From Alberta to Argentina, Puerto Rico to Puerto Vallarta, the LGBTQ+ community is booking their travel now to celebrate Pride of the Americas (POTA) in greater Fort Lauderdale, April 19-26, 2020. Pride down on the beach has already become a major event over the past few years. This year it’s going into overdrive as we prepare to welcome members of the gay community from all over the western hemisphere and at least 53 countries are expected to be represented.

The event has never been held before, anywhere. Given Fort Lauderdale’s status as a hub for visitors from Central and South America as well as the Caribbean, it’s a natural place to launch a party of global proportions. “It just fit perfectly for Fort Lauderdale to host the inaugural POTA, because of our location, where we are in South Florida,” said Richard Gray, the Senior Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion for the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau (GFLCVB). Richard talked with us about the planning, build up, and goals of the event. When you’re the first, you set the template for future cities to follow. The GFLCVB isn’t in charge of the event, but is an integral part of the support system to pull it all together, and there is a lot to pull together.

POTA will highlight the best of Broward County by highlighting the best and breadth of our community. “This is who Fort Lauderdale is,” Richard told us. “What I tell most people is it’s a sea of diversity and inclusion.” That means a showcase opportunity for all the different groups that make up our community. There will be a gathering for gay businesses to share thoughts and ideas. There will be seminars for trans people, gay youth, and seniors. The marketing campaign has gays, lesbians, drag queens, and people of color and different ethnicities, but it also features gay people with disabilities, something you don’t see that often. Like Richard said, inclusion is the key. “Diversity and inclusion is very much a part of our DNA here in greater Fort Lauderdale.” All the inclusion will combine in a whole lot of parties.

The opening ceremony goes down at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts, and the Museum of Discovery and Science will also be hosting events. Also, the fashion show is back at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood. Richard expects it to build on last year’s success and reach an entirely new level of fierceness. He hopes to have everything nailed down soon. “We’re just fine tuning the schedule of events. There’s a big volunteer commitment to get this right, to be successful. There’s a big hotel component attached to it with guests staying all over the county.”

On Friday night, April 24, 2020 will be Night on the Drive. Every other night from Tuesday, April 21 – 26, 2020 will close out with official after parties or circuit parties. It’s a lot to take in so if you plan to hit morning events like the Day of Service and kill it at the parties, take plenty of vitamin C and try to plan a nap!

Of course, the main event is the party down on the beach on Saturday and Sunday. Like prides over the past few years, POTA will set up shop towards the south end of Fort Lauderdale Beach. This time Richard expects it’s going to be massive. “Pride Fort Lauderdale has never put on an event of this size. We’re expecting hundreds of thousands of people to attend.”

The parade will march down A1A on Saturday morning, April 25, 2020, followed by a couple of massive beach days. While the main concert’s headliner has yet to be released, Richard expects to make the announcement soon.

POTA goes down the weekend after the Tortuga Music Festival, and while it won’t take up as much space as the massive concert, it will be slightly bigger than Prides of recent years. It’s the beach setting that makes Pride Fort Lauderdale unique in any year and especially perfect to host this first international event. “It’s the only Pride in the United States on the beach [and] our first Pride of the year.” It’s worth noting that this year the party has been moved from late February to late April. That’s to help make the stay more affordable for the tens of thousands of people expected from out of town. “We all know hotel rates are super pricey in late February, and drop a lot after Easter, so moving Pride this year helps make the trip a lot easier for a lot of people.” Richard says a lot of hotels on the beach are already working to accommodate the travelers.

You could decide to stay at the center of the action that weekend and book a hotel room or suite, but if you decide to commute in you have options. Details are still being finalized, but expect shuttles to run from the beach to several drop-off/parking locations, including Wilton Manors. Parking is always an issue down there even when there’s not a mega international event going on, so plan ahead and let someone else deal with the traffic while you sit back and ride.

With about three months to go until kick-off, a lot of the POTA details are still being worked out, and final announcements will be coming soon.

One thing is for sure, this year POTA will start an event that will continue on in other cities, other countries, and other continents. That is a source of pride. Richard added, “It’s a little bit more than a traditional Pride. Is it a Pride? Of course. It’s colors, it’s celebrating who you are, and being comfortable in that.”