Vancouver Pride Parade

Best party of the year hands down. Lots of color, glitter, music and smiles. If you’re not into big crowds I don’t recommend this.
It’s awesome to see the attendance numbers growing each year. I get a kick out of people who take their families only to be uncomfortable with the shirtless hard bodied men dancing to «It’s Raining Men» on their floats. It’s people watching at it’s best.
It is good to see city support, however, I think that more effort could be made with the city floats. This is the one chance city workers can get creative and yet they do little to nothing with their floats *yawn.*
It’s a big Gay party but really it’s a party that Vancouver, regardless of gender and or sexual preference, actually gets excited about.
The past few parades that I’ve attended we’ve been blessed with good weather, however, even the Vancouver rain couldn’t stop this celebration.
It’s not a party unless I see at least 4 guys an hour in leather chaps.
Arrive early, bring sunscreen and expect to be squirted on (with water, however, you can use your imagination on this one).

I have attended the Vancouver Pride Parade for the last two years and both times were a lot of fun. I like how it brings the community together and I enjoy seeing the different floats that participate.
A few points to mention:
* Arrive early to find a spot.
* If you are located near a crosswalk, expect people to try to squeeze through to cross to the other side of the street
* Some of the parade participants will squirt spectators with water guns/​devices
* Wear sunscreen!

A whole lot of fabulousness condensed into parade form. I saw a Mayor, a Premier and way more than one Queen.
It is heartening to see the energetic outflow of acceptance and support for everyone in the LGBT community in this city and country.
Now what is the deal with some of the floats? I am not expecting Rose Parade standards but it needs to be a step up from Small Town, USA’s 4^th of July parade, ok? There is a lot of creative energy in the gay community, it is being televised on OutTV and there are 500,000 people watching on the parade route, time to step up your game!
One would think that with my criticism of some of the floats that the parade would not warrant 5 stars but you would be wrong… one of the shirtless gentleman wearing the pink kilt holding the Pacific Rim Curling Club’s banner and the adorable little 2 or 3 year old shaking his pom– pom along side his mom would receive 5 stars for the parade even if they were the only participants!

RAINBOWS! GAYS! LESBIANS! BALLOONS! DANCING! GLITTER! HUMAN RIGHTS!
I think I pretty much explained the parade in those words right there :3
Attending the parade every year without fail since 2005. Maybe except 2007, but that was a confusing time for me…
ANYWAYS~ lovely show as usual, people were laughing, cheering and celebrating freedom in a different perspective and it was just a BIG GAY PARTY! The good thing when gay people are drunk is that they are more respectful. I heard there were barely any trouble downtown. Everyone was holding hands and that even if there was chaos, it was controlled.
I was drunk, so everything was a blur. I know I had a great time because I woke up with 10 gays sleeping beside me in 1 hotel room with empty red cups, streamers in my hair, ruined make up on my face, sore legs, balloons everywhere and the room smelled of lavender.
Always a hoot every year! Worth taking the time off to celebrate with your own people! Happy to celebrate with anyone, any year! :D

We just happened to be in Vancouver the same weekend as the pride parade; had no idea. This was my first pride parade, ever. Curiosity got the best of us and when we realized what was going on we hurried to grab a spot, unfortunately our spot was towards the end of the line so we only got to see the tail end of the floats.
The energy of the crowds was powerful. The costumes/​outfits and floats that we saw were very cool! 90% of the floats we got to see were loud with music and energetic people smiling and dancing.
I have nothing to compare this parade to, but it was very high energy and fun. I think for my first pride parade it was a success.

Pride Parade 2012 was the first Pride Parade I’ve been to.
Lots of people got some great floats going. I especially loved the ones with music and people dancing!
I had a spot that didn’t see every single float. I recommend finding out the route they are taking so you can pick a spot that all the floats go through. Also if you don’t want to be in the sun for 2 hours it’d be nice to get there early for a shaded spot.
I did not like the overwhelming amount of none pride related floats. There were auto dealership driving in the parade, with their cars barely decorated, just for some advertisement. That was not fun at all. Come on organizers you can do better than that lol.
If you’ve never been the the parade, check it out. But expect only a handful of good floats, and lots of meaningless ones.

Come one, Come all! Facepainting, beergardens, vendors galore plus: THE BEACH!

Best memory of the parade was taking my little sisters to see it after I came out. Gave them an inside look if how the homosexuals party: D

Hello ripped sailors in little white booty shorts! I know you’re all gay, but I am allowed to look at the menu since I’m not ordering anything right? The parade is full of beautiful people in all shapes and sizes, showing their unconditional love for people of all race, sex and gender. What’s not to love? Well, the only thing I don’t love is getting up early since the parade starts at noon. Srsly. Everyone is going to be out celebrating till the wee hours of the night on a Saturday long weekend, why not start the parade at 3 or 4pm? Then we would have more time to make ourselves look fabulous right? We could all put on a little more glitter, another pink boa, and sing one more showtune before we strut our gorgeous heels down the street in a rainbow of fruity flavours.
This year, my favourite part of the parade was the Ferris Bueller float, if you saw it, you know what I’m talking about, and if you missed it, it’s definitely your loss. I also always get a little tear in my eye when I see the PFLAG parents coming to show support for their kids, and this year there was one little tiny granny holding a sign bigger than she was and it was so adorable! Oh little old lady I want to take you home in my pocket and take care of you forever! If you attend the parade you would have to have a heart of stone not to be inspired by the amount of love and beauty surrounding you.
Be gay for a day, or be a fag for a hag. Do not miss this parade!

I’m torn on this event but decided to give it three stars. It’s a huge celebration but sometimes I feel it stresses quantity over quality.
This year we sat along Denman and watched the parade go by, all 2.5 hours of it. At first, it was fun and charming in its own little way … then it seemed to drag on. Each parade entry became repetitive and some of them from the most obscure organizations and/​or political agendas … some entries were just a couple people walking holding a sign (*yawn), some were pure corporate marketing (*snooze*).
Waterguns. Ok, we all know what I’m talking about. This year the morning started cold and cloudy, so I wasn’t too amused when one float hosed down the audience so that we had to sit through the next 2 hours in wet clothes. Many floats this year sported waterguns and took aim on the crowds. I find it annoying.
After the parade, you’ll find Sunset Beach setup with some booths and food stands. The food stand selection is pretty bad with hot dogs and mini donuts being the prime eateries.
Overall, it’s a colourful event but for all it’s acclaim, it could do much better.

* Fun but starting to slip *
The pride parade was fun yet again, as it is every year.
I particularly enjoy how the people of Vancouver interact during the event. At many other public events people are a bit more reserved. Not at the pride parade!
Some highlights:
— Truly a family event. Lots of families came to enjoy the festivities, and a good time was had by everyone!
— A lot of fun spirited marchers and crowd.
— The Vancouver police had a nice representation, and one of the officers came over to a person standing next to me to compliment them on their balloon hat and take a picture with it. Nice to see that type of interaction with the police!
— Bonus points for the ambulance drivers who redid the shoulder wrappings on their shirts into rainbow colours. Nice touch!
— The grilled corn was tender, juicy, and delicious.
So why only 4 stars?
— Some lame floats. The city of Vancouver float was pretty pathetic. The mayor was dressed in muscle shirt dancing awkwardly with a fake smile on the same float they had last year. Come on.
— Food options at Sunset Beach. I was amazed how many hot dog and mini donut vendors there were. Why not some more good real food? Tried the tamales from one of the vendors — dried out with scraps of meat. Boo.
— Corporate. There were so many corporate stands doing things like credit card signups and the like. I know it is a great marketing opportunity to a good demographic, but please…
In any case, overall it still was a fun event! I hope it continues to be!

I think the Pride Parade is the funnest Vancouver event.
Held annually, this parade has so many floats which are all fun and colorful. And I love the hosts, last year a couple of trannies it was an absolute blast! For families bringing young ones you may have some cover the little one’s eyes as the nudist parade down the street if you don’t want them looking at other’s privates. There are lots of promo materials given out by companies, and my favorite souvenir «Fans of Pride» — its August long weekend you have to cool yourself!
This parade is a great celebration enjoyed by gay, straight, bisexual, transgendered… everyone who supports our varied preferences! I love that it gets a gammet of people out, from people asserting their pride to families enjoying the parade.
Also loads of fun afterwards is the beer gardens :)

Vancouverites of all ages and preferences gather in the West End on the BC Day long weekend (around August first) for the pride parade. It’s a guaranteed good time and you’ll probably see a few things that will surprise you. The naked yoga men (well over 40-​years-​old) marching in (only) feather boas introduced me to a few things I might never forget…
I watched the parade from Denman street near Davie and it was totally packed with people on the sidewalks. There were single-​digit kids and grandmas watching as scantily clad men and women shook it from floats blasting dance music. It was very cool fun for the whole family.
If you’re planning on dressing up for the occasion, there’s only one rule: go big. The costumes here are so over-​the-​top that a feather boa and some fake eyelashes are easily overlooked!
Mark your calendars for Aug. 2, 2009!