Rome is a controversial place for gay men. Remember your gay fantasies when you watched those movies with Roman soldiers and gladiators? See the whole world admiring the sculptures of gorgeous men by gay artists in Rome's museums? Capital of Italy, a big, free and democratic country? Don't expect too much from all that regarding the gay scene. Be it for reasons of mentality or because of the power of the Vatican, Rome has by far not the open and colourful queer life as other capitals in Europe.
But the situation has started to change with new generations of more open
and self-confident gay men and women.
This is especially evident at the big annual Pride manifestation in June
and at the LGBT festivals in the summer.
As you can see on our Gay Rome Map, there are no particular gay areas in Rome, but a popular hotspot of the gay and lesbian community in the late evening and at night is the street in front of the two cafe-bars Coming Out and My Bar, Via di San Giovanni in Laterano, which is sometimes called Rome's Gay Street. Especially in warm summer nights, the street can be packed with hundreds of people.