New Orleans has it all – legendary nightlife, fantastic restaurants, a dramatic arts scene, 24-hour-a day bars and the chance to dress up in outrageous costumes any time of year. Altogether, it’s the perfect setting for the liveliest of gay cultures. The LGBT community takes the spotlight at festivals all year long, with Southern Decadence over Labor Day weekend attracting more than 125,000 revelers to what’s come to be known as Gay Mardi Gras. Parades, costumes, drag shows and themed parties abound during Decadence, then again they’re a part of the city’s Pride Fest, Mardi Gras, Halloween festivities and even Easter, where the Gay Easter Parade is one of three in the French Quarter. The Saints and Sinners Literary Festival takes a more studied approach, bringing the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and intersex literati together for three days of inspired musings. The preference in New Orleans is always to celebrate diversity; whatever your interest, there is a LGBT festival for it. Here is a list: