I partied in the most LGBT-friendly country in Europe — it puts the UK to shame

When I asked my tour guide what he loved most about Malta, his answer caught me off guard.

After boasting about the island’s rich history and the fact that its litany of enthralling attractions are all within an hour’s drive, he casually added: ‘And it’s been voted the world’s safest place for LGBTQ+ travellers.’

Now, gays love to travel. The only thing they love more than travelling is letting everyone who will listen know that they love travelling.

But I don’t think I’ve ever seen any of the LGBTQ+ people I follow on social media posting thirst traps from Malta. Of course, that will all change when the UK’s biggest LGBTQ+ festival Mighty Hoopla makes its international debut there later this year. 

The location is a clever choice. For the 10th year running, Malta is top of the Rainbow Map, an annual chart that ranks European countries on their respective legal and policy practises for LGBTQ+ people.

I spent four days in Malta last summer, and I can see why it consistently takes the crown, while the UK continues to plummet. We’re currently 22nd on the list; just over a decade ago, we were number one. 

Granted, I was in Malta at a particularly gay time of year. It was Malta Pride 2024 and, despite marching at many British Pride events, this was the first time I’d ever branched out and flown overseas to celebrate our brave and magical community.

Everyone was welcome everywhere, which no longer feels the case here in the UK. At home, every Pride march I’ve attended comes with banners telling us we’re going to hell. In Malta, there wasn’t a single protester in sight.

In the lead-up to Malta Pride, though, I wasn’t sensing much hype. With less than 24 hours to go until the big day, walking through the capital, Valletta, I didn’t see a single rainbow flag. Strange, I thought, for the safest place for LGBTQ+ travellers.

I also noticed a surprising lack of gay bars. According to Google, there was only one on the whole island, but ‘we don’t need them’ was the consensus from people I spoke to in Malta.

Everywhere is LGBTQ+ friendly. There were, of course, bars where LGBTQ+ people seemed to hang out, but there was no clear advertising.

I spent longer than I should have, drinking more Margaritas than I ever thought possible, at Café Society – clearly one of the most popular bars in the city. Customers poured out onto the steps and the neighbourhood felt more alive than I’ve ever seen Soho. Once the most thriving LGBTQ+ hub in the world, it’s now on its knees.

Still, I was intrigued by how Malta would celebrate Pride. Would anyone even turn up?

In fact, very inch of Valletta was full to the brim. It felt like everyone on the island and then some were there to take part, LGBTQ+ or not. The streets were lined with dancers, Cher’s Believe blasted from speakers and I’ve never experienced a Pride filled with so much joy. I haven’t danced or laughed as hard in years.

Drag queens from all over the world entertained locals with a free show right in the centre of the island, which was open to anyone (and drinks were half the price you’d find at a UK Pride).

Birmingham-based drag star Miss Penny, a legend in the UK and a regular at London’s Admiral Duncan, brought her absolute filth to Valletta, dragging her adoring crowd with lines that for legal (and moral) reasons cannot be repeated here.

She kept us on our feet until 11pm, for free, before the party starters descended on Marrakesh nightclub – an astonishing open-air venue with floating trees and seven stages that feel like they’re plonked right in the middle of the Amazon rainforest.

It was spectacular, packed with hes, shes, theys and everything in between — the friendliest crowd I’ve ever met on a night out. My face was dripping with sweat, but that didn’t put anyone off having a chinwag about the one thing that united everyone there, no matter what country we came from or the language we spoke.

But what makes Malta the best place for LGBTQ+ travellers? I wondered why locals felt so much safer here than in other parts of the world.

Jelle, 63, moved to Malta from Amsterdam and said the island’s size goes a long way to help.

‘It’s such a small country, you can’t be anonymous and so there can’t be any harassment,’ she says. ‘If I mention my husband’s name, everybody knows him. That’s why it’s so tolerant and fantastic for LGBTQ+ people.’

Perhaps that’s the secret: community. 

Everyone LGBTQ+ is recognised as someone’s child, a sibling, or their neighbour; they’re untouchable. I can’t begin to imagine living with that level of empowerment, but for four days, I got to experience it first-hand. 

In the brief time I spent in Malta, that sense of community was abundantly clear at every turn. It breaks my heart that I live in a city that feels ever more fractured, with animosity towards LGBTQ+ people only increasing.

Mighty Hoopla will be launching its first overseas festival in Malta this September. 

If the line-up hasn’t yet convinced you to buy a ticket, I would jump at the chance to experience Malta when it’s bursting with love for the LGBTQ+ community — especially at a time when it sometimes feels so lacking back home.