The 12 Most Gay-Friendly countries

1. São Paulo, Brazil

The culture of acceptance towards LGBT people in São Paulo has skyrocketed in recent years, a fact highlighted by the participation uptick in the city's annual pride events. The first, held in 1997, had about 2,000 people in attendance. São Paulo set the Guinness World Record for the largest gay pride parade in the world: 3 million people (and it's getting bigger every year).

2. Tel Aviv, Israel

Tel Aviv is a major party city with a booming tech enterprise and it's easily the most LGBT-accepting country in the Middle East. While same-sex marriage isn't legal in Israel, the state does recognize same-sex marriages performed outside national borders and allows the partners of Israeli citizens to gain permits for residency. Also, same-sex couples are afforded the same rights and benefits extended to common-law married couples.

3. Stockholm, Sweden

Stockholm isn't a huge city, but it goes above and beyond as a progressive center for LGBT rights. Every July, Stockholm hosts a pride festival and while Sweden's official travel website explains that there is "no center of gay life in Stockholm," that has a lot to do with the fact that the city is spread over 14 different islands and gay/gay-friendly clubs and bars are integrated on all of them.

4. Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Amsterdam has always led the pack regarding LGBT activism in both government legislation and social policy. In 2001 the Netherlands became the first country to legalize same-sex marriage, so it should come as no surprise that Amsterdam is incredibly accepting of the LGBT community. Since 1996 Amsterdam has hosted an annual pride festival and the city's nightlife is notoriously raucous.

5. Toronto, Canada

Ignoring for just a moment that Rob Ford is the current mayor of Toronto, it's a truly great city to live in. Canada legalized same-sex marriage in 2005, becoming the fourth country in the world to do so. The nation is at the forefront of progressive change ensuring legal protections against discrimination for LGBT persons, allowing adoption, military service and the right to legally change one's gender. While there are certainly "gayborhoods" in Toronto, the city as a whole is very open-minded and many businesses catering to or owned by LGBT people are integrated throughout the city.

6. New Orleans, Louisiana

One of the best-kept American secrets is that NOLA is super queer. It's filled with young people, it's affordable and there are no open container laws. Autostraddle claims NOLA has "a thriving young queer and trans population, and the African-American LGBT community may be one of the largest in the U.S." While they don't have their own Pride events yet, you can legally throw a parade with a license at any time, so who's to say Pride isn't every day? Plus there are plenty of gay clubs and bars throughout the city.

7. Sydney, Australia

While same-sex marriage is still illegal in Australia, it's often considered one of the most gay-friendly places in the world. Sydney is home to a number of gay-friendly beaches and wild nightlife spots catering to the LGBT community. Its world-renowned Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras takes place annually, drawing enormous crowds and big sponsors.

8. Seattle, Washington

Seattle is not just Starbucks and rain. It's one of the most progressive cities (in one of the most progressive states) in America and same-sex marriage was legalized in Washington in 2012. During the last weekend of June, Seattle holds its annual Pride Parade, which draws well over 50,000 people.

9. Mexico City, Mexico

Mexico City, a metropolitan capital home to 20 million people, is way queerer than you might think. The city legalized same-sex marriage in 2009, trans* people have the legal right to change their gender on government documents and queer couples can adopt children together. It hosts one of the largest Pride parades in the Americas and the tide of public opinion regarding homosexuality has drastically shifted towards acceptance.

10. Buenos Aires, Argentina

Many gay and lesbian travel websites compare Buenos Aires to a similarly sized European or North American cities with great LGBT scenes. In 2010 Argentina became the first country in Latin America to legalize same-sex marriage and the second country in the Americas to do so. Senators approved the "Gender Identity Law" unanimously in 2012, which requires that hormone therapy and sex reassignment surgery is free under both public and private health care plans. There are not, however, any laws forbidding discrimination against LGBT people that have passed on the national level.

11. Tokyo, Japan

While same-sex marriage may not be legal in Tokyo, that fact does not accurately reflect the climate of the city's LGBT culture. In Japan social norms trump legislation and culturally, homosexuality is neither explicitly forbidden nor encouraged, so the community exists without much hostility. There are, however, some institutional protections in place. Trans* people can legally change their gender after reassignment surgery as of 2008 and many activists in Japan consider it a big step that same-sex Japanese nationals can marry in foreign states.

12. Barcelona, Spain

Same-sex marriage has been legal in Spain since 2005, anti-discrimination laws are in place to protect LGBT persons in both the workplace and the marketplace and trans* people can legally change their gender.