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My first encounter with the FKK lifestyle in Germany came about while on a bike ride. Deep in a forest several miles east of Darmstadt, I was taken aback to find myself cycling past a man making his way along a shady path, wearing nothing more than sandals and a backpack. A few seconds later, I rode by a parked van selling ice cream. Several more naked people had formed a line by its window, waiting to make their purchases.
It turns out I was cycling past a small lake at which nudists were welcome to shed their threads and enjoy uninhibited days of swimming and sunbathing. Such places in Germany, I came to learn, aren’t much of a rarity. “Freikörper Kultur,” or FKK for short, is firmly part of the local culture and a lifestyle choice believed to promote health and harmony with nature.
The FKK movement is nothing new; in fact, it traces its roots to the late 19th century, when it was seen as a counter to the stresses put on the human body by industrialization and dense urban environments. Also known as naturism or nudism, the practice of enjoying the feeling of sun, air and water on bare skin in communal settings is believed to have many benefits, from fostering a healthy body image to helping heal an assortment of maladies. The nudity associated with naturism is not intended to be sexual in nature. FKK in its original intended form has nothing to do with the big-city sex and sauna clubs that have meanwhile incorporated the abbreviation into their names.
Decades back, the FKK lifestyle found many followers in the former East Germany, in part, it was theorized, as a means to escape the repressive nature of the state. The trend found favor well beyond Germany’s borders, and by the 1950s naturist holiday resorts had sprung up in France, along the Baltic seacoast and on Yugoslavia’s Adriatic coast. Nowadays, some of Europe’s top naturist destinations include Croatia, Euronat and Cap d’Agde in France, Vera Playa in Spain and the Greek island of Crete.
Although the FKK movement no longer has as many adherents as it had at its peak, the organization “Deutscher Verband für Freikörperkultur” counts over 30,000 members, many of whom are members in some 135 naturist clubs. FKK members not only swim and sunbathe; they camp out, take hikes, play sports, dine out, sip cocktails and more, all in the natural state in which they find their bliss.
Care to experience the waning days of the German summer in your own state of undress? Here are some places you’re free to do exactly that. Remember the basic rules of etiquette, such as never, ever snapping photos and only entering FKK areas unclad yourself. And of course, don’t forget that all-important bug spray.
Hiking:
Harzer Naturistenstieg: Germany’s oldest official naked hiking trail offers a 6-kilometer in-and-out route and a 13-kilometer circular route. The trails are located south of the Harz mountains, in the state of Saxony-Anhalt.
Naturistenweg Undeloh: A 10-kilometer trail runs through the Lüneburger Heide in Lower Saxony.
Beaches:
Many of the country’s largest and best known FKK beaches are found in Travemunde, Sylt and Rügen. Beaches with FKK areas around the KMC include Gelterswoog in Kaiserslautern and Strandbad Bosen at the Bostalsee in Nohfelden. Near Stuttgart is found the Inselbad Unterturkheim outdoor swimming pool.
Cities:
Munich’s English Garden has a meadow dedicated to FKK sunbathing, and swimmers can splash around in the Isar River by the Ludwigsbrücke unclothed. The Wannsee in Berlin has a spacious FKK area as well.
Camping:
Campingpark Waldwiesen in Birkenfeld is close to Baumholder and the KMC. The FSG Allgäu in Dietmannsried offers a breathtaking alpine backdrop.
