ONLINE:
It is called a vacation "au naturel," using a French expression as a fig leaf to cover up its more common name of naturism.
The United States is a deeply conservative country and some inhibitions take time to cast off, but Americans are starting to flock to beaches and country parks reserved for nudists, especially at the luxury end of the market. "People are looking for a more relaxed way to spend their vacation," according to Carolyn Hawkins, public relations coordinator for the American Association for Nude Recreation (AANR). "They find visiting a nudist resort, they can travel more and pack less." The AANR estimates that naturist clubs and beaches for those who soak up the sun "au naturel" earn about 500 million dollars a year now, against 200 million dollars in 1992.
"The interest has been increasing over the last 10 years," said Carrie Schultz, marketing director for the Caliente Resort, an upmarket nudist colony near Tampa in southern Florida, which has about 300 apartments, bungalows and houses that cost between 200,000 and 500,000 dollars.
"People who bought here used to go to the Caribbean to find nude facilities. Upscale nude resorts didn't exist in the US," said Shultz.
