Nudist resort rivals bare teeth

SIX resorts in Florida are taking off the gloves and everything else to attract more of the worldwide nudist market, which has tripled in size since 1992.

Naked truth ... nudists pump about $542million into the global tourism industry / AP

THE photo of the attractive brunette is strategically cropped, but the advertisement makes it clear she's wearing nothing but a smile. The pitch: She swims nude at Florida's Paradise Lakes Resort and so can you.

Lake Como, Paradise's across-the-lake neighbour, promises a more rustic family-style retreat, including naked camping and karaoke on its 84-hectare grounds.

Just up the road, newcomer Caliente Resort and Spa entices nudists with conspicuous consumerism – flashy facilities, lavish homes and a medical spa plus laser hair removal.

Three of Pasco County's six nudist resorts are taking off the gloves and everything else as they attempt to attract more of the worldwide clothing-optional market, which has tripled in size since 1992.

"Pasco is the mecca of North American nudism," said Richard Mason, who helped open a stretch of Miami-Dade County's Haulover Beach to nudists in 1991. "Many people think nudists live in a colony like hippies. Then you see a place like Caliente. It's like a country club."

Pasco's nudist tussle began in the late 1990s when Paradise manager Chuck Foster broke away and began planning the 48-hectare Caliente resort. Over the years, he's brought over several Paradise employees, most recently Deb Bowen, who is now Caliente's marketing director.

"They took the best of our ideas," said Joe Lettelleir, president of the 29-hectare Paradise Lakes resort.

"They didn't create their own identity."

Modesty is not a nudist's strong point. That's certainly true at Caliente.

The resort's $406-a-night Mediterranean-themed waterfront villas and expansive pools featuring waterfall grottoes have knocked Paradise Lakes from the pinnacle of the nudist resort pyramid.

Now Caliente is circulating plans to add an RV section that could threaten some of the smaller resorts that cater to motoring nudists.

"There is nothing like this in the nudist world," Bowen said.

"I felt we could do it better, which, obviously, we have," Foster said. "Como is rustic. Paradise is a like a budget motel. This is the Ritz."

Doug and Adele Butler, a Virginia couple looking to settle into early retirement, chose Caliente over a nudist resort in Palm Springs.

"We love the freedom of being nude. And look at our view," said Adele Butler, pointing to the lily-covered lakes behind her $677,000 Caliente home.

But Caliente left Illinois retirees Denny and Arlene Reed a little cold.

"We had considered it, but Lake Como seemed more friendly to us," said 63-year-old Denny Reed, sitting poolside wearing only a baseball cap and a deep tan.

"Competition is a good thing. They all look at each other and learn. Each one offers a different experience."

Cheri Alexander, founder of the Travelites nudist club in South Carolina, said the larger resorts such as Paradise and Caliente tend to capture the most attention of the American Association of Nude Recreation.

"I don't think the mum-and-pop operations are being pushed out, but I think marketing is being focused on the larger clubs instead of the smaller ones like Lake Como," Alexander said. "I sometimes have to remind the powers-that-be in our organisation to remember the mum and pops."

The American Association of Nude Recreation estimates nudists pump about $542 million into the global tourism economy, up from $163 million in 1992. The association says its ranks have grown 75 per cent to 50,000 members in that time.

Nudists can chose from 270 clubs, resorts and campgrounds in the US.