Many people have questions about naturism and have no idea where to go with them… Well, look no further, we’ll do our very best to answer them.
In this Q&A you can find our answers to some common questions, but if you’re wondering something completely different, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us via the contact form . We’ll certainly try to give you an answer and if we think it may be interesting for others too, we’ll add it to this Q&A. Maybe we’ll even write a blog post about it.
But first check out here:
Contents
Q: Is it always mandatory to be naked on a naturist location?
A: Our main answer would be “No”, but actually this depends a bit on the place where you’re going.
Most saunas for example do have a no clothing policy. The main reason for this is hygiene, because clothes tend to absorb much more dirt, dust and sweat than the human body.
If you don’t like to be naked, then go to a sauna where clothes are allowed.
Naturist campings and beaches are different. Often they even call themselves “clothing optional”. Although it may seem that this means that there are both naked and dressed people, that’s not the case. People who don’t undress will often receive disapproving looks, especially men.
There are several “legal” reasons why some are not naked though. For example when it’s chilly outside many people will keep at least some of their clothes on. For women who are having their period it’s completely normal that they are wearing pants. And also from adolescents it’s most of the time accepted that they keep some clothes on, they already struggle enough with uncertainty about their body.
Q: What if you get excited?
A: For women that’s no big problem, as long as nobody sees the greedy look in your eyes, you’re fine.
But for men…
I think this is one of the fears any beginning male naturist faces. What if things start to move up down there?
Every experienced naturist will tell you not to worry about that. They say things like “don’t worry, there’s nothing sexual” and “you’ll find it perfectly normal that everyone is naked”, and you believe that. But still it didn’t answer your question.
What if it DOES happen?
Well, it (luckily) has never happened to me (yet… knock on wood), but I think you have two options.
You can hide, and frankly that’s also my backup plan. If you’re laying down, turn around an lay on your stomach. If you’re close to a swimming pool, get in there. Or otherwise run to the toilets, the tent, the car or any place else where you can hide until it goes away.
The second option is for the really brave.
Just ignore it. Act as if nothing is happening at all and continue what you were doing.
As a matter of fact, naturism is about nature and being natural and getting excited is natural so why should you hide it?
I did see a guy once who got an erection while he was talking to a woman and they just kept talking. They were in different chairs and I’m sure she must have noticed it. Yet they both ignored it completely. Lots of respect for that guy, but I think I’ll stick with option number one.
Q: Do you need to be member of a naturist organization?
A: This depends on where you want to go.
For naturist beaches and saunas there is no membership required. Everyone can just go there and enjoy the place.
For naturist campings and day recreation sites it depends from place to place. With the upcoming of “occasional naturists” there are already many places that accept visitors without membership of a naturist organization, especially couples and single women. For single men it can be more difficult to be accepted.
If you’re not sure, it’s always better to check first.
Being a member of an organization can have some advantages: You’ll often get discounts, you will rarely be refused and you will be invited to activities where it’s easier to meet people than on the random naturist beach.
On the other hand there’s a yearly membership fee which can be a bit expensive if you’ll only use it once or twice a year.
Q: Is it okay to visit a naturist site with children?
A: This question can mean two different things…
Will it be okay for the other naturists? Most of the time, yes. Naturists in general are family minded and appreciate the presence of children. But they also appreciate their peace and silence so don’t bring the whole class for a birthday party.
Some sites, mostly resorts, may be marked adults only though.
Will it be safe for the children? Pedophilia is everywhere these days so your concerns are well understood. To many it may seem that a naturist site is the idea of paradise for a pedophile but that’s not true. There is a lot of social control among naturists (much more than on an average playground) and someone who’s focusing too much on your children will soon be spotted and removed from the site.
Q: Is the first time awkward?
A: Yes. But every first time is a bit awkward no?
Especially because there’s no manual on how to act… When do you take off your clothes? When do you put them on again? Can you look at others? How to act if someone looks at you? Many questions for the first timer. One of the reasons why we’ve started this website is to show you that it’s totally fine to be a bit uncertain and that everyone makes mistakes in the beginning. You’re certainly not the first person who undresses as soon as they enter the site because “they have to” and afterwards notice that everyone else keeps their clothes on while setting up the tent…
But still there will be some things for which we can’t prepare you.
The first morning when you wake up, you stick your head out of the tent and you stare right into neighbour Emma’s ass while she’s doing one of her yoga poses and neighbour Bill waves at you and little Bill is waving along… What can I say? It’s not your regular morning…
Q: Are there any rules for naturists?
A: In the past there were many. Next to no meat, alcohol or tobacco and the love for nature you also had to be member of a naturist association and be approved by all the other members. This could take ages.
Currently the rules are much more unspoken, they became etiquette. But they’re still there. Here are the most important ones:
- Respect other people’s peace and quiet. Don’t run or yell (except when there’s a fire)
- Respect other people’s boundaries. On a “textile” beach for example it can be normal to lay down within centimetres of someone you don’t know. On a nude beach you don’t really do that. Unless you’re invited.
- No public intimacies. Neither undesired nor desired.
- No nudity outside of the site. If a tennis ball flies over the fence, put on some pants!
- No photographs without permission. Nobody wants to end up in all their glory on your Instagram. On many sites also smart phones and tablets are forbidden for this reason. You have no idea how liberating that is…
- Respect the site. if you carried it in, you must carry it back out.
Q: Will I end up naked on the internet?
A: Many beginning nudists are asking this question. And of course they’re right. Being seen naked by other naked people at a naked place is one thing, being shown with your bare ass on the internet is something totally different.
Well, first of all, about 99,9% of the other visitors have no interest at all in taking your picture. And for the other 0,1%… On most private sites like saunas, campings or resorts you’ll be safe. They often have security or the staff keeps an eye out for people too interested in other people.
On nudist beaches or big campings there is no security… You think… Among nudists there’s a huge social security. People watch out for each other. If someone is pointing a cell phone too much in your direction, people will notice, and let you know.
So is it possible? Well unfortunately yes, but chances are too small to care about.
Q: How do I get used to being naked?
A: For many people it sounds incredibly scary to go naked in front of others for the first time. Even if you’ve only tried it once or twice it may still feel quite intimidating.
It’s important to get used to being naked privately first. Spend some naked time at home, alone or with your partner, so you get used to the feeling. Pass by a mirror a couple of times and see how beautifully natural you look.
For your first time look for a quiet beach (or any other naturist site) or go during a weekday when there are not too many others. Try to find a quiet place to undress. The idea of being looked at while undressing is way worse than the idea that others see you naked.
Don’t be scared to look around (but don’t stare), you’ll see that most of the others don’t even notice you (except the ones who’ve been reading this FAQ and are also looking around).
Some people feel better on a nude beach when they can take their clothes off bit by bit. First spend some time in bikini, then take off the top and when you’re ready take off the bottom. However, others will say that the longer you wait with taking off that last piece of textile, the more difficult it will get. So do whatever feels good to you.
Q: Am I beautiful enough to go naked?
A: The definition of “beautiful” is often based on what media and fashion tell us. That can be quite annoying because they keep changing their opinions. One year being skinny is considered beautiful, the year after you’re supposed to have some more flesh here and there.
The definition of “beautiful” is also depending on the culture. In several cultures it’s considered beautiful to have quite some fat, because that means that you’re living a full life (and have enough money to pay for it).
Another example: In Brazil women are considered beautiful when they have nice shapes, this means full breasts and a full behind. For Brazilian women it’s quite common to have silicon implants in their butt to make it rounder.
It is not possible to create a general definition of beautiful because it all depends on taste. And every human has a different taste. What one person adores may someone else dislike. And that’s the exact philosophy that naturists try to spread: Every body is unique, so every body is beautiful.
Long story short: Yes, you are beautiful enough!
Q: What is indecent behavior?
A: It’s on the rule list of every nudist place: “No indecent behavior”. But what do they mean with that exactly? Where do you draw the line?
Unfortunately there’s no comprehensive answer to this question and there is a bit of a gray zone. The best tip we can give you if you’re new to a place is to hold back for a while and observe what the others do. Don’t try to see how far you can go or you’ll most likely get kicked out at some point.
Here’s an overview of what’s commonly understood by indecent behaviour:
Unfortunately there’s no comprehensive answer to this question and there is a bit of a gray zone. The best tip we can give you if you’re new to a place is to hold back for a while and observe what the others do. Don’t try to see how far you can go or you’ll most likely get kicked out at some point.
Here’s an overview of what’s commonly understood by indecent behaviour:
- Suggestive language: Don’t talk dirty to people and don’t try to turn conversations into something sexual. Don’t make any remarks (positive or negative) about other people’s genitals. You can call your partner “baby” or “stud”, but don’t call others that, except when you know them well enough to know that they won’t take offence.
- Suggestive dancing: This is a difficult one, because dancing often requires a certain amount of moving and touching. When you’re dancing with a partner, don’t touch any genitals and don’t push yours against the other. And don’t get too close. When you’re dancing on your own, watch your moves. The Brazilian Funky dance may not be the right dance for a nudist place.
- Suggestive poses: All nudists have been in some kind of “compromising” pose a million times. If something fell, you have to bend over, and from time to time you find yourself on your knees with your butt in the air trying to recover that fallen euro. Nothing wrong with that. But don’t make these poses in order to attract attention, and believe us, people do see the difference. For women this mostly means that you try to limit the angle between your legs and for men this often comes down to hide your erection.
- Suggestive accessories: This one is really dependent from one place to another. Some places will restrict the usage of piercings because they are considered suggestive, something for swingers. A quite old fashion idea if you ask us, but we don’t make the rules. Also tattoos with explicit nudity are often forbidden and also, on a c/o place, sexy lingerie is something not done.
- Suggestive touching: For singles, don’t play with yourself. Period. For couples it’s a bit more difficult. Holding hands or other signs of affection, even a quick smack on the ass are no problem. Intensive cuddling might be a bit more of an issue. Most of the time, if someone yells “Get a room!”, you’re going too far. But sometimes touching is necessary, if your girlfriend asked you to wipe sun cream into her body, you will have to touch her breasts and behind or she’ll get a terrible burn. Those things are accepted as long as you don’t turn it into an hour long massage.
Q: Do I have to undress in front of of everybody?
A: Many people, especially women, who feel comfortably naked in public, still struggle with the idea of being looked at while they are undressing. Some feel like they’re in the middle of a striptease show, others fear that they will accidentally strike some compromising poses and others don’t like the idea that while they’re undressing they won’t have a view on what’s happening around them.
Even though many nudists do get undressed in front of everyone else, the answer to this question is of course: No. There’s no problem with undressing privately. Many clubs will have locker rooms and if they don’t you could also undress in the toilet. On beaches it’s a different story, there you might have to search for a good dune or a remote part of the nude beach.
A golden tip: If you’re not sure whether you’ll be able to undress privately, put on something comfortable while you’re still in the car, a beach dress for example which you can easily slip off when you arrived on site.
Also, the concerns about getting naked in company often disappear with experience.
A golden tip: If you’re not sure whether you’ll be able to undress privately, put on something comfortable while you’re still in the car, a beach dress for example which you can easily slip off when you arrived on site.
Also, the concerns about getting naked in company often disappear with experience.
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