm Springs Pride festival in early November (November 7 and 8, in 2009). Although you may think of Palm Springs as chiefly a place where gays and lesbians go on vacation, this smallish city within an afternoon's drive of L.A., San Diego, Las Vegas, and Phoenix has a substantial year-round and also seasonal community of GLBT residents. It's no wonder, then, that the city's Gay Pride celebration has become one of the community's most popular events over the years, even if not quite as well-attended as the two GLBT events for which the region is most famous, the Dinah Shore Weekend/Palm Springs Women's Weekend and Palm Springs White Party, both held in early April.
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Pride Palm Springs consists of a two-day festival (running from 10 am to 8 pm on Saturday, and 10 am to 6 pm on Sunday), along with a Gay Pride Parade, which kicks off at 10 am on Sunday morning - here's a map of the Palm Springs Pride Parade. The 2008 Pride event draw more than 40,000 participants and spectators, and included appearances by several special guests. Highlights of Palm Springs Gay Pride 2009 include a Men's Party a Women's Party, both of them held on Saturday night at Hotel Zoso.
There's also plenty of cool entertainment at the Pride Festival this year - a country-western dance tent, and performances on the Main Stage by the likes of Tim Permanent, Sabrina Johnston, Mona Caywood, Billy Dortch, Phil Putnam, Erika Jayne, Pepper MaShay, and Sabrina. There's also a T-Dance on both Saturday and Sunday afternoon.
Of course, additionally, numerous gay bars as well as gay-popular restaurants, hotels and gay resorts, and shops have special events and parties throughout Pride Weekend. Check local gay papers, such as the weekly Desert Daily Guide, and the Bottom Line magazine, for details. Also take a look at the excellent GLBT site produced by the city's official tourism organization, the Palm Springs Desert Resorts CVA.
