Queer bookshops
- Lighthouse Bookshop (43-45 West Nicolson Street)
Independent, radical bookshop with a selection of queer and intersectional focus. Walking distance to the conference venue. Must not to be missed!
2. Lavender Menace Archive (St Margaret’s House, 151 London Road)
Scotland’s only dedicated LGBTQ+ books archive. Open Tuesdays and Thursdays.
3. Typewronger (recently relocated to 22 Bruntsfield Place)
Queer-owned, community-centred bookshop specialized in indie publications, zines & prints. Very cool and charming aesthetics.
4. Book Lovers Bookshop (6 Melville Terrace)
Queer and Disabled-owned space that focuses on celebrating romance fiction. Winner of UK’s Indie Bookshop of 2026 by the British Book Awards. Close to the Main Library.
5. Rare Birds Bookshop (13 Raeburn Pl)
Dedicated entirely to women’s writing across all genres.
6. Argonaut Books (5-17 Leith Walk)
Indie community bookshop at the foot of Leith Walk. First Monday of each month hosts a Queer Book Club event to discuss modern and classic queer literature, poetry, and essays.
7. Toppings & Company Booksellers of Edinburgh (2 Blenheim Pl)
Large bookshop on Leith Walk with nice view. Not queer-specific but has a queer-focused section.
Queer bars & cafes
- Paradise Palms (41 Lothian St)
Camp, open and LGBTQ+ friendly vegetarian café bar just a few footsteps from the conference venue. A brilliant local queer cabaret called fruit salad (ins: @fruit_salad_edi) happens every Sunday
2. “Pink Triangle” (triangle-shaped area with local gay bars at the top of Leith Walk)
- Planet Bar & Kitchen (6 Baxter’s Place)
Longest running LGBTQ+ bar in the city. Drag DJs perform on Thursdays and Sundays. Showtime Fridays feature local & international drag queens.
- The street
Funky basement nightclub
3. Regents bar (2 Montrose Terrace)
A relaxed neighbourhood queer pub that proudly describes itself “straight friendly”
4. The Doghouse (18-24 Clerk St)
Very quirky décor, student-friendly
Drag
- Trackmondays (Cowgate Subway)
Edinburgh’s largest drag night
2. Saffron Cherry (ins: saffron.cherry)
A QTPOC community. Fringe queer cabaret – all king show at Paradise Palms (Aug 27) https://ma.to/event/saffron-cherry-27-aug-2026
3. Brocode
Drag king night (Sept 9th)
Drag
- “At A Very Scottish Time”. An exhibition celebrating Scotland’s queer Asian Diaspora. August_21 Coffee House EH9 1QG. (until Aug 30)
- Edinburgh LGBTQ+ history tour
- LGBT Health and Wellbeing (https://lgbthealth.org.uk/whats-on/ )
- LGBTQ+ basketball – Sep 1
- Edinburgh Trans Choir – Sep 3 (trans-friendly vocal exercise)
- Wheels of Fate (24 Haddington Place)
Queer-owned folk arts & witchcraft shop. They offer tarot/astrology reading & workshops about bookbinding, broom-making and spinning.