A naturist resort, a clothing-optional resort and a lifestyle resort are three different kinds of place that share one word on the sign. The naturist resort is non-sexual and expects nudity; the clothing-optional resort leaves the choice to you and is usually adults-only; the lifestyle resort is for couples who want sexual openness as part of the holiday. Booking the wrong one is the most common mistake newcomers make, and the listing always tells you which is which if you know what to look for.
Naturist (nudist) resorts
These are the clubs: the places that grew out of the American Sunbathing Association camps of the 1930s and the AANR network today. Nudity is the norm whenever the weather allows and is required at the pool, hot tub and sauna. They are family places, usually with permanent residents, RV sites and a calendar of volleyball, potlucks and dances. Sexual behavior of any kind is prohibited and enforced. The main ones in the United States, all of which sell day passes:
- Cypress Cove, Kissimmee, Florida. The largest, with a lake, a restaurant and hundreds of residents. Day pass $37.63 plus tax for non-members, $30.10 for members of an approved nudist organization, $18.82 after 5 pm, rates valid through December 31, 2026.
- Lake Como, Lutz, Florida, north of Tampa. One of the oldest clubs in the state. $40 unaffiliated, $30 affiliated, $20 after 6 pm; first-time visitors pay a $20 background check that covers the grounds fee for the day.
- Sunsport Gardens, Loxahatchee, Florida, near West Palm Beach. Over fifty years old, heated pool, nature trails, restaurant; day fee on the listing.
- Glen Eden Sun Club, Temescal Valley near Corona, California. 154 acres at the foot of the Cleveland National Forest.
- Olive Dell Ranch, Colton, California. A long-running family ranch resort in the hills east of Los Angeles.
- Laguna del Sol, Wilton, California, near Sacramento. Lake, pools, cabins and a large campground.
- Oaklake Trails, Depew, Oklahoma. Over 400 acres, two pools, ten miles of trails, nudity required at the pools, hot tub and sauna; it has hosted the AANR national convention.
Sun Meadow in Worley, Idaho, long listed among these, closed as a nudist resort in December 2021 and was sold and renamed as a textile RV resort; skip any list that still includes it. All of the above are in the resort directory, and the Florida clubs are gathered under Florida resorts.
Clothing-optional resorts
"Clothing-optional" on a resort sign means the guest decides, within limits. Caliente in Land O' Lakes, Florida began as a nudist resort and switched to clothing-optional for marketing reasons, but still requires nudity in the pool areas. Clothing-optional resorts are more often adults-only, more hotel-like, and more likely to have a bar scene and themed nights. Many are entirely respectable naturist venues with a different label; some tolerate behavior a naturist club would not. The way to tell is the conduct section of the listing: a resort that says "non-sexual" and "family" is naturist whatever its sign says, and a resort whose rules talk about "discretion," "couples-oriented" or "no single men on weekends" is telling you something else.
Lifestyle (swinger) resorts
Lifestyle resorts are adults-only, usually couples-only, and sexual openness is part of what they sell. Hedonism II in Negril, Jamaica has a nude side and a textile side and a reputation that is deserved; Desire Riviera Maya in Mexico is clothing-optional, couples-only and explicitly sex-positive. These are not naturist venues, and many naturists would not set foot in them, but they are honest about what they are, which is more than can be said for a few clothing-optional hotels. If a listing or a review uses the words "lifestyle," "swinger," "playroom" or "couples-only, open-minded," that is the category. Our history of naturism explains why the non-sexual line is the one that defines a naturist place.
How to read a listing
- Who is admitted. Families and children: naturist. Adults-only but singles welcome: clothing-optional. Couples-only: lifestyle, or close to it.
- Where nudity is required. Pool only: clothing-optional. Everywhere weather permits: naturist. Nowhere required: a hotel with a topless pool.
- The conduct rule. "Non-sexual environment" is the naturist signature. "Discreet" is not.
- Affiliation. AANR or The Naturist Society on the listing means the resort has signed up to a naturist code of conduct.
- The photos. A naturist resort shows volleyball, the lake and the potluck. The other kinds show the bar at night.
Day fees and what they cover
A day fee at a naturist resort buys the grounds for the day: pool, lake, trails, courts and usually a tour for first-timers. It does not buy food, lockers or an overnight site. Non-members pay full price, members of a national organization pay a discounted rate, and evening rates after 5 or 6 pm are typically half. At the larger Florida resorts in 2026 that works out to $30 to $40 per adult for a full day. Membership removes the day fee and is worth it from about the tenth visit. Clothing-optional and lifestyle resorts more often sell day passes at hotel rates, $65 and up, or do not sell them at all. For what happens at the gate and the pool on a first visit, read our first resort visit guide; for campgrounds and RV sites at these resorts, see the naturist camping guide.
The short version
If you want to swim, sunbathe and eat lunch without clothes among families and retirees who have done it for forty years, book a naturist resort. If you want an adults-only pool and a bar and the choice of a swimsuit, book a clothing-optional resort after reading the rules. If you want anything else, you are reading the wrong site. The resort directory labels each listing, members near you name their home club on their profiles, and the forum has decades of first-hand reviews of every resort named here.