A study, by the ParkSleepFLy platform, found that Lisbon and Porto were both ranked among the best cities for LGBTQ+ travellers, with 100 percentages points each on the anti-discrimination index. In third place is Cologne, Germany, which is also ranked as one of the countries that most accept LGBTQ+ travellers in Europe (with an anti-discrimination score of 79).

Among all the factors, it was Lisbon, the capital of Portugal that turned out to be the best destination for LGBTQ+ travellers in the world. “Lisbon is a beautiful Mediterranean city with a variety of gay bars and clubs dotted around its rugged streets,” said ParkSleepFLy.

Another Portuguese city that ranked very well was the city of Porto, in the North. Porto is known for the beautiful Douro River and the Porto wine. “Porto had the highest concentration of accommodation options of the cities that we looked at, with 2,503 per 100,000 people”.

“To ensure the LGBTQ+ community feels safe and comfortable when travelling, ParkSleepFly has ranked destinations around the world based on factors covering their LGBTQ+ friendliness to reveal the most LGBTQ+ friendly vacation destinations”, said a note sent to The Portugal News.

“As travel restrictions continue to lift, many hopeful travellers are booking trips overseas, including the LGBTQ+ community. Unfortunately, LGBTQ+ travellers still have to be mindful of safety and legislation concerns in some destinations around the world, with homosexuality still illegal in 69 countries”, reads the statement.

For that reason, ParkSleepFLy created an index considering six main factors. Primarily, anti-discrimination, which takes into account each city’s country score in the Migration Integration Policy Index 2020 Anti-Discrimination rankings; the number of LGBTQ+ events in each city; the security level, according to Numbeo, based on the survey results; the hotels listed on Kayak per 100,000 people in the city; the bars and clubs listed on TripAdvisor; and finally, the average price of weekend hotel stays.


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Paula Martins is a fully qualified journalist, who finds writing a means of self-expression. She studied Journalism and Communication at University of Coimbra and recently Law in the Algarve. Press card: 8252

Paula Martins