Naturism in Spain – The Ultimate Guide 2020

El Fonoll – Fonoll
El Fonoll is one of Europe’s most exclusive naturist resorts since it’s situated in a real historical village. Around the resort are about 200 hectares of forest with trails for nude hiking. The accommodation comes in the form of apartments, rooms and cabins. Camping is also possible. El Fonoll has a swimming pool, a farm and several sports options.

Finca Johanna – Iznate
A wonderful southern naturist guesthouse just around the corner of downtown Malaga. Finca Johanna has several themed rooms as well as a rental cottage and Bedouin tent. Guests can enjoy the swimming pool and jacuzzi. There is an option to have breakfast and dinner at Finca Johanna as well. The guest house is about a 20-minute drive from the nearest nude beach.

Spain is well known for its excellent cuisine and the Spanish love to eat. They eat all day long, except probably at the times when you’d like to have your lunch or dinner. Especially in the southern provinces, the Spanish dine late. Very late. It could well be that you find yourself in an empty restaurant at 8 pm and that when you leave around 11 pm the place is packed.

When in Spain, eat like the Spanish and enjoy in-between meals. These are typical mealtimes in Spain:

7am – 9am: Breakfast (desayuno). Often bread, croissants or baked sweets.

10am -11am: Morning snack (almuerzo). Often a coffee with a tostada/sandwich.

1pm – 3pm: Lunch (la comida). This is a very important meal for the Spanish and often includes 2 or three courses and wine or beer.

5pm to 8pm: Afternoon snack (merienda). Often coffee with cake or something else sweet.

8pm – 10pm: Aperitive time (hora del aperitivo). Often tapas.

9pm – … : Dinner (la cena). Often lighter than lunch and may lean more towards snacks than an actual western dinner. Dinner can take until way after midnight.

We’ve already mentioned sweet, tapas and alcoholic drinks but the Spanish kitchen is much more than that. It’s impossible to list all the typical specialties of the country, but during your next holiday in Spain you might want to taste some of the following:

Tortilla: This is head and shoulders the most typical Spanish dish. An omelet made of eggs and potatoes. The Spanish have tortilla for breakfast, lunch, dinner or snack.

Paella: The second typical Spanish dish comes in many different variations. The original version from Valencia is with rabbit and chicken meat but other coastal regions started to add fish and seafood to the plate.

Albondigas: While Sweden is definitely the meatball capital, the Spanish version with spicy tomato sauce is definitely a great dish as well.

Gambas al Ajillo: Especially in the coastal regions, this shrimp dish with garlic oil is very common on the menus. This dish is best if it’s shared if you know what we mean.

Jamón: Spain has numerous great types of ham of which the Serrano and Iberico might be the most popular. A ham plate is a typical tapa but often also dinner as well.

Gazpacho: “Waiter, my soup is cold!”. Never make that mistake when dining in Spain, because this cold tomato soup is one of the country’s most typical dishes.

Rabo de toro: This is another traditional dish, especially in the south of the country. Oxtail is praised for its juicy meat and rich taste.

Mallorquin Tumbet: Meanwhile you may have noticed that the Spanish kitchen doesn’t really favor the vegetarians and vegans. This typical dish from Mallorca, however, uniquely consists of potatoes, peppers, aubergines and olive oil.

Patatas Bravas: Baked potatoes with a spicy sauce. This is the Spanish version of French fries.

Croquetas: Another popular Spanish snack is the croquettes. Typically they are made with breadcrumbs, potatoes, bechamel sauce and any leftover food. Popular fillings are ham, cheese, fish and sausage.

Pan con tomate: The problem with pan con tomate is that nobody believes that just bread with tomato can be tasty. And that’s true. But the Spanish version is much more than that, the mix of salt, olive oil, tomato and toasted bread is just excellent.

Chorizo: The spicy paprika flavored Spanish sausage is eaten in many different ways. You can have it alone or with bread and it’s a common ingredient of many Spanish dishes.

Pulpo a la Gallega: A popular dish in northern Spain. It’s boiled octopus soaked in paprika, salt and olive oil.

Churros con chocolate: These sweets covered in chocolate sauce are probably the best-known desert of Spain and also a popular breakfast.

As you probably already figured out, food is very important for the Spanish. But so are drinks. Lots of Spanish wines have international fame, but the following typical types are definitely worth a try:

Sangria: A sweet red wine with chopped fruits. Often also orange juice or brandy is added.

Cava: A sparkling white wine. This is the Spanish version of Champagne.

Tinto de Verano: A refreshing mix of red wine with lemon soda.

Sherry: A strong sweet wine made of white grapes. Typical for southern Spain.

Another great way to keep your money where it belongs is to be aware of the many scams. This doesn’t mean that you need to start seeing every stranger as a possible danger, just not to trust everybody.

Following scams are particularly popular in Spain:

⚠️ The person who says he/she got robbed and needs money from you to take a bus or train or to make a phone call.

⚠️ The tourist restaurant without prices on the menu. All restaurants need to have their prices on display by law, so don’t be afraid to ask the price for a certain dish before ordering.

⚠️ The pea and cup game. This is a very popular street scam where you have to guess under which cup they have the ball. It looks too easy to be true, that’s because it’s not true. Once you know where the ball is, someone will drag your attention away from the cup (could be someone in the audience) and someone else will move the cup.

⚠️ The fake petition scam. Not only will they ask for a donation but because you’re distracted, they often pick your pockets as well.

⚠️ The lucky gift. These are often old ladies handing out stickers or rosemary. Once you accepted the gift, they ask for a donation. If you don’t donate enough, they’ll make a scene.

⚠️ The fake restaurant voucher. When you receive a voucher for a restaurant, always ask if it’s valid before ordering anything.

⚠️ The taxi fare scam. This is probably the most popular scam around the world. In Spain, all taxis need to have a meter. If they don’t, or it’s broken, take another taxi.

⚠️ The highway pirate. When on the road, another car might signal you to stop because there’s something wrong. Most often, one of the group will have a look with you under the hood while the others are stealing your bags. Always know that if something is actually wrong with your car, more than one other car would signal you.

In the last several months there have been occurrences of protests turning into riots. Especially in Catalonia province. The best advice is to always stay away from protests because you never know when things might turn bad.

Say What?

Every region in Spain has its own dialect and sometimes it hardly sounds like Spanish at all. Don’t worry, even the Spanish have issues understanding those from other regions. Luckily they have one language in common: Castellano. Regular Spanish.

Following words will help you get along:

Hola = Hello

¿Cómo estás? = How are you?

Buenos días = Good day

Buenas tardes = Good afternoon

Buenas noches = Good evening/night

Por favor = Please

Gracias = Thank you

Disculpe = Excuse me

¿Dónde está…? = Where is…?

el baño = the bathroom

la playa nudista = the nude beach

mi toalla = my towel

el bar = the bar

¡Salud! = Cheers!

Adiós = Goodbye