Nudist Resorts Offer Unique Experiences

A little secret. Experienced nudist travelers know that every nudist resort is different. Each destination has its own character, culture and charm and the variety keeps nudist travel fun.

Here's some unique features of popular destinations:

· California’s Desert Shadows Inn has a nude pedestrian bridge called the 'Bridge of Thighs’ that goes over a public road and connects two sections of the resort.

· Avalon in West Virginia has a four seasons indoor aquatic health and fitness center with a heated pool, two spas, and a sauna. This makes for a unique winter weekend getaway for anyone in the Washington, D.C. area.

· Members at Paradise Lakes Resort near Tampa, Florida formed the world’s first nudist Lions Club and have raised tens of thousands of dollars to help those in need.

· Also near Tampa, Caliente Resort offers Chinese Aerobics classes, Yoga classes and meditation sessions. For the football fan, Caliente’s sports bar is packed on Sundays while NFL games play on the big screen TVs.

· At the rustic and remote Berkshire Vista, visitors view the surrounding Berkshires, a tree-covered mountain range in western Massachusetts, while swimming in the large pool or sitting in one of the two whirlpools.

· Cypress Cove Nudist Resort in Kissimmee, Florida is host to the American Nudist Research Library – probably the world’s largest nudist literature collection with books, magazines and nudist lifestyle movies.

There are many, many more destinations throughout the United States and more abroad. Try one out.

Inform Your Partner with 3 Free Nudist Lifestyle Gifts

You have a relationship challenge. Your wife, husband, boyfriend or girlfriend does not have the same feelings about nudism as you do. This causes conflict. You want your lifestyle to be accepted and you want your partner to be a part of it. What to do? What to do?

You are not alone. This is a common challenge. American culture, conservative organizations and popular media have created a lot of false stereotypes about the nudist lifestyle. There may be an answer.

Ask your partner to at least hear the other side of the story from people who know nudism well. If your partner agrees, Nudist Travel Guide Blog has compiled a list of 3 free gifts to introduce your partner to the nudist lifestyle.

1. First, introduce the topic. “Honey, look what I found on Wikipedia.” Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia, provides an extensive, fact-oriented definition about naturism: "The terms naturism, nudism and social nudity are generally defined as the practice of going nude, especially in a mixed social setting. The terms naturism and nudism generally also mean that the activities are done in non-sexualized, family-friendly contexts." Visit Wikipedia Naturism definition and print it out and have your partner read it.

2. Second, give your partner a printout out of the free classic “205 Arguments and Observations In Support of Naturism”compiled by K. Bacher. Part of the Bacher’s introduction spells out the document's importance: “More than ever, Naturists need powerful arguments to defend their chosen lifestyle against those who cannot see beyond their own misconceptions and preconceived notions. We need evidence and testimony to encourage others to give Naturism a try.” Bacher understands exactly. Download the free“205 arguments”PDF. This comes from The Naturist Society (TNS), one of the leading naturist organizations who's slogan is "Body Acceptance is the Idea, Nude Recreation is the Way."

3. Third, give your partner a free MP3 file about nudism that he or she can play on the computer or MP3 player or iPod. This free MP3 is a 30-minute audio compilation of stories told by experienced naturists. This will help your partner learn what nudism is really about. Hearing the voices of other people really helps create an understanding. It is put out by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation show Street Stories. Directly download 30-Minute MP3 file (14 MB).

I hope these tools are educational to your partner. You may even learn a few things too.

Daring to Eat Bare: Naked Restaurants in Nudist Village Reviewed

The Nudist Travel Guide Blog introduced the Naked Must Do List series to provide a resource about Cap d’Agde Naturist Quarter in France, the world's largest naturist village. In this post, Part 3 of the Naked Must Do List, the restaurant options will be further explored (see last post for an introduction to nude dining).

Lunch is the best time for nude dining as this is when most people are nude throughout the Naturist Village. In the evening, more people wear some sort of cover-up.

So let’s say that all you have is a towel on which to sit and you are ready to head for a restaurant. Where to go? The restaurants in the Cap d’Agde’s Naturist Quarter are located mostly in the 4 commercial complexes adjacent to the residential complexes (see picture).

Heliopolis, the large and distinguished circular building seen in the aerial photo of Cap d’Agde, has a complex of shops and restaurants in the center and a few more beachside. Le Lagon Bleu and Le Pointu offer French cuisine. L’Espadon and La Villa Romaine (clothing required) serve fine seafood selections. There’s the Pizzeria Le Ghymnos, an Italian style restaurant/grill, or for Creole-style fair, try La Case Creole.

The beachfront terrace restaurant Le Buvette de Marseillan is a short walk up the beach from the Heliopolis complex and has a great view.

Port Nature is the large, long holiday apartment building and has two restaurant areas: one on the beach and the other inland at the other end of the building. On the beachfront side of Port Nature can be found a few good restaurants. The Mississippi (Le Mississippi) is one of them. They have several types of savory crepes filled with hams and seafood and topped with assorted cheeses.

The inland side of Port Nature has restaurants that seem more focused on the nighttime bar and club scene catering to the more erotic-oriented vacationer than the typical naturist. During the daytime, it is a quiet area.

The semi-circular Port Ambonne complex is north of Port Nature and has a few restaurants in it too including the seafood restaurant La Poissonnerie Chez Maxime and La Bleue. There are also a few restaurants in the small complex across the street, next to the Port Soleil building.

The focus of this article has been the Naturist Quarter, but it would be a shame not to mention other great places to eat nearby. Though clothes are required, the trade-off for higher quality food may be worthwhile.

For more distinguished eating and scenery, the restaurants lining the canal of the fishing village of Sète are about a 30-minute drive from the Naturist Quarter. Restaurants here are known for their fresh seafood dishes and the atmosphere here is unique and should not be missed.

Even a 15-minute drive will get you to the “Centre Port” harbor area of the clothed town of Cap d’Agde. Though somewhat touristy, there is a nice promenade where you can take a strong along the harbor and pick from a large selection of eateries.

Whether eating in the Naturist Quarter or outside of it, some restaurants have French only menus. Before visiting, studying the French language a little is recommended or at least bring a travel dictionary.

Naked Must Do List for World's Largest Naturist Village Part 2: Dining Out

The Nudist Travel Guide Blog introduced the Naked 'Must Do' List series to provide a resource about Cap d’Agde Naturist Quarter in France, the world's largest naturist village.

The Naked Must Do List series explores the best activities Cap d’Agde vacationers can enjoy without clothes. Part 1 talked about nude grocery shopping. In this Part 2 of the Naked Must Do List, the essential activity of dining out au natural is the focus.

Dining while nude is a liberating and fun experience in the Naturist Quarter. There are 30 or 40 different places to dine during the main tourist season from May to October.

The Nudist Travel Guide Blog author has eaten at a handful of the inexpensive, outdoor terrace-style restaurants in the Naturist Quarter - a return trip will be necessary to try the other restaurants. All restaurants so far were enjoyable and being naked made for a unique dining experience hard to duplicate anywhere else in the world.

Clothing is OK too. People tend to wear some form of covering in the evening and at least one fancy restaurant even requires patrons to wear nice clothing.

Even on the beachfront terrace cafes during a hot summer day, some of the patrons will wear clothing. Maybe they just prefer to be nude on the beach or maybe they are novices. At Cap d’Agde, it doesn’t matter if you wear nothing at all or dress like an Eskimo. Everybody blends in and it is a very tolerant culture.

In his more sexually-focused than naturist-focused book on Cap d’Agde, “The Naked Truth about Cap d’Agde”, Ross Velton briefly discusses restaurants and makes the point that Cap d’Agde “lacks the consistently fine dining opportunities found elsewhere in the country” and also says that non-fussy eaters will have no problem with the selection of foods. His opinion seems correct.

There are no 5 star gourmet restaurants in the Naturist Quarter but the selection of foods is vast and varied enough to keep everyone happy.

On many of the menus can be found dishes like mussels with Roquefort, grilled shellfish, shrimp, squid and octopus, goat and sheep cheeses, fish soups, and beef dishes. Some menus include Italian pizza and pasta dishes while other include more exotic dishes.

So bring your towel to sit on and head for one of the commercial areas in the Naturist Quarter for a selection of restaurants to be discussed in Part 3.

Have you dined at Cap d’Agde? What was your experience? Comments welcome.

Curious About Nudist Travel? Take the "30 Minutes of Nudist Audio Challenge"

What is being without clothing at a nudist resort is really like? What is the true naturist experience?

Take the Nudist Travel Guide Blog's "30 Minutes of Nudist Audio Challenge."   The challenge is to listen to 30 minutes of real life stories as told by naturists of all ages and learn what nudism is really about.  This challenge will provide participants with a more accurate understanding of naturism and help dispel myths and misconceptions.

The 30-minute audio piece was created by ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) Radio National's Street Stories - the same quality as NPR (National Public Radio) in the United States.  Great job by Kevin Klehr of Street Stories!

Here's part of the description from the Street Stories website:

"In this program producer Kevin Klehr goes 'Swimming with Nudists' and invites listeners to grab a towel and learn about the extraordinary rules nudists must abide by in their quest to feel free. Whether nude bushwalking, playing frisbee or attending an inner-city dinner party, you must never forget the Code of the Nudist."

This insightful, high-quality audio collage of naturist stories is an essential listen for anyone curious about the nudist travel experience:  Listen to the 'Swimming with Nudists' audio MP3 file here (ABC Radio National's website)

After listening to the audio, listeners should reflect on it.  If what the naturists in the audio are saying is try, is nude recreation worth a try?