Charlotte Pride, one of the region’s largest LGBTQ+ events, returns with its biggest events in the Queen City on Saturday, Aug. 17 and Sunday, Aug 18. The annual festival and parade drew a record-breaking 260,000+ visitors to Uptown in 2023 — the organization looks to match this year.
City Editor Maria, here. This weekend-long celebration has a lot of moving parts as Charlotte Pride Week comes to an end. This guide will provide everything you need to know before attending.
Festival details
The street festival kicks off Saturday from 12 to 11 p.m. and 12-6 p.m. on Sunday.
New to the festival, the Charlotte Black Pride BOP: Black on Purpose Stage will feature Black LGBTQ+ artists and performers.
In addition to live performances, there will be a market filled with vendors, a family zone, health fair + activities at the Mint Museum.
To keep track of performances and information, the organization launched an app available in the App Store + Google Play.
Headliners
Charlotte Pride announced three headliners for the festival on Saturday, Aug. 17. Taking the main stage are Baby Tate, Bob the Drag Queen, Slayyyter, and Paula Cole.
Entertainment will run throughout festival hours Saturday and from 3 to 6 p.m. on Sunday.
Parade information
The parade steps off at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 18, along N. Tryon Street. If you can’t attend in person, the event will be live streamed.
Roughly 200 contingents and 11,000 marchers will strut, dance, and roll down the rainbow-filled street, starting near 9th Street and ending near 4th Street — where the parade will be emceed by Divine Holeburn and Malachi.
If you’d like to do more than attend, volunteers are still needed.
Admission
Charlotte Pride is free. The organization offers a VIP experience, featuring a VIP lounge with beer, wine, and special activities.
VIP tickets are $115-$199 and are on sale.
Parking and street closures
Street closures begin at 9 a.m. Friday, Aug. 16. All closures are expected to reopen by 12 a.m. Monday.
- South Tryon Street will close at 9 a.m. between Morehead and 4th Streets
- East and West Good Samaritan Way will close to traffic but the following east-west cross-streets will remain open:
- Brooklyn Village Avenue + Levine Avenue of the Arts (will close at 6 p.m.)
- MLK Blvd + 3rd Street
Saturday and Sunday’s street closures:
- South Tryon Street will remain closed
- North and southbound traffic will be re-routed to College and Church Streets
- All east-west cross-streets between 4th and Morehead Streets + 12th and 4th Streets will close at 7 a.m.
If you’re heading to the festivities, there are garages surrounding the parade route.
The Blue Line light rail also has several stops in Uptown to provide an easy park + ride option.
Fun fact: Charlotte Pride has a longstanding history in the Queen City, drawing thousands of marchers to the parade since 1981.
