Print all In new window Miami Beach Pride Welcomed 130,000+ from around the world

A quartet of Pride Marshals greeted a huge crowd of proud revelers who turned out throughout the weekend for the 9th Annual Miami Beach Gay Pride Parade and Festival presented by Celebrity Cruises. The three-day Pride weekend, which started on Friday, April 7, with a poolside VIP reception at the W South Beach hotel and transitioned into a full-day beach party on Saturday before culminating with the Pride parade and festival on Sunday, saw a record 135,000-plus come out for the weekend’s festivities. The turnout is especially significant for the “billion dollar sandbar” of 92,000 residents as it shows how the popularity of the expanded, three-day celebration has grown exponentially in such a short amount of time, said Pride Board Chairman Mark Fernandes.

“It always leaves a huge impression on me to see the whole community come together as one to celebrate Pride,” said Dave Cook, executive director of Pride. “It’s important to recognize our community’s vast range of diversity and Pride’s commitment to inclusion. Judging by the people who came out as spectators, participants or volunteers, I can enthusiastically say Pride succeeded in that goal once again this year.”