This is a
list of social
nudity places in
North America and
adjacent islands for recreation. Includes free beaches (or
clothing-optional beaches or
nude
beaches) and some resorts.
Canada
These are just the most prominent nude beaches in Canada. For a
more complete listing of free beaches and naturist resorts, visit
Federation of Canadian
Naturists. For general information on the naturist community,
visit
NetNude
portal. For more information on top-freedom (toplessness) in
Canada (and elsewhere), see
Top-Free Equal Rights Association.
British Columbia
- See Pacific Northwest locations listed at Pacific Northwest at Naked Wikia
Ontario
Quebec
New Brunswick
Nunavut
Prince Edward Island
- Blooming Point , Prince Edward Island [396538]
Blooming Point Beach in Prince Edward Island
- Wonderful sandy beach along the northern shores of PEI and just
a short drive from Charlottetown. While not an official nude beach,
it is used regularly by naturists without problems.
- The nude section is about a 15-20 minute walk to the left from
the parking lot.
Jamaica
- Most nudist beaches in Jamaica are private beaches owned by
large resorts. Firefly Beach in Negril
is open to
the public.[396539]
Mexico
- Zipolite
, Oaxaca
: Zipolite
beach has been nudist for more than 30 years. Nudism in
Zipolite is tolerated, since Mexican law condemns only "immorality"
and thus the issue ends up being a matter of the judge's criteria.
This beach is reputed to be the best place for nudism in the
country. The numerous nudists and the long tradition make it safe
for nudists.
- Playa del Carmen
, Quintana
Roo
has a beach in town located near the Cozumel Ferry
terminal that allows topless sunbathing, at least
informally. Some topless sunbathing also occurs at
Tulum
, although not as commonly as in Playa del Carmen,
although there are clothing-optional resorts like this
eco-hotel
.
Netherlands Antilles
- On
Aruba
island, two beaches allow nudity, especially in
late afternoon and dawn:
- Baby Beach near Saint Nicholas.
- Eagle Beach near Oranjestad
.
- Sint Maarten
(Dutch side) and Saint Martin
(French side) have a beach called "Orient
Bay"
- with the famous "Club Orient" facing flat island on the
atlantic side.
- No clothes on beach - in beachbar and hotel is tradition for
more than 30 years now
- Curacao
has a legal nude beach at Sunset Waters Beach
Resort near the west end of the island.
United States
Alabama
Public nudity is illegal in Alabama (No social places)
Alaska
In Alaska, public nudity is illegal; however, the lack of law
enforcement allows many people to get away with it.
Arkansas
Public nudity is illegal in Arkansas (No social places)
Arizona
Public nudity is illegal in Arizona, however Verde Hot Springs
(Springs only not the campground) is traditionally nude. There are
a few clothing optional gay resorts in Phoenix.
California
- American River
down river from the route 49 highway bridge. Biking path is on the
south side of the vehicle bridge, after crossing the old concrete
railroad bridge, several small trails lead down a steep bank to a
series of large rocks outcropping on the river.
- Baker Beach
is a beach of the National Park Service in
San Francisco. The north end of the beach (closest to the
Golden Gate bridge) is officially sanctioned as clothing-optional.
[396540]
- Black's Beach
, in La Jolla
, a neighborhood of San Diego
, is possibly the largest de
facto clothing optional beach in the United States. Part
of the beach is in a state park where it is legal to be nude, the
rest is on city property where it is illegal to be nude but
generally tolerated.
- Marina Beach State Park (South side) — A 15
minute drive north of Monterey, CA. 15 minute hike over the sand
dunes.
- Bonny Doon Beach — About a 10-15 minute drive
from Santa Cruz on N. Highway 1. Across from Bonny Doon Rd. Nude
beach is down the cliff - there are two sections of beach - the
south end is for clothed beachgoers, and the north end, divided
from the main beach by a large rock, is for nude sunbathers.
- College Cove Beach is in the town of Trinidad,
north of Eureka in Northern Humboldt County.
- Deep Creek Hot Springs
— Clothing optional hot spring in the San
Bernardino National Forest
near Apple Valley, California
- Desert Sun
Resort — Formally Desert Shadows Inn. One of the
premier nudist resorts in North America. Located in warm,
sunny Palm
Springs, CA
.
- Garrapata State Park
— Clothing optional beach 15 minutes drive
south of Carmel.
- Devil's
Slide
or Gray Whale Cove is the only
officially-sanctioned nude state-owned beach in California.
Run for years by a private concessionaire who provided the only
access to this remote beach, the State of California took over its
operation in 2001.
- Harbin Hot
Springs is a retreat and workshop center 93.4 miles
(150.3 km) northeast of the San Francisco Bay Area, north of
the Napa Valley, near Middletown, California.
- Keough
Hot Springs — Hot running creek with pools located
near Bishop,
California
. Note: the resort at the end of the road is
not clothing optional.
- Laguna Creek Beach — Public beach frequented
by nude sunbathers six miles (10 km) north of Santa Cruz on
Highway 1.
- Laguna Del Sol —
Clothing optional resort in Wilton, near Sacramento, featuring
camping and RV spots, a lake, heated swimming pools, spas, walking
tracks, stores, restaurant and event center.
- Land's End
— Within the Golden Gate
National Recreation Area
, Land’s End beach is considered the most beautiful
nude beach in the San Francisco area. It is reached only by
a steep, difficult trail.[396541]
- Little Hot
Creek east of Mammoth Lakes, California. To find this
clothing optional hot springs, you'll need a good local map showing
dirt roads.
- Living Waters Spa near Palm
Springs in Desert
Hot Springs, CA
, this swimsuit optional spa has hot spring water pools and the spa is an easy introduction to social nudity.
[396542]
- Lupin Lodge — [396543]
Naturist resort in Los Gatos, CA. Memberships available as well as
day/night passes. Camping available. Just south of Silicon Valley,
off Highway 17 (Idylwild Rd. exit). [396544]
- Pirates Cove near San Luis Obispo, California
[396545]
Colorado
- Mountain Air Ranch Family Nudist Resort, a
family nudist resort near Denver
, Colorado
.
- Orvis
Hot Springs, a clothing-optional natural hot springs in Ridgway
, Colorado.
- North
end of the Boulder Reservoir, near Boulder
Connecticut
- Solair Recreation League is New England
´s oldest nudist camp and has a lake with a beach of its own deep in the woods of
Connecticut
. Motto: "For the young - and young at
heart". The camp is located at 65 Ide Perrin
Road, Woodstock,
Connecticut
06281.
Florida
- Haulover
Beach, at in Miami-Dade County
(between Sunny Isles Beach, Florida
, and Bal Harbour
), the most popular nude beach in North
America. Haulover Nude Beach is situated between the
Intercostal Waterway and the Atlantic Ocean and is part of Haulover
Beach Park. This .4 mile stretch of white sand shores, open ocean
surf, various shaded picnic facilities, beautifully landscaped sand
dunes, and concession stands has attracted as many as 7,000 people
on a single day. The northern nude area is officially recognized as
clothing-optional with official signs and is only a part of the
Haulover Beach Park but attracts 66% to 85% of park visitors.
- Playalinda Beach
, part of Canaveral National Seashore
operated by the Merritt Island National
Wildlife Refuge (US Fish & Wildlife Service) - Titusville, FL;
has long allowed nudity and has an unofficial clothing optional
beach located at the north end of Lot 13 and north of dune
crossover 13B. While there is no federal law restricting
nude sunbathing, Brevard County passed an ordinance against nudity
but the Sherriff is not enforcing it pending a challenge to the
constitutionality of the ordinance.
- Lake
Como Family Nudist Resort in Pasco County,Florida, is one of
Florida's oldest. It is a resident-owned cooperative of almost in a
very natural setting of which are registered as woodland and as
wetland. Five lakes are within or border the property. Lake Como
exemplifies the ideals of the International Naturist Federation that include
"self-respect, respect for others, and for the environment."
Non-resident memberships in the resort are available, and free
tours are available for those interested.
- South Beach in
Miami
permits topless sunbathing, partially due to the
large amount of foreign tourists and immigrants found on the
beach.
- Key West Private Sailing Charters offers 4 hour, 6
hour, snorkeling, SCUBA, sunset and custom overnight sailboat trips
from Key
West
's historic harborwalk (just a few minutes walk from
Duval
Street
) on which nudity is permitted.
- Key
West There are not any legal nude beaches, however Boca
Chica has been used for clothing optional for many years.
Most use is by locals who have kept it secret for years. There are
some sandy beach areas, but do not expect wide sandy beachs, this
is a more secluded area. There are no facilities or anyone to clean
up after you so please remove anything you take! This is just like
having your own beach. Go to mile marker 10 on highway 1, turn
beside Circle K on SR 941, follow it to the end approximately and
park. Walk beyond concrete barricade and you have a stretch all to
your self. You can find additional information at Florida Keys
Naturists
- Apollo Beach
- Canaveral National Seashore (National Park Service) - New Smyrna
Beach, FL in the Atlantic Coast of Florida. Apollo Beach is an
unofficial but traditionally safe area for nude sunbathers with
positive support from the National Park Rangers. No official signs
exist, but the clothing optional sunbathing area starts south of
marker 29, just south of parking area 5. Scarce parking usually
limits visitors to less than a hundred at a time. There is another
Apollo
Beach
in Hillsborough County, Fl that has a very small
beach inside the Tampa Bay and very close to the TECO electric
plant. This is not a naturist beach and violators are
fined.
Hawaii
- Donkey Beach on Kaua‘i
- Kehena Beach (Dolphin Beach) is a black sand
beach in the Puna District of the Island of
Hawai‘i
("Big Island")
- Larsen's Beach on Kaua‘i
- Little Mākena Beach in Mākena State Park, Maui
- Red
Sand Beach near Hāna
on Maui
- Secret Beach on Kaua‘i
- Slaughterhouse Beach in Hana Highway on Maui
- HanginLoose Clothing-Optional Retreat & Botanical Gardens
-- "Big Island"
Idaho
- (TNS and
AANR)
Bare Mountain Hideaway is a substantial nudist
club near Boise,
Idaho
. Started in 1981 and is only open from late
April to mid-October.
- (TNS,
AANR-NW)
Sun Meadows Resort in Worley (at the south end of
Lake Coeur
d'Alene
) was the site of the 2005 TNS
Gathering.
- Jerry Johnson's Hot Springs is located 20
miles west of the Montana state line on US 12. Located in
Clearwater National Park, the warm water pools are about a one mile
hike in and known for the clothing optional atmosphere. Judge your
option according to company present.
Illinois
- Nude
sunbathing and swimming has occurred at Illinois
Beach State Park
, 1.6 km (one mile) south of the park
headquarters building, at the end of the beach.
- Until
1995, nude night swimming occurred at Oak Street Beach
in Chicago
and other beaches on Lake Michigan
, prior to its elimination by police
patrols.
- Blue Lake Resort is a family oriented nudist park located in
Erie, Il, in the Rock River Valley of Northwestern Illinois,
northeast of the Quad City area (Moline, Rock Island and
Davenport). approximately of sunny and shaded areas situated amid
of farm land. The camp facilities are approved by the State of
Illinois each year. [396547]
Indiana
- Drakes Ridge Rustic Nudist Retreat in Bennington
is a rural, wooded setting in the hills of Switzerland
County
, midway between the three major cities of Louisville
, Indianapolis
, and Cincinnati
, and thirteen miles (19 km) north of Vevay
.
- Fern Hill Club in Bloomington
Fern Hills Club is in the center of about of
hardwood forest that the members enjoy by walking the trails or
using their golf carts.
- Lake O' Woods Club in Valparaiso
Lake O' The Woods Club is a member owned, family
oriented, cooperative nudist club that was founded in 1933 and is
located on of woods and features a lake.
- Ponderosa Sun Club in Roselawn
The purpose of this club is to promote health and
happiness for its members. The Ponderosa Sun Club is a
family oriented nudist resort (not clothing optional) located in
rural Roselawn Indiana on about wooded. Ponderosa Sun Club opened
in 1965, the focus of the club's activities is their 65' wide by
120' long swimming pool with concrete sunning apron and a formal
garden.
- Sunshower Country Club in Centerville
Sunshower Country Club is a family nudist resort
established in 1959.
- Sunny Haven Recreation Park in Granger
Sunny Haven Recreation Park, located near South
Bend, Indiana, has been the home to family nude recreation in
northern Indiana since 1947.
Kansas
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Public nudity is illegal in Michigan, so places for social nudity
are limited to clubs and organizations with private land. These
include:
- Turtle Lake Resort in Union City.
- Northaven Resort in Brooklyn
- Cherry Lane Resort in North Adams
Minnesota
The Oakwood Club and Avatan Nudist club (both affiliated with the
American Association for Nude Recreation (AANR) function and hold
land for recreation in the northern suburbs of Minneapolis and
Saint Paul. Both are private clubs.Several other landless clubs
operate in the region.
Mississippi
Although
nudity was technically illegal there, East Ship
Island
, due to its remoteness and the fact that it could
only be reached by chartered boat, was de facto
clothing-optional for Gulf Coast residents that went there.
However, East Ship Island no longer exists. It was very severely
eroded by
Hurricane Katrina, and
disappeared entirely after the passage of
Hurricanes Gustav and
Ike in 2008.
Missouri
Nevada
- Lake Tahoe's Nevada shore includes several clothing-optional
beaches — the best-known is Secret Cove. [396555]
New Hampshire
New Jersey
- Rock Lodge Club
is a family-oriented nudist club on 60 ha (145
acres) of privately-owned land in the Highlands forests of New
Jersey, about 65 km (40 miles) from Manhattan, New
York.
- Gunnison Beach
in Sandy Hook, New Jersey
, a part of the National Park Service's multi-state
Gateway National
Recreation Area, is a clothing-optional beach by custom and is
the largest such beach in the Northeastern United States (there are
several other public beaches on Sandy Hook where nudity is not
tolerated). In 1999, New Jersey
passed a law a bill that prohibits all types of
nudism on state or municipal beaches,
making Gunnison Beach the only legal nude beach in the state, since
it is on federal land not subject to state or municipal
regulations. Gunnison Beach offers dramatic views of lower
Manhattan and the Verrazano Narrows Bridge and is officially
recognized as clothing-optional with permanent park signs and full
lifeguard and police protection. It is the largest
clothing-optional beach on the Atlantic coast of the US, and draws
more than 5,000 visitors per day on most sunny summer
weekends.
- Sunset Beach
on the west, bay side of Cape May
. This is not a sanctioned nudist area (see
previous), but nudity is commonplace here nevertheless.
- Sky Farm Club is a private
cooperative in central New Jersey. Situated on in Somerset County,
Sky Farm have promoted family nudism since 1932.
- Good Land Country Club is
a nudist club in Hackettstown.
New Mexico
New York
Oregon
- See Pacific Northwest locations listed at Pacific Northwest at Naked Wikia.
Ohio
Oklahoma
- Oaklake Trails is a clothing-optional family nudist resort
located between Tulsa and Oklahoma City near the town of Depew,
Oklahoma. At over , Oaklake is one of the largest land-area nudist
resorts in the United States. Amenities include hiking trails, a
fully furnished clubhouse with community kitchen, outdoor pool,
dozens of RV hookups with 30 or 50 amp electric and water, acres of
space for tent camping (some areas with electric hookups), rentable
tents, and a rentable cabin suite. [396556]
Pennsylvania
South Carolina
Texas
Utah
- Diamond Fork Hot Springs, near Spanish
Fork
.
- Topless sunbathing is allowed at the far west end of the Flight
Park State Recreation Area in Draper.
Vermont
Vermont state law does not prohibit public nudity, so nudity is
allowed anywhere that it has not been specifically prohibited.
The city
of Burlington
, for example, has prohibited nudity in public
parks, but nudity is allowed anywhere else in the city.[396559]
Washington
- See Pacific Northwest locations listed at Pacific Northwest at Naked Wikia
Wisconsin
Miscellaneous
There are
two places in the United States with nudist youth camps: Lake Como, Florida and Shangri-La,
Arizona
.
A camp
at White Tail Park, Southampton County,
Virginia
may be discontinued: even though the camps are
strictly non-sexual, in 2004 the commonwealth law of Virginia,
enforced by Attorney General
Jerry W. Kilgore, banned nudist youth camps unless a
parent, grandparent, or legal guardian is present, citing dangers
from sexual predators.
[396563] The
ACLU, the
park, three boys (ages 11, 15, and 17), two girls (10 and 12), and
their parents (three couples) challenged the new law on
June 29,
2004, arguing that it
violates the constitutional right to privacy.
On a brighter note, while it could be argued that social nudism is
still somewhat taboo with mainstream America and sadly with many
overprotective families of those under 18, it is a far different
story where college students and recent graduates are concerned. In
reality the lifestyle is popular with a small, dedicated segment of
the young people in this age group, some of whom travel from clubs
to beaches. A Baltimore, Maryland travel club,
Maryland ARea Naturist Association currently the only
nudist club in populous Baltimore County and City, promotes Nudism
in a positive light and sends delegations to annual regional events
that promote public nudity in a positive, inoffensive light such
the Naked Baltimore photo shoot, World Naked Bike Ride, and the No
Pants Metro Ride the latter two both through nearby Washington, DC,
and prides itself on outreach to College Students and Grads from
the outstanding higher learning institutions of Baltimore that
heavily populate each event. In June and July of 2009, the club
proudly hosts its first outdoor event and first organized Nudist
event in Baltimore City with the Guinness World Record AANR Skinny
Dip on July 11th.
http://www.marylandnudism.com/
See also
References
- resort web site
- resort web site
- [1]Philip Sherwell in "Nudists in call to youth
as membership sags", Telegraph 2007-10-06
- Official website
- New York Times Playalinda Beach Journal
-
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/23/science/23islands.html?no_interstitial
- ACLU Challenges Va. Law Banning Nude Summer
Camps
and the north arm of the Fraser River, it is part of Pacific Spirit
Regional Park
, which is adjacent to the University
Endowment Lands
, just west of the city limits of Vancouver
.
, 2006 political wrangling has fallen in
favour of allowing nude sunbathing at Crescent Rock Beach.
is a nude beach used mainly by locals.
Camping is also common there.
at is a sandy Clothing optional beach.
[396535] [396536] (Oka
National Park - known locally as Okapulco), at is about
40 km from Montreal
in Quebec
.
, Quintana
Roo
north of Puerto Vallarta
,Jalisco
and just north of Bucerias,Nayarit
Warm Springs — Hot springs in Death Valley
National Park
Peninsula in Los Angeles County, between Abalone
Cove and Portuguese Cove.
is 55 kilometres (34 miles) northwest of
this beach (near San Clemente
).
).
.
- Unofficial clothing-optional "hidden
beach" within Moss Landing.
and
Prairie Haven in Scranton
.
.
: Public nudity is
unofficially tolerated in the area between Miacomet Beach and Surfside Beach.[396549]
:
in contains an area where public nudity is
unofficially tolerated.[396550][396551] (Both the area and the beach are often
called "Gay Head".)
contains an area where public nudity is
permitted.[396552]
: Public nudity has at times been tolerated on
the beaches around Provincetown, especially in the small area that
is not part of the Cape Cod National Seashore
.[396554]
.
and Show Me Acres in Stover
, New
Mexico
. A family-friendly unique mountain spa
resort with clothing-optional unisex areas with hot tub, sauna,
cold plunge, and suntanning deck.
, NY, a part of the National Park Service is just east of
Robert Moses State Park on
the barrier island known as Fire Island
separating the main part of Long Island
from Fire
Island
between them. Clothing-optional by custom,
this beach has been so for over 30 years.
along the Columbia
River.
on Sauvie
Island
near Portland
.
.
has a clothing-optional policy for all hot springs
pools and tubs.
on the Willamette
River
northwest of Austin
.
, between Winnie and Rollover Pass. At the
junction of Highway 127 and Highway 87, the portion of Highway 87
to the east has been closed since 1990 due to hurricane damage.
Approximately 1–5 miles east of the junction is an area that has
become an unofficial nude beach. Galveston
County
follows Texas
state law
for Indecent exposure, which
allows women to remain topfree unless
someone complains and they are instructed to cover up, and full
nudity under certain non-sexual circumstances. There is also an
unofficial nude beach approximately north of South
Padre Island
.
.
. [396560]
just off
of St.
Albans
. [396562]
in the town of Westmore
is a traditionally clothing-optional beach area
located on state land. The Westmore selectboard has declined
to enact any anti-nudity ordinance. At the annual town meeting in
2009, residents voted against an appropriation that would have
enabled enforcement of any proposed anti-nudity ordinance. Thus,
the beach remains clothing-optional.
.
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