Greece has many islands with known nude beaches. While the most secluded beaches may be a nude beach at times, there are a lot of beaches that have been clothes-optional for quite a while, making them the most popular in Greece.

It may be the virgin beauty of the Greek islands or the more liberal European attitude towards nude bathing, but something definitely makes tourists try nude-bathing for the first time ever while visiting Greece.

Before listing the best nude beaches of Greece, let’s take a look at some helpful tips, especially for the first-timers:

• before attempting to go clothes-optional ask yourself where you’d be more comfortable: on a naturist beach? A couples beach? Or maybe a mixed one?
• if you see a church (monastery) or a taverna right near or on the beach, that beach won’t be a nude one. The religious “influence” seems to “cut off” the idea of bare bathing.
• when you get to the location, ask around. While some well-known beaches have been nude beaches for years, many change their “status” from season to season. If you see a lot of swimsuits around although the beach is known for being nude, you can walk some more until you find something interesting (generally behind some rock formations).
• if you want privacy while you first attempt to bathe nude, ask around to find a boat which will take you to a secluded beach. Chances are that “uncle Yannis” (the taverna’s bartender uncle of course) has a boat or knows someone with a boat.
• don’t forget the sunscreen! Test it on sensitive areas which haven’t been (yet) exposed to the sun.
• leave the camera at the hotel. Nude people don’t appreciate cameras popping in their…face.
• bring a beach cover up (sarong) in case modesty strikes at any point.
• stay only an hour (at most two) unless you really trust your sunscreen.

And now let’s take a look at the top 5 nude beaches in Greece:

1. Mykonos: Paradise and Super Paradise

Both are very popular and very crowded. They are filled with nudists but with gawkers, as well. It’s worth a try but it might be intimidating if you are a first timer. Behind Paradise Beach there is a camping site which makes this party beach just perfect for those traveling “on a budget”. Nudity seems to take second place though, after partying (day and night).


More information on:
>>Paradise Beach, Mykonos
>>Ferries from Athens to Mykonos
>>Ferries from Rafina to Mykonos

2. Crete: Red Beach

First off to shed some light: there are plenty of “red beaches” in Crete because of the sand’s color (which is…reddish). This particular beach is located in southern Crete and stands at about 25 minutes hike from Matala. You need to go up a rocky hill, then arrive at a goat fence (hey, it’s Greece, remember?), go through the gate and descend to the beach.

In the height of the season there are sun beds to rent but generally you’d have to relay on your own towel to stand between you and the sand. Bring water and food because you won’t find any here!

The beach is nude-friendly but you’ll find most nudists at the north end of the beach. Over the years, swimsuits tend to appear more and more on the beach so you might need to snoop around before you find your place to go bare.

>>more information on Red Beach, Matala

Booking.com

3. Crete: Filaki Beach

This is the only “official” nude beach in Crete and is located near Hotel Vritomartis (which is a naturist hotel, so yes, nudity is welcomed). The beach feels rather remote and even the bartender at the taverna goes nude. Plus the sun bathers don’t bother to dress until they reach their cars. Indeed, a very nude-friendly beach.

>>more information on Filaki Beach

4. Karpathos: Kastellia

Although the locals are known to be a bit conservative, there is a nude beach on Karpathos. It stands just beyond the popular Micra and Megali Amopi beaches. To get to the nude one, you can take a bus from Pigadia.

>>more information on Ferries from Athens to Karpathos

5. Skiathos: Banana Beach

While in general the island of Skiathos is not exactly nude-friendly, the beaches (three) which form Banana, surely welcome nudity and put the island on the map. “Big Banana”, the oldest of them, is now pretty much filled with clothed tourists but several bare-bathers still lurk around. “Nameless Banana”, the smaller beach, continues to be nudity-friendly, while “Little Banana” is also a place to bathe nude.

Photo credit: Paradice Beach by Kelly at Tiny Trips and Tips