Where to Go Naked in Mexico: Zipolite vs Riviera Maya

Some trips begin the moment we drop our bags in the room. This one starts earlier, when we realise that the same suitcase will take us to two very different naked worlds. On one coast, a small Pacific town where the sand is the social network and the sound of the waves never quite rests. On the other, the manicured calm of the Caribbean, where our clothes stay in the wardrobe and staff remember our favourite drink by day two.

We are not just choosing a dot on the map. We are choosing how we want our days to unfold, who we want around us, and how much structure we like in our holidays. Town life or resort bubble, wild Pacific or soft Caribbean, bohemian or polished. There’s no right or wrong here, just a big difference. The beauty is that in Mexico, all of this is possible if you know where to go.

Zipolite sits on the coast of Oaxaca, tucked along the only official nude beach in the country, which runs for about a mile, roughly one and a half kilometres. The western end of the beach feels like the living room of town. This is where you’ll find the highest concentration of naked people, where beach umbrellas and loungers are scattered in a relaxed mess, and where the conversations drift easily from one towel to the next.

Walk east, and the atmosphere slowly quiets down. The crowd thins out, the soundtrack turns from chatter to waves, and the beach feels more open. A path over the hill leads to Playa del Amor, a small cove tucked between rocks. The feeling there is more intimate. In the past, this cove was known to attract people who wanted to get “a little more” out of their naked time, and although this probably still happens now and then, today, Playa del Amor has become a lot more mainstream and less sexually loaded.

The mood in Zipolite is generally very open and very easy-going. You arrive, drop your things, lay a towel on the sand and become part of the scene. People strike up conversations, and it does not take long before you recognise familiar faces from the previous sunset or the café at breakfast.

The Pacific Ocean in Zipolite is beautiful, but it is not a giant swimming pool. The waves can be powerful, and the undercurrent is strong. Even when the surface looks inviting, you’ll feel the pull in your legs as soon as you walk in.

This is not the right place for “hold my beer” moments. The flags on the beach and the presence of lifeguards are not decorations. Pay attention to them and let the locals decide when the sea is in a friendlier mood. Wading up to the knees or thighs often already feels refreshing enough, especially under the midday sun. On days when the waves are bigger, staying shallower is the safer choice.

If swimming long distances is the priority for a holiday, Zipolite might not be the first pick. Or make sure to book a hotel with a swimming pool. If you like watching surfers from the beach, this is an excellent place for that.

One of the joys of Zipolite is how simple and affordable daily life can feel. We slide from the beach into one of the many beach bars or restaurants, knock the sand from our feet and order something without thinking too hard about the budget.

Most places ask to put on at least a wrap, shorts or a dress when you enter. Some are more relaxed and do allow naked customers. If staying nude longer than just on the beach is important to you, it is worth asking before sitting down.

Food and drinks in Zipolite are generally inexpensive compared to big resort areas. The menus move between local Mexican dishes and international standards, which makes it easy to mix tacos with pasta or burgers over the course of a week.

For accommodation, there is a broad range of nude-friendly options. On the beach itself, Buda Mar offers the classic experience of waking up a few steps from the sand, drifting out with a coffee in hand and not needing to think whether you should put something on. A little bit out of town, Casablanca Guesthouse gives more peace and quiet, a short walk from the beach and town, but still close enough to join when we feel social.

These are just two examples. One of the strengths of Zipolite is that it offers many small hotels, guesthouses and rentals that are either clothing-optional or very comfortable with naked guests. It is easy to find a place that fits a modest budget, which makes longer stays realistic.

Zipolite attracts a wide variety of people. We’ve met plenty of solo travellers, couples, groups of friends and a significant LGBTQ presence. Some visitors return every year and stay for a month or more, sliding into a rhythm that feels almost like living there.

Nudity here is free in the truest sense. It is a public nude beach, but you never feel that you have to undress to belong. Many people are naked, some remain partially covered, others walk the beach in shorts or dresses because that is how they feel most comfortable. There is very little pressure in any direction. Everyone does their own thing, and that relaxed attitude spreads quickly.

On the other side of Mexico, the Riviera Maya delivers a completely different kind of clothes-free experience. Cancun and Tulum are household names for mainstream tourism, with enormous numbers of visitors, shopping malls, clubs and all the infrastructure that comes with being global beach destinations.

For naked travellers, the key difference is that the beaches themselves are not officially nude. Instead, your clothes-free time happens inside specific resorts that create a private bubble. Once past the reception desk, that bubble can feel like a different universe.

Hidden Beach Resort is the luxury expression of this concept. It is an all-inclusive hotel, built with the idea that you can arrive, undress and forget about logistics. Meals, drinks, snacks and many activities are included. Everything is paid for up front. Staff circulate around the pool and along the loungers with trays, remembering orders and checking in with a smile. There are organised events and themed evenings for those who like a programme, and plenty of quiet corners for those who prefer to disappear with a book.

Further south, Playa Sonrisa has a very different character. It sits in a remote area, far from the heavy development of Cancun and the big hotel strips. The feeling is off-grid and peaceful, almost like visiting a beach house at the end of the road. The focus is on calm, space and the luxury of hearing more birds than cars.

In Tulum, Intima Resort offers yet another type of base. It is a clothing-optional property in town rather than directly on the sea, with a calm atmosphere and the option to spend most of the day nude around the pool and terraces. Important to note here is that there have been rumours about a rebrand, so it is important to check its current status before planning a stay.

If the Pacific is all drama and strong character, the Caribbean in the Riviera Maya usually feels gentle. The sea is often clear and calm, with warm water that invites long, lazy swims. In many places, we simply walk in and float, with barely a ripple.

If you feel that having a naked morning swim is key to a successful vacation, know that although Hidden Beach Resort has direct access to the sea and skinny dipping is perfectly possible, parts of the coast have been washed away by storms in recent years, and the last time we checked, it became quite rocky.

A better option in that case would be Playa Sonrisa, where you have a large natural beach that looks and feels as Caribbean as can be.

Daily life in a clothes-free resort on the Riviera Maya flows in a very different way from town life in Zipolite. You wake up, stroll to breakfast, and there is no need to put anything on if you do not feel like it. Everything needed is inside the property. The pool, the bar, the beach loungers, the evening entertainment, all of it is a short walk away. These resorts are built with the purpose of not giving their guests any reason to ever leave the property.

Privacy and security are high. Entry is controlled, and the nude spaces are designed so that you can relax without wondering who is watching from the outside. At the same time, the character of each resort sets a very specific tone. Some are more lively and playful, others are more low-key and relaxed. Picking the right property is essential because that vibe will shape almost every moment of our stay.

The financial side of a clothes-free holiday in Mexico varies a lot between the two coasts. Zipolite offers a range of simple rooms, guesthouses and small boutique hotels where the nightly rate often leaves room in the budget for eating out and staying longer. We pay as we go, choosing where to have breakfast, which bar to support for sunset and whether to join friends for dinner or cook something simple at our accommodation.

On the Riviera Maya, the clothes-free experience is mostly centred on higher-priced resorts. Especially in all-inclusive properties, a significant part of the budget is committed before you even arrive. Once there, depending on which resort you’re staying at, you’ll either just have to cover food and drink costs or nothing at all anymore.

Both models have their charm. In Zipolite, we feel integrated into a real town, supporting local businesses directly. On the Riviera Maya, we sink into a more curated version of relaxation, where the work of daily life is outsourced for a while.

Beyond lounging naked in the sun, each side of Mexico adds its own special experiences. Zipolite has become known for its Nudist Festival, an event that pulls in visitors from across the globe and fills the town with even more energy than usual. For many, it is a chance to feel part of a larger nude community, to attend organised activities and to see familiar faces from other clothes-free places around the world.

Recently, the Riviera Maya has answered with something very different: nude excursions. The most popular being a nude exploration of a cenote (an underground lake). Several companies organise clothes-free tours to these freshwater holes hidden in the jungle, where you can swim and float in clear, cool water surrounded by rock walls and vegetation. At Playa Sonrisa, you can also explore the underwater world through naked snorkelling or kayaking.

After experiencing both sides, we stopped thinking in terms of better or worse. Instead, we match each coast to a mood.

When we want a real town, with sandy streets, casual cafés, a popular official nude beach and the chance to bump into the same people all week, Zipolite calls us back. We enjoy the wild character of the Pacific, the sound of the crashing waves, and the cheap margaritas.

When we crave steady comfort and the feeling of being cocooned inside a resort, the Riviera Maya feels ideal. We know that it will cost more, and we know that the experience is more controlled, but there is a lot of pleasure in slipping into that world for a while.