Gay Bars That Are Gone Tour

Celebrate Pride and see the historic gay bars of New York!

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From discos and dive bars to piano bars and cabarets, this tour looks at the shifting typology of the gay bar in New York City. Long the center of cultural evolution and political activism, gay bars are critical sites for understanding Queer history in America. You’ll bar hop through stories of community, protest, artistic achievement, and plain old intrigue.

All this, in the name of sparking a conversation about how to properly preserve and celebrate New York City’s “lavender landmarks” during one of the hardest times for nightlife venues in recent memory. 

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Your Guides

Your hosts for this walking tour are Kyle Supley & Michael Ryan, creators of “Gay Bars That Are Gone,” an annual walk through downtown NYC honoring LGBTQ spaces of yesteryear. The annual walk has been featured in The New York Times, The Advocate, and Paper Magazine. Follow @gaybarsthataregone. 

Book online now!

Tour highlights

Get ready to see locations in important LGBTQ culture including…

• Walt Whitman’s favorite “gay bar” from 1859
• A 1980s three-level gay disco with a plantarium dome dance floor 
• A 1925 lesbian tearoom where men were “admitted but not welcome”
• Starlite Lounge – previously one of the oldest Black-owned gay bars in New York City
• The 1950s East Village drag club whose patrons included Judy Garland and Elizabeth Taylor
• Ramrod – the site of a little known anti-gay massacre along the Hudson River
• Bum Bum Bar – a working-class Latina lesbian bar and important site of queer Queens activism
• An after-hours club where yet another police raid ended in violence just months after the Stonewall uprising

Duration

2 Hours

The tour starts at 105 2nd Avenue.

Please note: This walking tour takes place rain or shine.

(Ages 16 and up)

Please contact us to set up a private tour!

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Looking to study up before the tour?

Prep for our Gay Bars That Are Gone Tour by listening to the podcast episodes about the “History of Drag in New York” and “Sip-In at Julius’ bar.”