Guide
Clothing-Optional Resorts: The Complete Guide
A clothing-optional resort is a private property, ranging from a small landed club to a resort town with thousands of pitches, where nudity is the property's own established policy rather than a matter of public nudity law. Resorts are the largest category in ClothesSuck's directory by a wide margin, and they vary enormously: family-oriented properties with pools and playgrounds, adults-only social resorts, and everything in between. The single most useful filter when picking one is audience and scale, not just location.
What kinds of clothing-optional resorts are there?
Resorts split broadly into a few recognizable types. Large resort villages, like Euronat on France's Atlantic coast or Cypress Cove in Florida, function almost as self-contained towns with restaurants, entertainment, and thousands of overnight guests at peak season. Mid-size family resorts, common across the US Midwest and South, combine a pool, clubhouse, and camping or RV sites for a more local, member-driven community. Smaller landed clubs, often membership-based, prioritize a quieter, more intimate social scene over resort-scale amenities. Knowing which type you are looking at matters more than the country it is in.
Family-oriented or adults-only — how do I tell the difference?
Every resort listing on ClothesSuck states its audience explicitly, since the difference materially changes what a visit looks like. Family-oriented resorts, like Glen Eden Sun Club in Southern California or Laguna del Sol near Sacramento, welcome children and run programming accordingly. Adults-only resorts restrict access to guests over a stated minimum age and often lean toward a more social, sometimes overtly sexual-adjacent atmosphere; Desert Sun Resort in Palm Springs is a typical example. Neither type is the default — always check a specific listing's audience label before booking, especially if traveling with kids.
Day pass or overnight stay — which should I choose?
Many resorts sell day passes for a lower-commitment first visit, letting you use the pool and grounds without booking accommodation, though not every property offers one — some are members-only or overnight-guest-only. Overnight options range from tent and RV sites at campground-style resorts to hotel-style rooms and rental cottages at full-service properties like Euronat or Camping Naturista El Portús in Spain. A day pass is the lower-risk way to try a resort for the first time where one is available.
Is membership required?
Some resorts are open to any paying guest; others, particularly smaller landed clubs, operate on a membership model where a first visit is arranged as a guest day or an introductory visit before joining. White Tail Resort in Virginia and several of the clubs profiled on ClothesSuck fall into this category. Checking a listing's access model before planning a trip avoids showing up somewhere that turns out to require an application process first.
What about clothing-optional spas and bathhouses?
A small, distinct category sits alongside resorts: standalone spas and bathhouses where clothing is optional, usually in a city rather than a vacation destination. Archimedes Banya in San Francisco and Clover Spa & Hotel in Birmingham, England are coed bathhouse-style venues; Living Waters Spa in Desert Hot Springs, California pairs a clothing-optional soak with the area's mineral hot springs; and Terme Banovci in Slovenia combines a naturist campsite with a thermal spa complex. These are generally day-visit venues rather than multi-night stays, and most are adults-only — check each listing's audience label and current admission policy, since spa hours and inclusion rules can be narrower than a full resort's.
| Resort | Location | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Euronat | Grayan-et-l'Hôpital, France | Very large resort village, family |
| La Jenny | Le Porge, France | Large resort, family |
| Camping Naturista El Portús | Cartagena, Spain | Mid-size resort, family |
| Valalta Naturist Camping | Rovinj, Croatia | Large resort, family |
| Glen Eden Sun Club | Temescal Valley, California, US | Full-service resort, family |
| Laguna del Sol | Wilton, California, US | Full-service resort, family |
| White Tail Resort | Ivor, Virginia, US | Large landed club, family |
What should I bring to a clothing-optional resort for the first time?
A towel to sit on wherever you go (a near-universal etiquette rule), sun protection, a swimsuit for arrival and departure at properties that require it in common areas like the parking lot or office, and a cover-up for meals or off-property errands where policies often shift back to clothed.
Are clothing-optional resorts sexual in nature?
Not by default — the large majority of resorts in this directory, especially family-oriented ones, are explicitly non-sexual social and recreational spaces, and most naturist organizations draw a firm line between nudity and sexual activity. A smaller number of adults-only resorts lean into a more overtly social or sexual atmosphere, which is exactly why the audience label on each listing matters.
Can I visit a clothing-optional resort without a reservation?
It depends on the property. Larger, resort-style properties often accept walk-in day guests, especially outside peak weekends, while smaller or membership-based clubs typically require contacting them in advance to arrange a guest visit. Checking the specific listing's access model and current visitor policy before driving out avoids a wasted trip.
Do clothing-optional resorts require full nudity at all times?
No — the overwhelming majority use a clothing-optional policy, meaning nudity is welcomed but not mandatory, and guests can dress as they like. A much smaller number of properties or specific areas require nudity; ClothesSuck labels these separately as nudity-required rather than clothing-optional.
Are clothing-optional spas the same as clothing-optional resorts?
Not quite — spas are typically a single-building, day-visit venue (a bathhouse, sauna, or thermal pool complex) rather than a multi-night destination with grounds and accommodation. ClothesSuck files them separately for that reason, though a few properties, like Terme Banovci, combine both a spa and a campground on one site.
Related places and events
- Euronat — Grayan-et-l'Hôpital, Nouvelle-Aquitaine (featured)
- La Jenny — Le Porge, Nouvelle-Aquitaine (featured)
- Camping Naturista El Portús — Cartagena, Murcia (featured)
- Valalta Naturist Camping — Rovinj, Istria (featured)
- Glen Eden Sun Club — Temescal Valley, California (featured)
- Laguna del Sol — Wilton, California (featured)
- White Tail Resort — Ivor, Virginia (featured)
- Archimedes Banya — San Francisco, California (spa/bathhouse (folded category))
- Clover Spa & Hotel — Birmingham, England (spa/bathhouse (folded category))
- Living Waters Spa — Desert Hot Springs, California (spa/bathhouse (folded category))
- Terme Banovci naturist camping — Banovci, Prekmurje (spa/bathhouse (folded category))