Chicago is one of the top Pride Month destinations for 2025, per Airbnb
Chicago joins the ranks of other buzzworthy Pride cities like Boston, Bogotá and Cologne, all seeing a swell in bookings as younger generations plan trips around parades, parties and unforgettable experiences. The data tracks bookings for late June, just in time for the city's big Pride festivities, including the iconic Chicago Pride Parade, which draws nearly a million people annually.
And it's not just about marching. Airbnb has also spotlighted ' The Animated Tour of Chicago ' as one of the standout experiences travelers are booking while in town. The creative walking tour, hosted by local artist and animator O.J., blends history, city landmarks and vibrant visuals into a delightfully nerdy cultural deep dive. Think Schoolhouse Rock meets Chicago Architecture Center—with original art, humor and just the right dash of weird. Reviews call it '10/10,' 'super fun' and 'an incredible, inspiring start to the trip.'
Pride-seekers can also take advantage of Airbnb's expanding menu of local services, from in-home yoga to prepared meals, all geared toward helping visitors make the most of their stay no matter their budget or itinerary.
Chicago's place on the list makes sense: The city boasts a thriving LGBTQ+ community, legendary nightlife and plenty of rainbow-splashed events throughout the month. But it's also a city of neighborhoods—each offering something different, whether you're brunching in Boystown, gallery-hopping in Pilsen or cruising the lakefront on a Divvy bike with a drag queen-led tour (yes, that exists).
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Time Out
3 hours ago
- Time Out
JUST IN: New Australian report debunks Gen Z drinking myths (spoiler: they're not sober)
Great news for Australia's bars, nightlife culture and hospo lovers: despite the chatter, Gen Z isn't dry. And we've got the stats to back it up. The Time Out Australia Sip Happens white paper is a trend report that deep-dives into how Gen Z and Millennials are drinking in 2025. You reckon Gen Z has swapped cocktails for kombucha? Nope. Turns out 81 per cent of Australian Gen Zs drink alcohol – that's only 3 per cent less than Millennials. That said, they're prioritising experiences over binge drinking, as well as concept-led bars and socially responsible sips. We'll cheers to that. The Sip Happens research, compiled by Time Out Australia's creative solutions and insights team, took quantitative and qualitative consumer insights from Time Out Loud, our proprietary research community, combined with editorial expertise from Time Out's editors and professional perspectives from key industry stakeholders. It found that 70 per cent of Gen Z respondents choose brands that align with their values. While 80 per cent of Gen Z are influenced by a venue's vibe (hello, groovy underground haunt Pleasure Club), and price is the number one factor in deciding whether to drink. The report reveals seven key trends shaping Gen Z and Millennial drinking culture in 2025, from 'main character' dinner parties and PowerPoint nights in, to chasing TikTok-famous cocktails like the 'Spicy Sauvy B'. Across these trends, one theme is clear: this is a generation choosing quality over quantity, prioritising vibe over volume, and balancing wellness with weekends worth remembering. Seven trends shaping how Gen Z enjoy drinks in 2025: The Rise of 'Main Character' Hosting: Forget sticky-floored clubs – a popular drinking spot for Gen Z is at home with friends and family. Think moodboard-worthy dinner parties, let's-get-lit book clubs and PowerPoint parties, all paired with cocktails as curated as the glassware they're served in. Intentional Nights Out: Lockdowns may have changed nightlife, but Gen Z still goes 'out out' – just on their terms. Shorter, more intentional evenings at vibey bars like Sydney's Bar Planet or Melbourne's Caretaker's Cottage are in; sunrise benders are out. From Binge to Balance: Gen Z can hit the rooftop bar and still make their 8am pilates class. While money, not health, is their main reason for skipping drinks – they're all about moderation, mini cocktails and wellness-meets-social nights. Experience Over Excess: When Gen Z heads out, they are chasing the vibe. They are 30 per cent less likely than Millennials to opt for traditional options, instead favouring immersive pop-ups, live music and multi-concept venues. From matcha-fuelled café raves to arcade-bar cocktail crawls, drinking is just one part of the experience, not the focus. Mixed to Match the Moodboard: For Gen Z, a drink can be an accessory. The vibe and aesthetic of a venue is just as important as what's in the glass, with TikTok and Instagram driving discovery. Cocktails need to look good not just in pictures, but also on video – theatrical martinis, nostalgic throwbacks and viral 'Spicy Sauvy B' cocktails are all part of the mix. Bougie on a Budget: Cost of living is shaping how and where Gen Z drinks. They want affordable luxury: $16 Negronis at all-day happy hours, drag brunches with bottomless bubbles and BYO nights at premium restaurants. Socially Responsible Sips: Values matter as much as flavour – 77 per cent are more likely to choose a brand or bar that stands for something they believe in, with natural wine, local producers and sustainable venues leading the way. Kaylie Smith, Time Out's Managing Director, APAC, says: 'Time Out knows cities like no one else, so when we started to ideate the theme for this report, we listened to our partners and clients. Knowing how to reach and engage with Gen Z – a key part of our Time Out audience – has been a misunderstood topic for a long time, especially in the alcohol space. 'When we uncovered these insights in our research, we knew we needed to use our connections and expertise to debunk the myth that Gen Z have all gone sober. Experiences are more important than ever, and we hope that through this research, we can provide insights for brands into Gen Z attitudes and behaviours.' And if you're looking for inspiration for where to do fun stuff, Time Out is a great place to start. You can check out the full Time Out Sip Happens report here. And on that note, we say it's time for a drink.
Spectator
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The mystical hold of the 1990s over Gen Z
At some point during the past decade and a half, it was decided that the 1990s were a golden age. While Britpop, New Labour and acid house do not immediately evoke the same spirit as, say, Versailles under Louis XIV or Augustan Rome, compared with what followed they were certainly characteristic of something. Members of Gen Z who have known only the colourless, anodyne first years of the new millennium speak of the Nineties in mystical tones. At a party last week, I found myself holding court over some twentysomethings who'd discovered that I am a millennial. 'What was it really like?' they asked, as if coming face-to-face with Shackleton or Francis Drake. I had always supposed that I looked back on the Nineties with rose-tinted specs because it was the decade of my childhood. Listening to a new podcast Talk '90s to Me, I am persuaded there is more to it; that the 1990s are worthy of nostalgia and deserve the envy of those who didn't experience them. If you're old enough to remember a truly great decade – the 1960s, for example – this may well strike you as nuts. But just look at the streets today. Can you really blame the young for idealising an era that has only just passed out of reach? In the tantalising summary of Irvine Welsh – interviewed in the second episode of the podcast – the Nineties was 'that very interesting time in Britain when people just started drinking in fields and factories'. If you've read Trainspotting, you'll know that he understood its dark side, too. But the programme made it sound like one endless, classless rave. According to Welsh, the 1990s actually began in 1987 or 1988 and were the product of intuition of impending disaster. He likened us then to animals before a tsunami. The spectre of the internet, big money, sell-offs and a post-cultural world loomed before us: we were sentient to it all before it materialised. Somehow this didn't dent our optimism and we just carried on with one final wild fling of the millennium. Miranda Sawyer, who hosts the podcast, awakes your nostalgia with similar ease. I'd forgotten how much people cared about things such as the rivalry between Oasis and Blur. (The resurrection of the former and obviously inferior band has contributed to Nineties nostalgia this summer.) As Sawyer chatted to Ted Kessler, formerly of NME, I had a vivid memory of the feud playing out. The podcast is still in its infancy, with three episodes released at the time of writing, but it's hitting the spot. Appetites for what the energetic Sawyer calls 'the last nutty pre-internet age' have never been greater. You can bet the episodes will find at least as many listeners among those born after 2000 as among those who knew the ecstasy-filled years before. The differences between then and now become starkly apparent when listening to Floating Space. The podcast is devised and presented by a 25-year-old Londoner named Katie Stokes to address the problems of isolation in the modern world. More than 700,000 people in the capital admitted to suffering from severe loneliness last year. The closure of facilities and the convenience of the internet have played a part in hastening our withdrawal from public spaces. What humans need, says Stokes, is 'a third place'. The concept comes from an American sociologist named Ray Oldenburg. Writing in 1989, he stressed that, away from home and work, we should seek a third place in which to socialise and simply exist in the times between. The idea appeals to Stokes, who works remotely full-time and misses the 'small-town' network she knew growing up outside of London. Wistful for something like Central Perk in Friends, that bastion of Nineties living, she trials a different place each week. Will the gym prove more sociable than online? Is there still a nightclub scene? Are private members' clubs as stuffy as assumed? The drawback to sampling one place per episode is that it provides each institution with an opportunity for self-promotion. It is monotonous to have the manager of a club talk about how his club is different from all other clubs. Stokes is, though, balanced in her assessments and a conscientious host. Her mission to reprise Oldenburg's advice is also admirable even if progress is difficult to achieve. By the end, I wondered if we wouldn't all be better off shunning the gyms and clubs, and running, dancing, for the fields.
Time Out
12 hours ago
- Time Out
London's best cheap eats, according to TikTok foodie Sama Ansari Pour
From Iranian street food in Finchley to Bolivian empanadas on the Old Kent Road Every year, Time Out surveys thousands of people around the world to come up with an annual ranking of the world's greatest cities. This year, for the first time, Time Out discovered which locations were best for Gen Z by asking people under 30 what they thought about their city's nightlife, food, culture, access to green spaces, and walkability. It turns out that the UK's best city for Gen Z is Edinburgh, with London coming in a not-too-bad second place. To celebrate London's high ranking placement, we asked Sama Ansari Pour, a Gen Z journalist and content creator who has been eating her way through a host of global cuisines on her TikTok, to recommend her five favourite meals for under £10 in the city. 1. Caspian Lounge, Finchley What is it? One of the few places in London to score authentic Iranian street food. Why Sama loves it: Western eats (think burgers and hot dogs) meet Iranian flavours. saffron-marinated chicken burgers, thick beef Iranian sausage hot dogs topped with a healthy amount of yogurt and dill sauce. Traditional Iranian dishes like kotlet (potato and meat patties) and olivieh (potato salad) are stuffed into sandwiches that'll keep you full all day, but the best thing to order is their special hotdog – tender beef sausage stuffed in a freshly baked baguette with layers of cheese and crunchy vegetables. Thank me later. Sama's tip: Skip the sides (fries and salad) and spend that money on fresh pomegranate juice instead. Address: 427 High Road, Finchley, N12 0AP. Opening hours: 11am-11pm, open every day. Expect to pay: Between £7.99 to £9.99 depending on the sandwich. 2. Enfes Ocakbasi, Haringey What is it? The best lahmacun in London. Why Sama loves it: Because you can order a £4.50 lahmacun and get four to five free starters, as well as free tea, and often free rice pudding as well. It's typical for Turkish restaurants to provide starters for free, but a lot of Turkish restaurants in the city are phasing this out. Not Enfes Ocakbasi. In my experience, no matter what you order, you'll be served hot bread, hummus, cacik, grilled onions and two types of salad. The lahmacun is made fresh and loaded with flavourful meat. It's hard to get a better deal. Sama's tip: Put the salad in the lahmacun, squeeze lemon on it and make it into a big wrap – that's the authentic Turkish way to eat it. Address: 485-487 Green Lanes, Harringay Ladder, N4 1AJ. Opening hours: 11am-12am, Monday to Friday, 11am-1am on the weekends. Expect to pay: Lahmacun costs £4.50. Sama Ansari Pour 3. Salteńas Martin, Old Kent Road What is it? A Bolivian cafe serving excellent empanadas. Why Sama loves it: At Salteńas Martin you can buy multiple baked goods and a drink, and still have change left over from a tenner. Everything is made fresh and you have to try a salteña – a Bolivian-style empanada stuffed with chicken, potatoes, olives and vegetables. Compared to other Latin American empanadas, it kind of reminds me of a xiao long bao because it's so juicy – the flaky pastry is hiding a little soup inside. Sama's tip: Take a bite of the salteña and eat the fillings with a spoon, the traditional Bolivian way. Address: 214 Old Kent Road, SE1 5TY. Opening hours: Mon closed, Tue and Thu 8.30am–5pm, Wed 8:30am–6pm, Fri-Sat 8am–10pm, Sun 8am–9pm. Expect to pay: A salteña costs £2.80, other baked goods start from £1 and the most expensive is £5. 4. Suya Hut, Barking What is it? Perfectly spiced Nigerian barbeque. Why Sama loves it: You can get a huge portion of jollof rice, barbequed meat and salad for £9-10, depending on if you want chicken or beef. It may be one of the best barbeques you'll ever try in your life: it's smoky, spicy, nutty and moreish. The meat is served on a bed of jollof rice, which is possibly one of my favourite rice dishes out there. Spicy, tomatoey, umami – it's hard to stop eating it. The portions are incredibly generous, you'll likely have leftovers for tomorrow's lunch. Sama's tip: Order a Nigerian Fanta for the ultimate authentic experience. Address: 14A London Road, Barking, IG11 8AJ. Opening hours: Thu-Sat, 12–8pm. Expect to pay: £9–10, depending on your choice of meat. Sama Ansari Pour 5. Kulcha Express, Southall What is it? Punjabi comfort food. Why Sama loves it: The best chicken curry I have ever had is served here, and it was only £9.50. It was rich, well-spiced and the chicken was so tender it almost melted – I didn't need a knife at all. You can also grab a freshly made paratha stuffed with onions or cheese. It's a small eatery and filled with locals – it's not fancy, but you won't forget the food. Sama's tip: Skip the rice and get a freshly made roti instead – it's cheaper and mops up the flavours perfectly. Address: 80 South Road, Southall, UB1 1RD. Opening hours: Sun-Thu 10am–10pm, Fri-Sat 10am–10.30pm. Expect to pay: Parathas from £2.50, curries are £9 to £10 depending on the meat. Check out Time Out's full list of the city's best cheap eats right here. Not fussed about price? Here are the 50 best restaurants the city has to offer
