Gay Days Orlando
About This Event
Gay Days started on 1 June 1991, when gay men and lesbians were asked to wear red shirts and show up at Magic Kingdom on the same day. Disney never organised it and still doesn't. The red-shirt Saturday at the park, with a group photo in front of Cinderella Castle, remains the unofficial core, and everything else grew up around it.
Today "Gay Days" in Orlando is really several separate businesses on the same early-June weekend. GayDays itself, run by Gay Days, Inc., is a hotel takeover with pool parties, a vendor expo, the Mr. and Miss GayDays pageants and the late-night Red Room. Girls in Wonderland, run by Pandora Events, is the women's event; Watermark reported it drew more than 10,000 in 2025. One Magical Weekend runs the bigger circuit-style parties, including a night at Typhoon Lagoon, and Bear Jamboree has its own host hotel. Each sells its own passes, and park tickets are separate.
The organisation nearly stopped in 2026. On 8 February GayDays announced a pause, citing changes to its host-hotel agreement and lost sponsorship, then reversed it on 24 February. It moved to the Holiday Inn & Suites Orlando SW in Kissimmee and took over the whole 440-room property, which means a smaller, more contained event than the old days of multiple Disney-area hotels.
Practical notes: early June in Central Florida means heat, humidity and afternoon thunderstorms, and the parks are crowded with families. Book the host hotel as soon as passes open if you want to be on site; ride-share between hotels and parks adds up.
The 2026 edition, the 35th, ran 4 to 7 June, with the Magic Kingdom day on Saturday 6 June. Organisers once talked of 150,000 people across all the events, but nobody publishes a real count and the 2026 version was clearly smaller, so we've left attendance blank. The 2027 dates hadn't been announced when we checked; the event traditionally falls on the first weekend in June.
Where to stay during Gay Days Orlando
via Stay22Schedule & Sub-Events
+ Add Event
Big Gay Orlando Weekend 2027
Big Gay Orlando Weekend returns to Orlando in June 2027 for its largest celebration of LGBTQ life in Florida. The festivities will take place in an...
Practical Tips
Wear red at Magic Kingdom on the first Saturday — it is the signature unofficial tradition.
Videos
35th Gay Day at Disney! Our Take on the 2026 Pride Collection & More!
