Cypress Cove Nakations Bring in Europeans
International crowd boosts ‘nakations’ to Orlando area
Bob Johnson, 64, enjoys a dip in the pool recently at Cypress Cove, a nudist resort near Kissimmee.
(HILDA M. PEREZ, ORLANDO SENTINEL / July 11, 2008)
A Central Florida resort is tempting international tourists to travel light, carrying only the bare essentials for a “nakation.”
“It’s easy packing. You don’t need a suitcase,” said Harrie Canhout, 44, from the Netherlands.
Canhout, his wife and three children, ages 18, 13 and 11, are on a three-week nudist vacation at Cypress Cove on Pleasant Hill Road. It’s the Canhouts’ second trip there after learning about it online a few years ago.
The family-owned nudist resort has increased its advertising in travel and naturist magazines and Web sites. Owner Barbara Hadley, 54, said she’s trying to lure more overseas visitors as the U.S. economy slows down and vacations become more expensive.
With the strong money exchange rate, more Australians, English and Germans are heading to the resort, which is about 10 miles south of Kissimmee. Although many visitors come to Central Florida for the theme parks, Hadley said they spend most of their time at the resort sunbathing, jet-skiing and playing tennis — wearing only sneakers.
About 700 visitors drop by in the winter and about 500 in the summer, Hadley said. On the weekends, the numbers spike to 1,000, as more local residents stop in for the day.
While she couldn’t provide an exact number, resort spokeswoman Debra Peterson said room reservations from international tourists increased 13 percent in the past year. Of those, 46 percent were from England and six percent from Germany.
Hadley said her lakeside beach is much like clothing-optional beaches in Europe, where “they have such a relaxed attitude toward topless and naturists.”
Thousands of nudists worldwide flock to hundreds of clothing-optional beaches and resorts in countries such as Argentina and Israel, according to the International Naturist Federation.
The American Association for Nude Recreation has more than 46,000 nudists and 267 resorts and clubs in the U.S., Canada and Caribbean, said spokeswoman Carolyn Hawkins, who’s based in Kissimmee.
Attracting overseas tourists With the sluggish U.S. economy, Cypress Cove is trying to lure more overseas tourists. Reservations from international tourists have increased:
13% in the past year
46% are from England
6% are from Germany
Eloisa Ruano Gonzalez can be reached at egonzalez@orlandosentinel.com or 407-931-5940.
