Baring It All – Skinny Dipping at Nude RV Parks

Have you ever stayed at a nudist RV park?

We recently decided it was time for us to experience one for the first time in our travels.

While neither us would identify as a naturist – we actually enjoy wearing clothing too – we have always been comfortable being in clothing optional situations. And it’s never been a secret that we’re frequently au natural when at home (thus our long standing warning – don’t just stop by unannounced, we might not have clothes on!).

In the past – we’ve been to Burning Man style events & festivals where nudity is just another costume choice, to hot springs where soaking nude is expected or required, and we’ve even been to nude beaches.

We’ve enjoyed them all – without feeling body shame, judgement or intimidation.

But it had been far far too long since we’ve been someplace where we could step outside without getting dressed first, and we had never been to a dedicated RV resort where we could roam around in our birthday suits.

So when we saw Avalon Resort (caution, you might see naked people on this site) in Paw Paw, WV lined up with our recent van trip routing – we decided it was time to experience our first designated naturist RV park.

Besides… Hot tub and swimming pool!

Perks of Naked RVing

Beyond just the joy of being naked (if that’s your thing), there are some unexpected perks that come with staying in an RV park where clothing isn’t required.

• 

  Doing laundry at a naturist park is pretty cool. Generally not too much demand for the laundry center, and you can actually wash ALL of your dirty clothes instead of just those you’re not wearing. If you live in an RV with limited storage space, that could represent a decent percentage of your wardrobe.

• You don’t dirty any clothes when you’re not wearing them – but you do go through the towels!
• Not having to deal with swim suits, especially in the van they can be such a pain to dry. And it never fails, they’re not dry when we next want to swim so we’re wrestling into an icky cold wet slinky. Or if you decide you want to go for a swim or soak while out and about, you don’t have to return and change clothes. Just jump in and air dry on the walk home.
• While we always try to position our RV so at least one window has privacy, we enjoy not worrying about that. Not having to close our shades when we’re just hanging out naked is pretty cool.
• Not having to get dressed to go take a shower at the bathhouse saved so much time and effort! We loved the abundance of outdoor showers – it sure beats the typical steamy dirty indoor RV park shower.

What to Know about Naturist RV Parks

We’ve now been to one additional clothing optional park since our first visit, and we have been researching others to mix into our future travels. We’ve discovered that there’s a lot of variation in the parks themselves and what is allowed or expected.

Here’s just some examples:

• There is usually both an overnight fee for the RV space, plus a daily membership/club fee – which means the total cost of going could vary quite a bit. There might be discounts offered by some parks for American Association for Nude Recreation (AANR) members. So far we’ve paid about $60-80/night total for a site with electric hook-ups and the RV park portions of these resorts we’ve visited have been… ho-hum.

• 

  Some parks are clothing optional – in that being naked is not required. If you want to wear clothing, such as when dumping the black tanks, dining or going for a jog – that’s totally ok. Other parks might be nudity in public areas required – with limited exceptions. These rules are in place to prevent clothed gawkers.

• Most parks require you to sit on your own towel when in any public space, so come prepared for carrying one around.
• Naturism separates sexuality from being naked, and most parks are strictly naturist. This means the entire park is just like any other park, just with naked people out and about. There’s absolutely nothing sexual about it, or even permissible (heck, we’ve heard about some that even restrict more than a quick peck on the lips with your partner in public). Anyone not abiding will be asked to leave. This makes for an extremely comfortable experience.
• Some are open to families with kids, and some are adult only. Some might not allow solo men, or might charge more for them than a solo female or couple or family. Being adult-only however does not necessarily imply a sexual environment.
• Some places are nudist parks that also cross into being a ‘lifestyle’ resorts. Lifestyle in this use case usually refers to the lifestyle of swinging (non-monogamy) – and these can be a sexually charged environment, and you might even get hit on. Some parks may have designated places for naturists and lifestyle folks to keep the styles apart, and there may be public places for adult oriented play activities (and we’re not talking bocce ball here). If that’s not your thing or comfort zone, just don’t go to those parks – or areas in a park.

Definitely read a park’s website before going, we’ve found most include very informative FAQs that set clear expectations, and the office staff is happy to answer questions.

Finding Naturist RV Parks

Finding RV parks dedicated to naturism isn’t always as easy as finding a normal RV camping spot. While our trip planning tool RV Trip Wizard seems to list some of them (it even has a search filter!), our favorite review site – Campendium – seems not to.

However the AANR lists Nudist Clubs, some of which might offer RV space. We’ve also found this Interactive Map of Nudist Resorts & Campgrounds.

And new as of early 2023 is the Escapees RV Club BOF – NudeScapers! Members of the Escapees/Xscapers can join this group for free to share tips with each other, and they are working on a map of clothing optional parks.

And once you find yourself at a club with an RV park, asking other naked RVers about parks they enjoy is a great way to strike up a conversation. And definitely, if you have favorites – leave them in the comments so we can maybe go check them out!

Overall Conclusion

All and all, we loved the experience of frolicking around au natural in a safe environment. It’s nice to step outside of our normal daily comfort zone from time to time. There has been so much body diversity and no judgement felt.

We swim, we soak, we hike, we dine and we socialize in comfort without clothing. Honestly, my biggest hesitation is sun exposure to my pasty white skin, so thankfully wearing a robe or shawl is generally accepted if I must roam around in the peak daylight hours. And of course bugs can be an extra issue.

Kiki has been confused however. We’ve always told her that she had to wear her harness because we’re not at a nudist campground. And now when we are, and she still had to wear a harness to go outside.

We’ll likely continue to integrate in these sorts of stays in our travels when we feel so called.

While we’re still not identified as naturists, it’s definitely a comfortable environment for us. It’s just another state of dress.