What Naturist Campsites in Sweden are Really Like

“Naturist clubs” don’t always have such a great reputation among naked travellers. They are often seen as a synonym for complicated booking experiences, tedious registration procedures, endless lists of rules, crappy websites, and facilities that haven’t been updated since the last century.

There are exceptions, obviously, but in this age of commercial naturist centres, many travellers just go for certainty and avoid the clubs altogether. We’re not any different. Of all the naturist places we’ve talked about on this website, very few are clubs.

But that number is going up right now. Sweden doesn’t have any commercial naturist venues, only nine clubs, and we visited four of them to figure out whether the clichés of the naturist club also stand in the very north of Europe.

Our first stop, Solhejdans naturist campsite, already gave us a lot of hope. Their website functions well, has up-to-date information, and is available in 4 languages (Swedish, English, German, and Dutch). It was even possible to make a booking online.

At the other three campsites we visited, NF Snapphanen, Paradiset, and Vikbolandets, the online experience is a bit less fancy. All three have information in different languages, but the texts are just all spread over the long pages. So you need to scroll until you see words you can actually understand. But in the end, all information is there and is accurate. Neither of these has an online booking system either, so your best bet is to either call or just show up and hope for the best.

The registration procedure at all four was very straightforward. You fill out some details on a form, and you’re shown a selection of available camping pitches. Something we liked a lot was that at all four clubs we received a tour of the grounds, were shown where the facilities are, and where we could camp. It’s a personal touch which totally disappeared in commercial places where they just hand you a map, and you can figure out everything yourself.

At the end of our stay, at Solhejdans, NF Snapphanen, and Vikbolandets, it was possible to pay by card. Paradiset didn’t have a card machine but gave the possibility to wire transfer. Cash wasn’t a necessity in either campsite. In fact, throughout the 3 weeks when we were in Sweden, we never owned a single Krona.

Not one of the four campsites greeted us with a list of rules, a rundown of what naturism is, or a charter to sign, and we really appreciated that. We understand that some places would rather be safe than sorry, or that their rules grew out of past experiences, but we enjoy being treated as normal people with common sense and decent judgement.

If there were any rules, it was mostly the basics like “don’t photograph people without consent” and “always sit on something”. But mostly, it was practicalities about what should and shouldn’t go down the toilet and which garbage should be recycled where.

One exception was at campsite Solhejdans, which had a clothes-mandatory policy at the communal barbecue and during parties in the tent. We regret not asking about this when we had the chance, because these two spots are typically the social places of the campsite. If you know the reason for this, please tell us in the comments.

To European standards, all four of these campsites belong to the “small” category with a maximum of fifty camping pitches and fewer than five rentals. So you cannot expect a huge number of facilities. Both NF Snapphanen and Paradiset are right next to a lake, so that’s the place where you go for a swim. Solhejdans and Vikbolandets have a heated pool for this.

Sports facilities are rare, but that’s not a surprise. Unlike in other parts of Europe where you can’t really call a place a naturist campsite if they don’t have a petanque court, or in the USA where a pickleball court is more or less considered mandatory, in Sweden, the national naturist sport is a game called Kubb. You don’t need an actual court for this, just a flat area of a few square meters, so it can be played anywhere.

All four campsites have naked hiking options. At NF Snapphanen, Vikbolandets, and Paradiset, these take you into the surrounding forest. We weren’t big fans of naked hiking in Sweden because of the variety of insects that show great interest in naked human bodies, but the trails are there if you want them. The hiking at Solhejdans really stands out because you can wade through a knee-deep lake and end up on one of the most beautiful nude beaches we’ve seen in northern Europe.

When it comes to showers and toilets, they typically are basic. No modern heated sanitary blocks here, but those would ruin the natural setting anyway. What’s more important is that we always found them spotlessly clean. We often wondered whether we were the only guests who actually used them.

And then, there is the barbecue and sauna…

Days at naturist clubs in Sweden quickly start feeling familiar, and we found the same vibe at every campsite. Daytime is for yourself or friends. People relax, have a swim or a drink, read a book, or play Kubb.

The real social element starts at 6 PM sharp, when the communal barbecue is ready. You can see people from all over the campsite wander towards the barbecue area with bags of food and drinks. Basically, they light a large fire with a huge grill on top of it, and everyone just cooks their own food and eats it together. It’s also quite common that the Swedish guests will start singing songs after dinner.

While everyone is eating, someone lights up the sauna (or “bastu” in Swedish), so by the time you’re full, you can go sweat it all out again. What makes saunas in Sweden different from any other country we’ve been to is that here, this too is a very social place. People are talking and laughing the whole time, and it’s not uncommon to see people bring alcoholic drinks into the sauna. It seemed awkward to us at first, but in a country where liquor licenses are hard to get and evenings easily get cold, the sauna is a great alternative to a campsite bar.

Sweden is definitely not a popular naturist vacation destination, and unless global warming runs completely out of hand, it probably won’t be any time soon. If you want to spend a week or two in the nude under a bright sun, Sweden doesn’t have the guaranteed climate for that which you find in southern Europe.

But if visiting Sweden is on your bucket list, and you like staying at places where clothes are not necessary, these four clubs together with five others that we didn’t visit this time are definitely an option. They are a great way to meet some people and get a glimpse of the local culture. And you’ll have stories to tell about drinking beers in the sauna that most other visitors to Sweden don’t have.