The Catskills Are Calling: Your Ultimate Pride Month Escape from NYC
Let's be honest. You need to leave the city. Not because the city isn't wonderful — it is. But there's a version of Pride that doesn't involve waiting 45 minutes for a $22 cocktail while someone's elbow is in your ribcage.
That version is two hours north of you, tucked into the Catskill Mountains, where the waterfalls are roaring, the forest is electric green, and the sunsets hit with zero competition from skyscrapers.
June is the Catskills' best-kept secret season, before the summer crowds arrive, after the mud, right when everything is quietly, impossibly beautiful. And this year, Pride Month is filling it with parades, art shows, drag performances, community concerts, and a mountain town energy that feels like the real thing.
Here's your full guide to Pride Month in the Catskills: what's happening, where to go, and why Alpine Four Season Lodge near Belleayre Mountain is the perfect home base.
A explosion of rainbow flags, glitter, feather boas, and pure unfiltered joy rolling down a sun-soaked mountain town street! 🌈✨
🌈 Pride Events in the Catskills & Hudson Valley, June 2026
Woodstock PrideFest & Parade — June 12–14 The Catskills' most iconic Pride weekend returns to Downtown Woodstock and Emricson Park. Three days of parades, live music, drag performances, art installations, kids' workshops, and pure color. Free and all ages. The parade rolls on Sunday June 14, and yes, you should be there for it. 👉 woodstocknypride.org
Mountaintop Pride Weekend — June 5–7 | Scribner's Lodge, Catskill Back for its second year at Scribner's Lodge, this mountain Pride weekend brings programming, pop-ups from local partners, live music, drag shows, and food across the entire property. One of the most unique Pride settings in New York State. 👉 greatnortherncatskills.com/events/mountaintop-pride-scribners
"Love is the Revolution" Art Exhibition — All June | Woodstock The Woodstock Artists Association & Museum (WAAM) hosts an immersive month-long Pride exhibition featuring photography, fiber art, interactive installations, and spoken word celebrating queer love and LGBTQ+ visibility. Walk downtown and you'll also find the famous Pride Yarn Bombs — knitted rainbow installations wrapping the town's trees. 👉 woodstocknypride.org/events
"Unveiling Identity & Transformation: The Pride Show" — June 5–28 | Kingston The Art Society of Kingston presents a month-long exhibition featuring LGBTQIA+ artists exploring identity and authentic self through diverse mediums. Opening night June 5 at 7pm. 👉 askforarts.org
"Of A Certain Age II" Photography Exhibit — June 5 | Kingston An intimate photography exhibit by Stephen Honicki exploring the lives of gay men over 50 in the Hudson Valley. Artist in conversation at the Hudson Valley LGBTQ+ Community Center at 7:30pm. A quieter, deeply moving way to kick off Pride Month. 👉 lgbtqcenter.org
Athens Pride — June 1 | Athens Riverfront Park The 7th annual flag raising and community gathering. This year's theme: "None of us are free until all of us are free." A great first stop if you're heading up for the opening weekend. 👉 biggayhudsonvalley.com
⛰️ Belleayre Mountain in Summer: The Mountain Doesn't Rest
The skis are put away. The mountain is just getting started.
Right next door to Alpine Four Season Lodge, Belleayre opens its full summer season June 26, and June is already stunning for hiking and exploring before the crowds hit.
Free Music on the Belle returns every Friday night from 6–9pm at the Discovery Lodge — live performances with mountain views as the backdrop. No ticket required. The Catskill Thunder Gondola carries you to summit views of the entire Catskill Forest Preserve. The Belleayre Beach opens June 26 with swimming, kayaking, paddleboarding, and the kind of afternoon that makes you forget you have emails.
For the ambitious: the disc golf course is back, the climbing wall is open, and the hiking trails range from easy forest strolls to ridge climbs with views that'll make your phone camera feel inadequate.
Love is in the air 🌈✨
☀️ Why June Is the Best Month Nobody Talks About
July gets the attention. October gets the Instagram photos. But June?
→ Waterfalls are roaring. Kaaterskill Falls is at its most powerful. Plan the hike. → Forest is electric green. The foliage is at peak lushness — every trail looks like it was designed by someone who takes aesthetics very seriously. → Perfect hiking temperature. Warm in the day, cool at night. No July humidity. No October chill. → Darkest skies in NY State. Clear June nights offer stargazing that's genuinely hard to describe. → Pride events, not crowds. The big summer rush arrives in July. In June you get the events and the space to actually enjoy them. → Fire pit season is fully justified. Cool evenings, good company, nowhere to be. Stay longer than you planned.
📅 The Ultimate Catskills Pride Weekend Itinerary
Friday — Arrive & Decompress ✔ Leave NYC before rush hour wins. ✔ Roll into Woodstock. Walk Tinker Street. Feel your shoulders drop 3 inches. ✔ Grab dinner somewhere local — Woodstock has real food made by people who care. ✔ Check into Alpine Four Season Lodge. ✔ Fire pit. Drinks. Sunset. Absolutely zero agenda.
Saturday — Full Catskills Day ✔ Coffee on the deck. Mountain air. No notifications until you're ready. ✔ Morning hike — trails from gentle to gnarly, all within minutes of the lodge. ✔ Head to Phoenicia for lunch. Esopus Creek tubing season is peak magic. ✔ Explore Margaretville — farm-to-table dining, breweries, galleries, one of the prettiest Main Streets in the Catskills. ✔ Return for dinner and stargaze under some of the darkest skies in New York State.
Sunday — Woodstock Pride & Head Home ✔ Farmers market browsing and a slow mountain breakfast. ✔ Head to Woodstock for the PrideFest Parade (June 14) — music, color, community, genuine joy. ✔ Wander the art exhibitions, pick up something local, eat something good. ✔ Drive home through the mountains. Promise yourself you'll be back next month.
🗺️ Explore More
Phoenicia, NY — Tubing on the Esopus Creek, mountain cafés, charm in quantities that are honestly unfair. phoeniciany.com
Margaretville — Farm-to-table dining, breweries, galleries, and a Main Street that makes you reconsider city life.
Belleayre Mountain — Gondola rides, hiking, free Friday concerts, beach, disc golf, and views that earn the drive. belleayre.com
Big Gay Hudson Valley — The most comprehensive LGBTQ+ events calendar for the entire region. biggayhudsonvalley.com
Chronogram Magazine — Local arts, culture, and events coverage for the Hudson Valley & Catskills. chronogram.com
Stay at Alpine Four Season Lodge
Minutes from Belleayre Mountain, Woodstock, Phoenicia, and Margaretville — with hiking trails, fire pits, and stargazing literally outside your door. Book direct for the best rates and skip the booking fees.
🌐 AlpineFourSeasonLodge.com 📍 32 Galli Curci Road, Highmount, NY 12441
Pride Month reminds us that life's best moments happen when we show up exactly as we are. The mountains have always been a place for that. We'll save you a seat by the fire.
— Daniel & The Crew, Alpine Four Season Lodge
32 Galli Curci Road, Highmount, New York 12441
