Gay Days

Scuttle

Scuttle

Well-Known Member
Ok I'm thinking of planning a trip june 3-6, but I know it's during gay days. What is gay days like? Do the gays have flags and all that over the top stuff or what? I know Disney does not advertise it or even acknowledge it, so I am curious to get some insider info.
 
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Tony the Tigger

Tony the Tigger

Well-Known Member
ryguy said:
What does a red shirt mean? I thought it was a pink triangle or rainbow. I cant keep up :joyfull:
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The first “gay days” was not a big organized event. It was a bunch of gay friends (and their friends) meeting at WDW. They decided to all wear red shirts so they could find/keep track of each other, much like so many other groups, family reunions, etc. wear matching shirts.

They had a great time, went back with more people, and eventually it grew into a big thing involving promoters, nighttime private parties at various parks and water parks, etc.

The red shirt tradition continued. Here is my red shirt pic with my boyfriend at the time (I’m in the tie dyed shirt) circa 2000.

32E293AA-2C63-4691-A4F6-8128E4432F55.jpeg


Mickey’s “red shirt” was not lost on us.

I think he and I went two years in a row. I loved the Beach Ball party at Typhoon Lagoon. A water park at night with a DJ, drinks, and complete freedom to be yourself without any looks from people who don’t know better manners.

I did not enjoy the parks as much during the day, though. Hot, crowded, strollers, etc. and didn’t buy AP’s back then, so we didn’t want to spend our 3 day passes at that time of year going forward.
 
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P_Radden

P_Radden

Well-Known Member
Tony the Tigger said:
The first “gay days” was not a big organized event. It was a bunch of gay friends (and their friends) meeting at WDW. They decided to all wear red shirts so they could find/keep track of each other, much like so many other groups, family reunions, etc. wear matching shirts.

They had a great time, went back with more people, and eventually it grew into a big thing involving promoters, nighttime private parties at various parks and water parks, etc.

The red shirt tradition continued. Here is my red shirt pic with my boyfriend at the time (I’m in the tie dyed shirt) circa 2000.

View attachment 280339

Mickey’s “red shirt” was not lost on us.

I think he and I went two years in a row. I loved the Beach Ball party at Typhoon Lagoon. A water park at night with a DJ, drinks, and complete freedom to be yourself without any looks from people who don’t know better manners.

I did not enjoy the parks as much during the day, though. Hot, crowded, strollers, etc. and didn’t buy AP’s back then, so we didn’t want to spend our 3 day passes at that time of year going forward.
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The very first time I ever visited Magic Kingdom was on Gay Day in 1998. I was 12-yrs old, had never been around that kind of crowd very much. Funny thing is, that morning I originally put on my red NASA tee shirt then switched to a white one because it was going to be really hot that day. GLAD I DID. That day was quite a blast and a shocker. Lots of details I could share but probably not appropriate for the forums. Regardless, my mother and I laughed about me almost wearing the red shirt for years after that.
 
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Rob562

Rob562

Well-Known Member
Tony the Tigger said:
...and, just announced, it may implode after next year:

http://www.watermarkonline.com/2018/04/24/gaydays-moves-dates-host-hotel-for-2019-event/

Organizers are moving it to mid-August in 2019. However, not all the events want to move to August, so some are sticking to June.

All kinds of people can mess up everything equally!
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Well that's just stupid.

It reminds me of the year that gayday.com and gaydays.com were having disagreements (one was a volunteer group who'd been organizing things for years, the other was an event promoter who was trying to take over dominance).

The promoter put out a different schedule of which park on which day. It was a big flop since most people stuck to the established AK-Studios-MK-Epcot order. They switched back the next year.

I predict this August 2019 thing will be a one-time deal. August is way too hot.

Now...if they wanted to follow Disneyland's lead and have Gay Day in the much milder October, I'd consider it...

-Rob
 
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yensid67

yensid67

Well-Known Member
P_Radden said:
The very first time I ever visited Magic Kingdom was on Gay Day in 1998. I was 12-yrs old, had never been around that kind of crowd very much. Funny thing is, that morning I originally put on my red NASA tee shirt then switched to a white one because it was going to be really hot that day. GLAD I DID. That day was quite a blast and a shocker. Lots of details I could share but probably not appropriate for the forums. Regardless, my mother and I laughed about me almost wearing the red shirt for years after that.
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Just proves you can have a good time during Gay Days! 1998 I was working on the Jungle Cruise for Gay Day at the Magic Kingdom. It was the last ride of the night and my boat was filled with RED SHIRTS! There was one poor str8 couple in the back that looked terrified! Along our journey, they hooped and hollered and made that last ride a fun one! That poor couple? Well they had the time of their lives, too! I left work that day with a smile on my face, thanks to the RED SHIRT SOCIETY!
 
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Master Yoda

Master Yoda

Pro Star Wars geek.
Premium Member
yensid67 said:
Just proves you can have a good time during Gay Days! 1998 I was working on the Jungle Cruise for Gay Day at the Magic Kingdom. It was the last ride of the night and my boat was filled with RED SHIRTS! There was one poor str8 couple in the back that looked terrified! Along our journey, they hooped and hollered and made that last ride a fun one! That poor couple? Well they had the time of their lives, too! I left work that day with a smile on my face, thanks to the RED SHIRT SOCIETY!
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Did you ever have the pleasure of going to the Adventurer's Club during a Gay Days weekend?

Hands down, best nights ever at the Clube.
 
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Rob562

Rob562

Well-Known Member
Master Yoda said:
Did you ever have the pleasure of going to the Adventurer's Club during a Gay Days weekend?

Hands down, best nights ever at the Clube.
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I totally agree. It was amazing being in the AC and having the ENTIRE crowd be into the show all night long.

Even better was the year one person in our group (a friend-of-a-friend) was a part-time server at the AC.
Holy moly, the club members were going after us all night...

I really, really wish I'd known my bf back then. He would have loved the Club...

-Rob
 
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MichWolv

MichWolv

Born Modest. Wore Off.
Premium Member
Master Yoda said:
Did you ever have the pleasure of going to the Adventurer's Club during a Gay Days weekend?

Hands down, best nights ever at the Clube.
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Yes. It was great. I went with a group of guys I met on a Compuserve forum. I loved the Adv Club but those guys were true regulars. And Gay Days was the best time to go. Everybody into the shtick at the club and having the time of their lives.

During Gay Days one year, they convinced a woman who was also on the forum to come to the Club in a very nice red dress. She couldn't understand why all the women were hitting on her and the guys ignoring her until let her in on the secret.
 
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Master Yoda

Master Yoda

Pro Star Wars geek.
Premium Member
Rob562 said:
I totally agree. It was amazing being in the AC and having the ENTIRE crowd be into the show all night long.

Even better was the year one person in our group (a friend-of-a-friend) was a part-time server at the AC.
Holy moly, the club members were going after us all night...

I really, really wish I'd known my bf back then. He would have loved the Club...

-Rob
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The wife and I absolutely loved the place. My biggest regret is my kids never really got to enjoy it.

We let them stay up until 9, so they got a taste, but that was about it as the oldest was only 15 when the club closed. Even that little amuse bouche portion did provide us with some great memories though.

PSDSCF6914 (1).jpg
 
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P_Radden

P_Radden

Well-Known Member
yensid67 said:
Just proves you can have a good time during Gay Days! 1998 I was working on the Jungle Cruise for Gay Day at the Magic Kingdom. It was the last ride of the night and my boat was filled with RED SHIRTS! There was one poor str8 couple in the back that looked terrified! Along our journey, they hooped and hollered and made that last ride a fun one! That poor couple? Well they had the time of their lives, too! I left work that day with a smile on my face, thanks to the RED SHIRT SOCIETY!
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We had a fantastic time! It was a great and I'm very glad to have been there to experience it for myself.

You guys mentioned AC. Sadly, that's a place I never got to visit. Even so, I could only imagine how much fun it would've been on gay day.
 
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correcaminos

correcaminos

Well-Known Member
yensid67 said:
A lot of families lean toward staying away on GAY DAYS, but they are like the rest of the guests. They have rules to follow too! If you have kids that are 12 or older, I would still go to the parks and enjoy it! There is nothing over the top with this group than any other group! Some might have the notion that there will be a lot of public affection, not true! These are families that are there for the same reason you are...to have a magical time! They are just more expressive! If you go, just be open mined enough to enjoy their diversity, its not easy being in the minority! If this is an issue for you, then I would suggest going to their website and figuring what days they are doing what park! Gays Days utilizes Universal, Sea World and WDW, so there should be manageable schedule for your trip should you try to avoid the days they are in each park! If you are not worried much about it...go and have fun they will show you a good time...you will laugh like you never laughed before!
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What does age of child have to do with it? We've gone the last few years and didn't care that my now 10 yo was there. Then again I don't find anything related to love offensive.

This year we'll be at MK likely the day they are scheduled. We used to avoid the parks for crowds but accidentally went one of the days 2 years ago. Now we don't even look at the schedule (just saw it posted here so noticed the same date)
 
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yensid67

yensid67

Well-Known Member
helenabear said:
What does age of child have to do with it? We've gone the last few years and didn't care that my now 10 yo was there. Then again I don't find anything related to love offensive.

This year we'll be at MK likely the day they are scheduled. We used to avoid the parks for crowds but accidentally went one of the days 2 years ago. Now we don't even look at the schedule (just saw it posted here so noticed the same date)
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I am just saying that if those who have small children and do not want to try to explain to them why 2 men/girls are kissing, they should go to another park. But they will be missing a great time! Some parents want to shield their kids from things that are not right in most eyes, but I think it would be better to expose them to diversity than have them become opinionated against it later in life! No need to start a war! Just saying if ya don't want to have to explain anything about the GAY DAY to your youngin, then I would just go to another park!
 
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yensid67

yensid67

Well-Known Member
Scuttle said:
Ok I'm thinking of planning a trip june 3-6, but I know it's during gay days. What is gay days like? Do the gays have flags and all that over the top stuff or what? I know Disney does not advertise it or even acknowledge it, so I am curious to get some insider info.
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Hey Scuttle...has any of this helped!? My opinion is go and have a blast with the Red Shirts!
 
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correcaminos

correcaminos

Well-Known Member
yensid67 said:
I am just saying that if those who have small children and do not want to try to explain to them why 2 men/girls are kissing, they should go to another park. But they will be missing a great time! Some parents want to shield their kids from things that are not right in most eyes, but I think it would be better to expose them to diversity than have them become opinionated against it later in life! No need to start a war! Just saying if ya don't want to have to explain anything about the GAY DAY to your youngin, then I would just go to another park!
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I just think this mentality is kind of silly. There are always gay people at WDW. This is no different. They just often are wearing red shirts. My thought is this doesn't even need explaining to a kid, because it's not something abnormal to see. Not picking on you, because I agre with you and do think kids need to be exposed to all types of diversity. I just wouldn't bother making an age statement. Nothing personal on you :)
 
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