That First Naturist Resort Visit


“At the gate I said to my husband, ‘I really don’t want to be here at all! This is weird and the people here have got to all be a bit odd’. Ten minutes later I found myself going for a walk among the trees and giggling with absolute joy at the feeling of freedom I was experiencing. Nobody was staring. Nobody was behaving any differently to any other holiday venue. Everyone just seemed happier!” – M 

2 February 2018
By "new female member"

Heaven knows, that if you are new to naturism, being naked and exposed in a public setting seems like an incredibly daunting prospect. Most people who have been to a naturist resort will tell you however that almost universally they found that their first social nudity experience was firstly, not nearly as stressful as they had anticipated, and secondly, that they found themselves entirely comfortable within a few minutes of having arrived and taking their cloths off.

For many new naturists this would be their first socially nude experience. They may have been naked at home, naked by their pool, skinny dipped as youths and even naked on a beach, but this is different. This is nudity in a social environment. I think that as naturists we become so matter-of-fact about the human body that it just seems rather silly and childish to find nudity a ‘big deal’. We tend to forget that for many people they have spend so many years making sure they are not seen naked that suddenly revealing that which you have been keeping hidden can be a very big step. There are all sorts of hang-ups that people have developed, not least of which is that being naked is somehow “dirty”; that nudity and sex are inextricably linked; and that if anyone other than a lover or doctor sees you naked then you are mysteriously suddenly a bad person and you should be ashamed of yourself.

Some of the common things people worry about are:
Fear of the unknown – It’s a new place, this is a new culture, the rules are different . How will this all work? Will I fit in? Will I stand out?
Feeling embarrassed or ashamed of their body – My body isn’t perfect. I’m too overweight for this. This part of me is too big / too small / too long / too short / too scarred / too full of stretchmarks etc etc etc.
Feeling like everyone will stare – You can’t shake the feeling that people will act the same way they would if you walked into a fully dressed venue completely naked.
Feeling guilty – You feel like you are doing something wrong.
These are all perfectly “normal’ feelings in terms of all the insecurities modern society has programmed us with; but if you really think about it none of those worries are really ‘legitimate’. They are all in your head. All of it is unnecessary anxiety. The resort will function with very little difference to any other. Certainly the differences will not be bigger that the difference between various textile resorts, with the exception of one or two small additional rules pertaining to cloths wearing and towel carrying. Those rules will very likely all be made clear to you.

Fitting in?
You will never find a more accepting group of people. At best you will bet some welcoming smiles and hellos; at worst you will be ignored. You will find out very quickly that you are not the center of attention, and that you are completely normal among all the other completely normal fat /skinny /tall /short /hairy /bald /long /short /wobbly /old /young /male /female /freckled /scarred /etc. people. Naturists are all just normal people, doing what normal people do at a resort; and now you are one of them!

Don’t worry too much; just do it!

Really. What’s the worst that can happen?

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