brennynp

We are thinking of visiting Croatia next summer with my 3 teenagers. Are there any non-clothing optional beaches? It seems like Croatia attracts alot of natural beachgoers and I know my teens would not be comfortable with this. I know Croatia is very popular with Europeans for summer vacation and am wondering if we Americans will feel totally out of place.

lobo_mau

Why do you think your teens wouldn't be confortable? I'm sure it will be quite a revealing experience for them.

lobo_mau

Poor choice of words. May be unvealing is more appropriate.

degas

Sounds like my kinda country!

elina

For some reason there have always been many nude beaches in Croatia, already in 1960s and 1970s when it first became a popular holiday country. But of course there are also "normal" beaches, where women may or may not be topless. But I donīt suppose you meant that even topless would me you feel out of place?

hunnym

I was 17 and my brother 15 when we visited Croatia one summer with our parents. That was our first experience with a beach where a small percentage of women went topless. I think my folks joked about it, but that was that. After the initial novelty/shock/whatever passes, it's really no big deal. Just a human body!

Not to diminish your discomfort, but should you see some beach nudity, rest assured your teens will probably not be scarred for life by the experience. We saw so many magazines on newsstands in Zagreb and elsewhere with topless women on the cover - before we even got to a beach - that I'm sure my parents just figured it was not worth the effort to shelter us from something that was impossible to get away from.

All that said, I'm sorry I don't have any specific beach info for you, but I'm sure others do! Also - there are so many Americans going to Croatia now I don't think you'll feel out of place at all.

GSteed

naive...I expect the teenagers will be more comfortable than the parents. Almost nudity is a part or non-part of current teenage attire. don't like the play? leave! Croatia is a wonderful place to visit. Don't miss your chance because of a minor glitch.

wally34949

I was in Barcelona this past summer and I noticed that a lot of the American kids felt uncomfortable on the nude beach. They walked up and down the beach with their baggy shorts on shaking their heads. It's not the nudity but the first time you see something different.

StCirq

Haven't been to Croatia (would love to go, though!) so don't have any first-hand experience, but just wanted to comment that I don't think I've been to any beach in Europe where there weren't at least a few topless women, and have been to quite a few where there was considerably more nudity than that.

What is it about that that your teens "wouldn't be comfortable" with? Is it maybe YOU who's got some fear about that? My kids got used to it in about 2 minutes. I'd wager yours will, too. Compared to the normal "come hither" attire of most teenage girls in the USA these days, partial nudity is actually pretty refreshing.

offwego

There are plenty of beaches in Croatia where people aren't nude. If you see an "FKK" sign, that means there will be nudity, otherwise you'll be ok.

Which areas of Croatia will you be in? Perhaps I can recommend some specific ones....

LoveItaly

When we took our teenage daughter to Italy there were several European women sunbathing topless at the hotel in AnaCapri. For about two seconds my daughter looked surprised..not shocked just surprised and than didn't seem to think any more about it. The one person carrying on about it was an older Englishman, made quite a fool out of himself actually.

RufusTFirefly

Acutally, some of the bodies you see could leave anyone, teen or adult, scarred for life! Shudder!!!!

PrincessOfPenguins

Nude beaches are a good way for your teens to learn that human bodies come in all shapes and sizes and ages etc. If anything, it will make them less insecure about their bodies. This is a good thing.

Or are you uncomfortable with the thought of your precious virgin teens showing themselves off to all of Croatia? ;-)

Poohgirl

Brenny, I'm afraid I don't have any answers to your questions, but I'm just posting to give you my best wishes in hopes that you will actually have your question answered instead of having to be psychoanalyzed and such.

lobo_mau

Besides educational, it's funny to watch

Tallulah

As someone who has a propensity to head toward the nudist beaches (damn strapmarks!), I have to say that it can definitely be quite the most distasteful thing in the world! I'll be back there as soon as I lose 10lbs or so - until then shall remain covered up. I just wish that others thought the same way...!!!

Seriously though, are you referring to nudist beaches or beaches where topless sunbathing is the norm? Either way, just ask them? Any titillation would be short-lived and would probably lead to a far healthier attitude toward bodily forms...

walkinaround

by the language of the OP, i think it is clear that he is talking about full nudity.

i've been to croatia only once and i did see quite a bit of nudity on the beaches. i know there are nude beaches (marked FKK) but it seemed that just about all the beaches were relaxed about it...so basically, the nude beach will be almost all nude whilst the "normal" beaches will have the occasional nude bather. some beaches seemed to have patches that were more nudist than others. topless everywhere (of course).

in short, if you don't want risk of nudity, i would choose another destination.

for the last part of the question..about feeling out of place...i think you are on your own with this. one's sense of modesty is a very personal thing and i doubt anyone in this forum can be much help.

Mathieu

To get back to the beginning, I too am a bit puzzled by your question, so pardon me.

By asking if there are any non-nude beaches implies that the majority of the beaches in Croatia are nude. Of course they're not. Unless specifically designated as such (and a few are), they're just like beaches anywhere, with an assortment of people in various states of dress/undress, but still clothed. As others have mentioned, toplessness amongst women on European beaches is quite normal and something you quickly get used to. Many beaches do have a clothing optional section, but those areas are well marked and out of view so you have less of a chance of accidentally wandering onto them.

You don't say where exactly in Croatia you are going and it is a very long coastal country with many beaches. I visited several on and between Dubrovnik, Split, Hvar and Brac. Some are large public types while others are coves hidden along the roadside where you may well be the only ones enjoying them.
The famous 'Zlatni Rat' featured on many Croatia promotional posters is one of the prettiest, very crowded and enjoyable. I spent 3 days there. It has a marked-off CO zone at one end.

I will give you this piece of Croatian beach advice, however. Sand beaches are rare; the vast majority are pebble beaches (even though from afar they look like white powdered sand arcs) and can hurt your feet. Take rubber slippers or water shoes as well as something firm - like a straw mat - to lie on. The water was also much cooler than I expected for September.

raelond

We were in Croatia in July with our 15 year old son. We drove from Dubrovnik all the way up the coast stopping at many beaches. We never saw any total nudity nor did we see many topless women. Some women may sunbathe topless, but then they put their tops on to go into the water. Croatia is a beautiful country and well worth a visit.

minceta

From my seat here in Dubrovnik, I can almost see the main city beach just south of the Old Town. Too bad it's November and empty...

Anyway, as one poster said, beaches here are like beaches anywhere in Europe in terms of what people are wearing. In fact, in my experience, the % of topless women here (less than 5% I say) is much lower than what I have seen on most other Med beaches.

As for all-nude beaches, these are common but also clearly marked and almost always at the end of the beach or "around the corner", i.e. out of plain view.

This is simply not an issue to spend anytime worring about.

But do bring the sandals, as the beaches are usually rocky. The benefit of this is the crystal clear water.