Gay Guide
Listing and event details can change quickly. Please verify with the venue directly before visiting. Lavender Atlas is not responsible for third-party accuracy.
About LGBTQ+ Atlanta
On 3 August 1982 an Atlanta officer serving a warrant over a missed court date for public drinking walked through an unlocked door, into a bedroom, and arrested Michael Hardwick for having sex with another man. The district attorney dropped the charge. Hardwick sued anyway, and in 1986 the Supreme Court upheld Georgia's sodomy law five to four in Bowers v. Hardwick, a ruling that then sat over every gay person in the country for seventeen years. Georgia's own Supreme Court struck the law down in 1998, and Lawrence v. Texas finally overturned Bowers in 2003. The case that set the movement back a generation began in a bedroom in this city.
Midtown carries the scene now, most of it within a few blocks of Piedmont Park. The stretch of Piedmont Avenue holds the Atlanta Eagle, Mixx, Oscar's, Felix's and X Midtown, with Blake's on the Park over on 10th Street. Bulldogs on Peachtree is a long-standing cornerstone of Black gay Atlanta.
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Cheshire Bridge Road, a few miles northeast, is the older and rougher-edged half: The Heretic and BJ Roosters anchor it, and it is a drive rather than a walk, which is true of a great deal of Atlanta.
The rest is scattered by design. East Atlanta has Mary's and My Sisters Room, and the second of those matters nationally, since lesbian bars have nearly vanished from the country. Friends on Ponce covers Poncey-Highland, Lore sits on Edgewood, and out in Decatur, Charis Books has been running since 1974 as one of the oldest feminist bookstores in the South.
Atlanta Pride moved out of the summer after a drought hit the park in the late 2000s and stayed in October, which lines it up with National Coming Out Day. Atlanta Black Pride takes Labor Day weekend and is among the largest gatherings of its kind anywhere, and it is central to what this city actually is rather than a side event.
Upcoming Events
Atlanta's flagship leather and levi gay bar with kink-themed event programming.
Midtown bar on Peachtree Street serving Atlanta's Black gay community, with a packed dance floor, drag shows, several bars, and a patio.
A campy East Atlanta dive with a hipster streak that bills itself as America's favorite gay bar.
Gay-owned, clothing-optional campground on 30 wooded acres in northeast Georgia, for guests 19 and over, with tent and RV sites, cabins, trails, a pool, hot tub and clubhouse.
A private, clothing-optional campground for the LGBTQ+ community in Georgia, 21 and over, welcoming guests for more than 30 years.
Gay sports bar with 27 TVs, an inclusive crowd, and a menu of classic American pub fare.
Neighborhood gay bar in Ansley Square on Piedmont Avenue.
One of Atlanta's longest-running gay clubs, male-focused, with a big dance floor, themed parties, leather nights, and drag on Cheshire Bridge Road.
A neighborhood gay bar in the heart of Midtown's gayborhood, on the corner of Piedmont Park, with music, live entertainment and food, open seven days a week.
Industrial-chic Cheshire Bridge bar, a fixture of Atlanta gay nightlife since 1995, with go-go dancers on the bar and a crowd of all ages.
Neighborhood gay bar in Atlanta with karaoke, drag nights, and a diverse regulars crowd.
Atlanta's best-known lesbian bar, open since 1996 and a home for the wider queer community too.
Travel agency that books Atlantis, RSVP and Olivia cruises and tours, with shipboard credit on every reservation.
A premium men's health club and sauna in Midtown featuring a gym, steam room, and relaxation facilities in a modern setting.
Part of the Kenan Research Center, this archive preserves the rich history of LGBTQ+ activism and life in the American South.
Atlanta-based nonprofit providing housing, support services, and life-skills resources for LGBTQ+ youth and young adults.
The South's oldest independent feminist bookstore, founded in Little Five Points in 1974 and based in Decatur since 2019 as the bookstore of Agnes Scott College, with feminist, LGBTQ+ and children's books and a busy programme of community events.
Metro Atlanta's all-queer bookshop in Marietta, opened in October 2024, where every book on the shelves has a queer main character, with free book clubs and events.
Atlanta's gay and lesbian variety store in Ansley Square since 1989, with greeting cards, pride merchandise, gifts, and adult novelties, open daily.
Atlanta gay bar at 736 Ponce de Leon Ave in the Virginia-Highland area. A neighbourhood staple with a warm, unpretentious atmosphere and a loyal regular crowd.
Gay bar and grill at 990 Piedmont Ave in Midtown Atlanta. Two bars, a dance floor, weekly drag shows, and a large outdoor tiki-bar patio with a living plant wall.
Gay martini bar and lounge in Midtown Atlanta's Ansley Square complex. Known for themed weekly nights including retro and show-tunes evenings, with an outdoor patio. Open daily.
Independent bookstore in Atlanta's Inman Park neighbourhood with a strong selection of LGBTQ+ literature, local interest, and used books. A community-focused shop known for hosting author events.
Atlanta's main LGBTQ+ neighbourhood, centred on the stretch of Peachtree Street running through Midtown. Home to many of the city's gay bars, restaurants, and LGBTQ+ organisations.
A queer bar and live-events venue in Atlanta for the LGBTQIA+ community, with dancing, drag, and drinks.
An Atlanta trans-led organization that grew from a grassroots fund into a provider of housing and support for chronically homeless Black transgender women.
A trans-led program providing safe, supportive housing and services for transgender and gender-nonbinary people experiencing homelessness in metro Atlanta.