AANR is the American Association for Nude Recreation, a federation of nudist clubs and their members that has existed in one form since 1931. You do not need to join it, or any organization, to visit a nude beach or a club, but a membership card becomes worth the fee once you visit landed clubs more than a couple of times a year.
AANR: the club federation
AANR traces itself to the American League for Physical Culture, a New York group organized in 1929, which became the American Sunbathing Association in 1931 and was renamed the American Association for Nude Recreation in 1995. It is headquartered in Kissimmee, Florida, and organized into regional chapters (AANR-Florida, AANR-West, AANR-Northwest and so on) that run their own events and lobbying.
Its members are mostly clubs. AANR's 2022 fact sheet described more than half of its affiliated clubs as landed, meaning they own their own grounds, with the rest non-landed travel clubs that meet in rented pools, members' homes and on trips. AANR's own 2025 figures put the number of affiliated resorts and clubs at more than 180. When a listing in the club directory says "AANR affiliated", it means the club has signed an affiliation agreement covering conduct standards and family-friendly nudism, and that AANR members get member rates there.
What a direct individual membership buys, according to AANR's published rate card: member pricing at affiliated clubs, which at many landed clubs is $5 to $15 off a day pass, the member bulletin, discounts with partner travel businesses, and a vote in the organization. AANR listed its 2023 rates as $64 for one year, $113 for two, $46 for young adults aged 18 to 28 and $31 for students aged 18 to 24, with premier and lifetime tiers above that. Many landed clubs include AANR membership in their annual dues, so if you join a club you may already be a member.
The Naturist Society and the Naturist Action Committee
The Naturist Society (TNS) was founded in 1980 by Lee Baxandall in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, out of the free beach movement of the 1970s; Baxandall had started the Free Beaches Documentation Center there in 1976. Where AANR grew from clubs, TNS grew from beaches, and its focus has stayed on individuals and public land: the magazine Nude & Natural, the annual Gatherings, and a network of affiliated groups that includes many of the beach associations you will find in the groups directory.
The Naturist Action Committee (NAC) is TNS's political arm, set up by Baxandall in 1990. It is the body that turns up when a county proposes closing a clothing-optional beach, tracks state legislation and files comments on park rules. If you use public beaches, NAC is doing the work that keeps them open, and its alerts are worth following whether or not you join anything.
INF-FNI: the international federation
The International Naturist Federation (INF-FNI, the initials in English and French) was formally founded at a congress at CHM Montalivet in France in August 1953 and is the umbrella body for national naturist federations: AANR and TNS in the United States, the Federation of Canadian Naturists, British Naturism, the French FFN, the German DFK and so on. Its 1974 definition of naturism, adopted at Agde, is the one everybody quotes: a way of life in harmony with nature, characterized by the practice of communal nudity, with the intention of encouraging self-respect, respect for others and for the environment.
The practical thing INF gives you is the INF card. It is issued through your national federation, carries a yearly stamp, and is the document many European naturist campsites and resorts ask for at reception. Some will sell you a temporary INF card on the spot for a fee; others, particularly the larger French and Croatian sites, have dropped the requirement. If you are planning a trip through the France or Spain listings, check each venue, and read our guide to naturist holidays in Spain and the Canaries for the Spanish picture.
British Naturism
British Naturism (BN) is the INF-recognized national body for the United Kingdom. It was formed in 1964 as the Central Council for British Naturism from the merger of two earlier associations and took the name British Naturism in 2009. BN runs the swims, the Great British Skinny Dip each July and a members' club network, and it commissions the Ipsos polling that gives naturism its best public numbers: a 2022 Ipsos survey for BN found 14 percent of UK adults aged 16 to 75 described themselves as naturists or nudists. BN membership gets you into its member-only events and most UK club swims at member rates; visitors from the US can usually attend a swim as a guest.
Club affiliation: what it means for you
A club can be affiliated with AANR, with TNS, with both, or with neither. Affiliation tells you three things. The club has agreed to a published code of conduct, usually family-oriented and explicitly non-sexual. It accepts the federation's card for member rates. And it is listed in the federation's directory, which is how it gets found. A club with no affiliation is not necessarily a problem; some excellent clubs stay independent to avoid dues. It does mean you should read the listing and reviews more carefully, because nobody else has vetted it.
So, do you need to join?
- First visit to a beach: no. Beaches are public. Read the beach etiquette guide and go.
- First visit to a club: no. Buy a day pass. Some clubs will ask you to join after two or three visits.
- Three or more club visits a year: probably. The member discount pays for the card, and a card makes the gate conversation shorter at every other club.
- European campsite trip: get an INF card through AANR or TNS before you go, or budget for a temporary one at the first site that asks.
- You use public beaches and want them to stay open: join TNS or donate to NAC. That is the money that funds the people who show up at the county hearing.
Whichever you pick, the organizations are the infrastructure, not the community. The community is the people in the member directory who go to the same places you do, and you can start there today without a card.