I thought I'd throw my tuppence worth into this previously unused sub-forum, since I imagine many casual surfers looking for info may be full of fear and trepidation regarding their first time.
And because my wife and I had our very first experience of naturism in Vera Playa many years ago, perhaps this may help some of you overcome those hurdles.
We always stayed (and stay) at the Vera Club Hotel. Why? It's very gentle as regards first-timers, and the pressure to go nude isn't so acute as it is elsewhere, such as the beach at Arnaoutchot in France, where 'nude police' patrol the entrance and demand total nudity (or at least that you go 'bottomless'). Fine in one respect, it preserves the naturist integrity of the beach, and discourages voyeurs. Frightening, I expect, for first timers.
The VP Club is slightly different. Let me give you an insight.
Your initial experience will be determined by the time of your arrival at the hotel. The first time we encountered it was with a 1030pm arrival, and everyone dressed. Subsequently, we've had daytime arrivals where you check into a lobby in which naked people are wandering by. Each has its pluses and minuses.
I like a night-time arrival, personally, simply because you unpack, go to bed and awake the following morning to a brand new day. Daytime arrivals mean that you're thrust into a day already in full swing, and it could be a little more disconcerting to the first timer.
On our first trip, having gone to bed on a night time arrival, I was despatched from our room the instant we saw an elderly naked man step onto the beach, in order to get 'the lie of the land'. I went out, dressed, onto a corridor before dawn, and found myself going down the stairs behind a woman wrapped in a towel. I was a little relieved to be dressed, since I was unsure of the 'etiquette'. At poolside, she unwrapped the towel and climbed into the pool for that early morning dip. I took my shorts off and did a couple of widths of it myself -my very first public nudity- before returning to our room to get a towel-clad wife who then joined me for a few circuits, before we climbed out and wrapped ourselves in our towels again. Brief, but the ice was broken.
A middle of the day arrival could, theoretically, be more 'terrifying', as everyone is naked, comfortable with it and all going to be looking at
you!!!!. Plus, all the sunbeds will be pretty much taken.
Actually, they aren't all looking at you. But my best advice for first-timers in this situation would be to get comfortable with the idea of nudity in a nominally public arena by merely observing others from your balcony (while you're naked, of course), and easing yourself into the lifestyle at your own pace. Relax with your own nudity (and that of your partner) on the balcony. Even, clothed, take a walk to the supermarket in (textile) Hotel Street, buy a bottle of wine and sip it gently as you familiarise yourself with your surroundings. Don't be afraid to be clothed for a while, even around the pool, just as long as you aren't intending on setting up camp in that Edwardian one piece swimming costume for several hours. A stroll around the pool, clothed, is unlikely to be commented upon, as there is a constant stream of clothed residents making their way to and from the restaurant at breakfast and lunchtime.
After that, it all becomes so much easier, so quickly. That brief swim when few others are around becomes natural. Everyone else is naked, they're sporting one of two basic models of human form, and you've seen it all before. Trust me: the transition from clothes to nudity is exceptionally easy when everyone else is naked.
Do take the time to familiarise yourself with the Zona Naturista (there's an excellent naturist 'site plan' on this very forum. Print it off and walk the streets of the Zona. Day or night you may encounter naturists, and simply walking the area will give you a feel for what's acceptable, what's not (the Consum supermarket is textile, for example), how other people behave. The period from debutant naturist to relaxed naturist is, I guess, about 48 hours. In that time you will have built your own knowledge base of
the world's best naturist beach.Remember: naturism is about the tolerance of others, and you will find that naturists are naturally tolerant of your fears until you find your own comfort zone. If anyone wishes me to comment or discuss any element of first time naturism, please feel free to ask and I shall do my best to 'sell' you the VP concept as best I can.
***
Note: First timers will have a slightly different experience than hotel guests. The
urbanizacions, as they're known, are gated communities. Unlike the VPC Hotel, which reverts to being textile after 800pm, the urbas will be naturist on a 24h basis. And some, as far as I know, have an 'open pool' policy on a 24h basis, so you can swim at midnight, nude, under cover of darkness, if you're a nervous first timer.
There's also likely to be many fewer naturists within these urbas than would be in the hotel, which has an upside and a downside. Downside, it may take longer to observe what others do and follow the etiquette and manners they demonstrate. Upside, fewer other people around may allow you to not feel quite so 'oppressed' when you initially begin your naturist experience.
Each experience, in the hotel or in an urba, brings its own rewards. There's a delight to swimming in the pool of an urbanizacion well after dark, an experience you can't have in the hotel. There's a delight to wandering the grounds as nature intended, near midnight, which you can't do in the hotel.
But for night time nudists, there's the beach and the streets of the ZN where you can enjoy life's simple pleasures.
I hope this gives some of you curious internet surfers a little insight into the first few hours of one of life's true pleasures.
Author