South Africa has one of the world's most progressive constitutions specifically giving gays and lesbians equal rights and making illegal to discriminate against people based on their sexual orientation. This was also one of the first countries in the world to legalise same-sex marriage. For citizens and foreign visitors South Africa is the most gay-friendly country in Africa.
There is no one part of Johannesburg which can be considered as a gay neighbourhood, with the city's relatively few gay bars and gay-friendly venues scattered throughout Joburg.
September is Pride month in South Africa with the biggest Gay Pride March in the country usually taking place in Johannesburg northern suburbs in the end of September.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (lgbtq+) people in South Africa enjoy the same rights as non-lgbtq+ people. South Africa has a complex and diverse history regarding the human rights of lgbtq+ people. The legal and social status of between 400,000–over 2 million lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex South Africans has been influenced by a combination of traditional South African mores, colonialism, and the lingering effects of apartheid and the human rights movement that contributed to its abolition.
South Africa's post-apartheid Constitution was the first in the world to outlaw discrimination based on sexual orientation, and South Africa was the fifth country in the world to legalise same-sex marriage. South Africa is to date the only country in Africa to have legalised same-sex marriage. Same-sex couples can also adopt children jointly, and also arrange IVF and surrogacy treatments. lgbtq+ people enjoy constitutional and statutory protections from discrimination in employment, the provision of goods and services and many other areas.
Nevertheless, lgbtq+ South Africans, particularly those outside of the major cities, continue to face some challenges, including homophobic violence (particularly corrective rape), and high rates of HIV/AIDS infection.
List of a few men-only or gay-friendly hotels in Johannesburg: