We’ll sketch you a scene here: A beautiful Tuesday afternoon , there’s a beach on Antiparos, one of the amazing Cyclade islands in Greece. The sun is high in the sky, the water is in different shades of blue and the soft sands are calling to put down your towel.
The reason why you picked this beach and not one of the many others on the island is because it’s one of the only official nudist beaches in all of Greece and once you got to the place you were happy to see the sign saying “official nudist beach since the seventies”. When you looked a bit further a more unpleasant sight caught your attention… Textiles.
The reason why you picked this beach and not one of the many others on the island is because it’s one of the only official nudist beaches in all of Greece and once you got to the place you were happy to see the sign saying “official nudist beach since the seventies”. When you looked a bit further a more unpleasant sight caught your attention… Textiles.
So you walk down the beach, past the hordes of textiles, spotting a single nudist here and there and you wonder “what happened?”. Until you pass a dune and there, in a small secluded area where the beach is more rocky and less shady you’ll find the nudists. Packed together.
Does this sound familiar?
Unfortunately, to many of you it must do. Based on the reactions we often get when we write the 724th blog post in favour of clothing optional. Many nudies have the idea that textiles are taking over their beaches, chasing us away or into a corner.
Does this sound familiar?
Unfortunately, to many of you it must do. Based on the reactions we often get when we write the 724th blog post in favour of clothing optional. Many nudies have the idea that textiles are taking over their beaches, chasing us away or into a corner.
Why does this happen?
We can think of many reasons why textiles want to frequent our beaches. Some think it’s voyeurism, in order to make their stay at the beach a little bit more pleasant (they don’t have the pleasure of swimming naked, you know) they want to include some naked people watching.
Others say that they’re trying to chase us away, to make all beaches textile again and put us back behind our fences in the woods.
And others say it’s something sexually, they think that people who like to wander around naked are easy targets to seduce, that on one time or another a gorgeous naked nymph will walk up to them asking “hi stranger, how about some shagging behind that dune?”.
Others say that they’re trying to chase us away, to make all beaches textile again and put us back behind our fences in the woods.
And others say it’s something sexually, they think that people who like to wander around naked are easy targets to seduce, that on one time or another a gorgeous naked nymph will walk up to them asking “hi stranger, how about some shagging behind that dune?”.
We won’t tell you that all of the above is untrue. Yes, some of them might be voyeurs, perverts or anti-nudists. But we think that for the majority of the textile visitors it’s just pure ignorance. They don’t know what it is to be a nudist, they don’t know how long some of us have struggled before they felt confident enough to be naked among others, among naked others.
The beach we’re talking about here is the only one within easy walking distance to a campground, so most of the camp people just go over there and either miss the “nude beach” sign or completely ignore it. As far as they know, we’re just people who like to be naked and who don’t mind to be seen naked by others. They don’t make the difference whether these others should be clothed or not, like we do. They often have no idea that the presence of textiles does make some nudists feel uncomfortable.
The beach we’re talking about here is the only one within easy walking distance to a campground, so most of the camp people just go over there and either miss the “nude beach” sign or completely ignore it. As far as they know, we’re just people who like to be naked and who don’t mind to be seen naked by others. They don’t make the difference whether these others should be clothed or not, like we do. They often have no idea that the presence of textiles does make some nudists feel uncomfortable.
What can we do about it?
But of course many of us don’t feel completely relaxed being naked surrounded by textiles. We saw a woman in bikini walk into the sea, once she was halfway in the water she took the bikini off and held it in her hand while swimming around. Right before she returned to the beach she put it back on. The idea that someone who wants to swim naked, on a god damn nude beach, can’t feel comfortable enough to walk the 10-15 meters from her spot to the water without covering herself is just sad.
Even though the beach on Antiparos is an official nude beach, or at least said to be one, it’s not protected. There’s no big guy at the entrance saying “hey buddy, you’ll have to lose those shorts if you want to walk any further”. It’s totally dependent of the knowledge of the visitors that the etiquette of a nude beach says that you should be naked. A knowledge that textiles often don’t have. And as we said before, we refuse to believe that they (or at least all of them) do this on purpose. For them, the “nude beach” sign just means that they can run into naked people, not that they are required to be naked themselves.
Since in Greece all beaches are public, it’s basically impossible to enforce a nude only rule.
So what can we do about it?
Since in Greece all beaches are public, it’s basically impossible to enforce a nude only rule.
So what can we do about it?
Clearly, on this beach, on that day, the option to let ourselves be chased away to a part less beautiful and less comfortable away from the crowd was chosen. Basically the same we do at unofficial nude beaches. As you can read from the title of this post, this is not the strategy we want to promote.
We could of course try to protect the beach ourselves, we could walk up to every textile asking them if they missed the sign and what makes them think that it doesn’t count for them. We have heard about places where nudists do this and where this works very well. It’s a good way to educate textiles about nudism and about the nudist etiquette. But unfortunately it’s also a good way to get into a huge fight ending up with us nudists being seen as complete assholes.
We could of course try to protect the beach ourselves, we could walk up to every textile asking them if they missed the sign and what makes them think that it doesn’t count for them. We have heard about places where nudists do this and where this works very well. It’s a good way to educate textiles about nudism and about the nudist etiquette. But unfortunately it’s also a good way to get into a huge fight ending up with us nudists being seen as complete assholes.
We opted for the “live and let live” strategy. We chose ourselves a spot between the textiles and got nude. Agreed, it does take some courage and before some time we probably wouldn’t have dared to do such a thing. But right now, we believe it’s the best option. The fact that none of them cared about it or didn’t even looked at us, kind of proves our point that they were not there with bad intentions. They knew there could be naked people around them and now there were.
A positive note to all of this, is that in our own way we were normalizing nudity. When these people go home from their holiday on Antiparos and someone asks them to sign a petition to close this or that nude beach, they’ll probably refuse to do so. If someone asks them for support to make a certain beach clothing optional, they might even be in favour. Because, although they’re not nudists themselves, at least they saw what nudism is. And that it’s allright.
A positive note to all of this, is that in our own way we were normalizing nudity. When these people go home from their holiday on Antiparos and someone asks them to sign a petition to close this or that nude beach, they’ll probably refuse to do so. If someone asks them for support to make a certain beach clothing optional, they might even be in favour. Because, although they’re not nudists themselves, at least they saw what nudism is. And that it’s allright.
Picture credit: The photos in this post are coming from Google and Twitter. If you find one of yourself and you don’t want it to be on our blog, let us know and we’ll remove it.
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100% agree with your choice and your post. It requires some courage, but as you rightly said, nobody will probably care. I’m a strong believer that all beaches should be clothing optional. However, until it happens, the only etiquette on a nudist beach is to get naked and show textiles how to be comfortable naked. Keep up the great work!
I like the article but i think you miss out on a group. I’ve been to a nudist beach while being in swimwear, just because i wanted to be naked but to insecure to do so. But to be around nudists and learn to get confidence led me to get out of my clothes. So i was not a voyeur / looking for targets or an anti nudist. I think a lot of people are not secure enough but want to take a glympse of how they do it. So live and let live is the best option.
What we’re trying to say with this article is that there can be many reasons for textiles to be on nude beaches and that it’s a misunderstanding that they’re all creeps. We also advise beginning nudists who are insecure about taking the first step to go to a clothing optional beach and take things slow.
Dear Sterre>My name is john durkee jr.
I’m curious>but how long have you been a nudist?
sign john durkee jr
Thanks for the article. I feel that the option taken, to basically mix with the textiles, was the right one, albeit very brave. Voyerism is common on any beach be one clothed or not so why expect humans to totally change their natures. Well done for portraying nudists in a positive light.
Nudism rocks 4 life worldwide
Nick and Lins,
Glad you chose the option you did — taking the middle ground. But rather than looking at it from the naturist side, I found myself looking at this post from the textile side. Placing the few odd ball voyeurs, perverts, and people looking to hook up to the side and operating on the assumption that you stated, that most of the textiles at the beach were either ignorant that it was a nude beach or already indifferent to the fact, I have to wonder….what did they learn on that day after seeing you and the few nudies not hiding beyond the rocks?
I suspect they learned that nude beaches maybe aren’t what they thought they were. That there wasn’t anything sexual going on, that all types of people were there, and that being around nudies was no big deal. Maybe they even gave it a go themselves. Maybe the woman in the bikini choosing to go nude in the water….maybe that was a first step for her. Maybe next time she brings a friend and tries going topless and so on….
I know such harmony between textiles and nudies may sound like a utopia and I’m being pollyannish for suggesting it, but I tend to think its the way forward — less formality and more “live and let live”. Yes, I very much want to keep nude only beaches. They have a place in naturism and I’m a big supporter. But places where the two worlds interact can only help break down barriers and destroy myths……and maybe, just maybe, create a few more naturists. Unfortunately, to go nude among the clothed…it isn’t easy. But it may be just what is needed.
Just my thoughts
Thx for the post!
Naturistthoughts
Indeed, we also believe in the existence of nudist only beaches, but we don’t think that the other beaches should be nudity prohibited by default. In our ideal world, the majority of the beaches should be clothing optional, with several nudist only beaches for nudists who aren’t comfortable (yet) being naked among clothed and several textile only beaches for textiles who aren’t comfortable (yet) among naked people.
Some may say it’s an utopia, but we believe that we might be closer than many think. The law in Denmark is a good example of this.
Nick & Lins – first of all, thanks for continuing to provided quality information about nudism on this blog. I love your perspective.
The most popular nude beach in southern California is Black’s Beach in San Diego. Technically speaking is isn’t a “legal” nude beach, but it has been used as such for many, many years and nudity is completely accepted by the lifeguards and law enforcement. Like the beach you describe above, Black’s is a mix of nudies and textiles. I love it that way. Yes, occasionally a group of guys will stroll past obviously looking for some flesh to ogle. But there is a genuine sense of “live and let live” which makes my heart glad every time I go.
I think there is another reason you didn’t mention why textiles like nude beaches: peace and quiet! Generally there are very few kids (including teenagers) on nude beaches. This makes for a quiet, relaxing environment.
As a nudist, I’m actually “turned on” by the opposite sex in swimwear. I’d rather be on a nude beach of course but clothing optional beaches causes “issues” for me. I guess I’m the voyeur on a clothing optional beach but looking at the bikinis.
While loosing nude/C-O beaches is a problem for us, I’m currently in a situation I hadn’t prepared for. Our local resort just closed. Was sold to anti- nudists who plan to turn it into a housing development. While it’s not officially the reason given, it appears to be the truth according to members who have been there since the 70’s.
For years I thought we were making progress. The beaches and now this. We need to start gaining ground.
i think the real reason for cornering the nudist
is simply a shortage of beach space.
For my wife & I, if we can be nude we will be. We have been dozens of nude beaches around the US & Canada and have had this exact situation amd we always get naked. Occasionally we have had pleasant conversations with textiles about it. From our experience most of them are curious about nudism and want to feel the enviroment. Only once has someone tried to shame us, under the guise of protecting their kids (that they brought to a nude beach!?!) and we just smiled and pointed out the large sign marking the nude area.
Sorry to sound so negative on an otherwise fine article, but two things stand out.
1) Do you really need to offend a large portion of your audience and refer to the beach as a “g– d—-” nude beach?
2) I can’t believe you posted pictures of nude people without getting a waiver! The ‘we will remove them if you want’ is too little too late.
Hi Fred,
Thanks for your comments!
1) That was certainly not meant to offend anyone, but rather as an expression. Sorry if it came over the wrong way.
2) yes, we know we shouldn’t do this. It’s impossible to trace back the owners of these pictures though, so with the line at the bottom we hope to get them in touch with us (it has worked several times before) so we can credit them.
Being the outspoken and bold activist that I am, were I to visit an official nudist beach and find it overrun with textiles I would simply plop my blanket and other items down within their midst and strip naked. If they don’t like it they can go someplace else, and if they don’t mind, it might just strike up a conversation wherein I could extol the joys of being a naturist…
Agreed Jacob Drake
Good and helpful article. It helps to be encouraged to go nude with a lot of textiles around.
I don’t think we should let the textiles put us off. I intend to continue to use clothing optional beaches and will strip off and be naked as soon as I arrive on the beach. I would prefer it if the clothing optional beaches became nude only beaches but then this may exclude some textiles from taking the plunge and finding out the sheer joy of becoming a nudist.
We all need to try and encourage friends and family to join us and convert more of the textiles. I’m sure the reason that so many textiles go to clothing optional beaches is because they are desperate to be naked but just lack the confidence to strip off.
Nick & Lins,
Well, I’m finding this blog quite late but I want to add my Thank you for it. This issue has been on my mind for a few years. There are spots on the rivers in N. California which we have lost to the textile crowds. The spots are farther away from parking areas than the textile beaches and harder to get to. They were pioneered by the naturists to avoid conflict with textiles. Then as the textile areas became over-crowded textiles started venturing farther and forced the nudists to move even farther down the rivers. It may be that the textiles actively harassed the nudists or perhaps the nudists just moved on to prevent conflict. I agree with the ‘Stand your Ground’ approach. We need to be willing to share space with textiles without giving up space. My other great concern are the people who call themselves nudists but are in fact looking for sexual activity. As nudists we need to actively discourage public sex.
Hi Karl, interestingly we went to a local nude beach here in Spain with a couple of people who frequent the place a lot. The weather was great and the beach was 100% nude. But it was also mid-December. We’ve been told many stories about how also this beach gets overrun by textiles.
It wasn’t hard to imagine, because the beach has several “disadvantages”. It’s very easy to get to, with lots of parking space only steps away from the beach. The beach is located in a cove which is absolutely stunning. And in summer, there’s even a small beach bar. All factors that tend to attract textiles.
The people who took us there are very active naturists. They designed new signs indicating that it’s a nude beach, they created flyers that explain naturism which they give to the textile visitors, and they try to be as present as possible during the high season, so there are always some naked people around. But it’s a lot of work to fight for just one small nude beach…
Where I live (Bergen, Norway) we have one official naturist beach. When the weather and temperature are decent I go there almost every day. Occasionally it’s frequented by young adults wanting to be separate from the textile beach next to it. I just point to the sign and get naked anyway. It takes me two hours to get to the only official naturist beach in the area, so I’ll strip anyway and let others do what they want.
Live and let live is by far the best mentality!
This issue of textiles taking over nude beaches has happened to a popular nude beach Es Trenc, on Mallorca. We visited this week, September 2021, and the nudist end was 60% textile, 20 topless and 20% if that nude. And the nudes were, like me, in the older age bracket.