One lucky couple will stand a chance to win an unforgettable Pride Amsterdam weekend, including a unique two-night stay in a bridgemaster’s cottage on the Amstel river, a private make-up tutorial by drag icon Envy Peru and VIP access to the Canal Parade

On the occasion of Pride Amsterdam and the famous Canal Parade, Booking.com is introducing the Pride Amsterdam Canal ‘SWEET’ Weekend. With a mission to make it easier for everyone to experience the world, regardless of who they love or how they identify, and as the main sponsor of Pride Amsterdam, Booking.com is offering one lucky couple an unforgettable Canal Parade experience during the closing weekend of Pride Amsterdam from 4 to 6 August. This exclusively bookable unique experience includes a two-night stay in the bridge keeper’s cottage of SWEETS hotel ‘Amstelschutsluis’, right on the Amstel river and in the heart of the weekend celebrations. To mark Pride Amsterdam, the bridge keeper’s house will be decorated, among other things, with beautiful portraits of well-known LGBTQ+ faces, all taken by LGBTQ+ photographer Cyriel Jacobs, founder of Stunnin, the Netherlands’ first drag magazine.

The two guests will be taken by boat with a private captain to their unique suite on the water, where they will be welcomed by Peruvian-Dutch drag icon and Booking.com Travel Proud ambassador Envy Peru. Both guests will also receive a private makeup tutorial from her, where she will share tips and tricks to create the ultimate Pride Amsterdam look. After all the glitz and glamour is applied, the guests will have a personalised photo shoot with Cyriel Jacobs, with the Amstel river as a backdrop, to capture this once-in-a-lifetime experience. Guests will then be picked up by their private captain who will take them to one of the very first Travel Proud-certified accommodations worldwide, Sofitel Legend The Grand Amsterdam. Here, they will first enjoy an exclusive exhibition of iconic fashion items by some famous Dutch drag queens, before enjoying a culinary experience at the hotel’s renowned Bridges restaurant. Day two starts with breakfast in bed overlooking the canals, before heading to the VIP deck across the street to which they will have exclusive access, the best place in Amsterdam to take in the colourful Canal Parade.

As part of Booking.com’s mission to make it easier for everyone to experience the world, the company introduced the Travel Proud programme in 2021. The programme is designed to support the company’s accommodation partners with free inclusive hospitality training. Not only does this training help understand the specific challenges faced by LGBTQ+ travellers, it also helps understand what can be done to make every guest feel more welcome, regardless of where they come from, who they love or how they identify. The programme is available worldwide in English, Italian, French, Spanish, Brazilian-Portuguese and German, with training sessions in all languages at least once a week. There are now more than 35,000 certified accommodations worldwide on Booking.com, including more than 570 in the Netherlands, with welcoming Travel Proud stays in 122 countries and territories and more than 9,000 cities.

Arjan Dijk, CMO and Senior Vice President at Booking.com: “As a gay man, Pride Amsterdam is a moment close to my heart. It is an opportunity for us and our rainbow communities to celebrate the progress we have made together. I am also very aware of the work that still needs to be done to create acceptance and equality for LGBT people everywhere, and this is something that we therefore want to create even more awareness for, including through our ongoing collaboration with COC Netherlands. I am enormously proud that Booking.com is playing a role in breaking down some of those barriers and bringing people closer together, regardless of who they love or how they identify.”

Envy Peru, Travel Proud Ambassador of Booking.com: “Whether in or out of drag, I am 100% queer and recognise the challenges we still face in our community to feel truly welcome and accepted everywhere. I truly believe in the work Booking.com is doing with their accommodation partners and I am incredibly excited to be a Travel Proud ambassador for the second year in a row. I am also incredibly looking forward to contributing to this once-in-a-lifetime experience and creating some special Pride memories for some lucky travellers.”

The two-night Pride Amsterdam Canal ‘SWEET’ Weekend is available exclusively to one lucky pair of bookers from Friday 4 August to Sunday 6 August 2023 for a total cost of just €20.23, in honour of this year’s Canal Parade. The experience can be booked exclusively on Booking.com on 31 July 2023 at 10:00am Dutch time on a first-come, first-served basis.

For more information on the Booking.com Pride Amsterdam Canal ‘SWEET’ Weekend and to book it on 31 July, visit: https://www.booking.com/hotel/nl/the-ultimate-canal-parade-experience.nl.html

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