EuroPride parade in Portugal

Rainbow flags will fill Lisbon's streets tomorrow when the Portuguese capital hosts the annual EuroPride parade in support of LGBTQ rights which organisers hope will cement its standing as a gay-friendly destination.

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Tucked away in the cobbled alleys of the bohemian Bairro Alto neighbourhood, Carlos Sanches Ruivo, 57, proudly welcomes guests to his small queer-focused hotel, The Late Birds.

"We've had guests from 114 nationalities," said Ruivo, a dual French-Portuguese citizen who quit his engineering job in France to move to Lisbon in 2012.

Perched between the Tagus River and the Atlantic Ocean, Lisbon is seen as "more relaxed" than other European capitals, he said.