Long Beach is a coastal California city that offers abundant sunshine, miles of sandy shores and beautiful blue ocean, and plenty to see and do for visitors and residents alike.
A Little Long Beach History
The area that is presently Long Beach was initially settled as part of a large Spanish land grant in 1784. Eventually becoming incorporated as a city and part of the state of California, it has always been a popular site for commerce and is in fact one of the largest shipping ports in the United States. Long Beach is known for its various waterfront attractions like the RMS Queen Mary and the Aquarium of the Pacific among others. Long Beach is also known for being a diverse, friendly, and eclectic community, with a strong tourism industry, a thriving, artsy LGBTQ community, a welcoming spirit, and a hip, eclectic vibe.
A Few Fun Facts About Long Beach
Find more fun facts about Long Beach here.
The LGBTQ Community in Long Beach
Long Beach is a community that celebrates its diversity, and strives to support its diverse communities with a variety of resources. Some of the LGBTQ community resources in Long Beach include:
The LGBTQ Center Long Beach provides a variety of services and resources to Long Beach’s LGBTQ community. Its mission is to advance equity for the LGBTQ community through advocacy, education, programs, and services. The Center has been providing a wide variety of social, health, legal, advocacy, educational, and service programs to the LGBTQ community in Long Beach for more than three decades.
The Long Beach Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce
The Chamber was initially founded as the Long Beach Community Business Network in 1992 by a group of gay and lesbian business owners to serve as a support and networking organization for gay-owned and gay-friendly businesses within the greater Long Beach area. Its mission is to have a positive impact on the LGBTQ community and its allies, and to increase the visibility of the LGBTQ community as a powerful economic force within the greater Long Beach area.
Long Beach Weather
Long Beach residents will experience plenty of sunshine – 287 days per year, on average. Long Beach gets an average of 14 inches of rainfall per year. Weather is generally pleasant all year with highs in summer averaging about 79 degrees, and the low temperature in winter averaging around 46 degrees.
Must-Try Long Beach Events
Long Beach Pride is typically held in June of each year, and is Long Beach’s festival and celebration of all that the LGBTQ community adds to Long Beach’s unique diversity. Since the 1980s, Long Beach Pride has been providing activities that educate, encourage and celebrate pride and inclusion. It is a festive week full of fun that you won’t want to miss!
A Look at the Best Long Beach Neighborhoods
While some cities have one or two areas that could be referred to as “gayborhoods”, Long Beach is unique in that this can be said of almost the entire city. Whether you choose a beach cottage, a bungalow, or a luxury beachfront home, there are plenty of options to fit varying tastes and needs. The median home value in Long Beach is approximately $630,000.
If you're thinking of a move and would like to know more about what's for sale in your price range, connect with a top Long Beach Gay Realtor.
Arts and Entertainment
The Museum of Latin American Art
The Museum of Latin American Art was founded in 1996 in Long Beach, and is the only museum in the United States dedicated to modern and contemporary Latin American and Latino art.
The Aquarium of the Pacific is a public aquarium on a 5-acre site on Rainbow Harbor. The Aquarium sees 1.5 million visitors a year, and has an extensive number of galleries featuring marine life from around the world. Offering plenty for visitors to see and do, you won’t want to miss it.
Parks and Recreation
Bolsa Chica State Beach is a beautiful public beach used for fishing, surfing, swimming, socializing and soaking up the sun. It’s a great place to spend a beautiful day – and in Long Beach, there are many!
Knott’s Berry Farm is a 57-acre theme park that includes rollercoasters, water rides, and any number of other attractions. It has a vintage charm, but remains very popular today, in fact being the 12th most visited theme park in North America. It’s guaranteed fun for everyone who visits, and a perfect place to enjoy a sunny Long Beach day.
Long Beach Nightlife
Hamburger Mary’s is a full-service restaurant and bar located in the heart of Long Beach. Some say it has the best burger in town, in addition to offering a lively dance floor, a wide variety of specialty cocktails, and fabulous drag shows.
The Executive Suite is an LGBTQ nightclub known for having a hip lounge area, pool, karaoke, and weekly drag shows. It prides itself on being a diverse, fun, social club that is welcoming to all.
The Silver Fox is an LGBGTQ nightclub known for its large library of music, its karaoke nights, and its excellent variety of drinks. The club’s newly remodeled interior features lighting with color effects and projections, as well as several screens that show both classic and contemporary music videos for guests.
[1] https://www.presstelegram.com/2015/05/13/long-beach-is-second-most-diverse-city-in-us-report-finds/
