Point of interest
Pasaje Begoña
in Torremolinos, Spain
Historic passage, cradle of Spain's gay scene in the 1960s and site of the 1971 raid; now an LGBTQ+ place of memory with commemorative plaques.
Where it is
A small L-shaped pedestrian alley in the centre of Torremolinos, just off Calle San Miguel and near the railway station.
What it is
The Pasaje Begoña is a place of historical memory: information panels along the walls recall the bars that once stood here, and three of the old venues have replica neon signs (The Blue Note, Pia Beck, Le Fiacre Club). For queer visitors it is a moving must-see and the symbolic birthplace of gay Torremolinos.
History
From late 1962, with Tony's Bar, the first venues frequented by LGBT people in Spain opened here, and between 1962 and 1971 there were around 50 gay bars and music clubs. On the night of 24-25 June 1971 Franco-era police raided the alley, closing 23 businesses and arresting up to several hundred people. Today the passage is recognised as the cradle of LGBTIQ+ rights in Spain by both the Congress of Deputies and the Parliament of Andalusia.