One of the destinations that lends itself perfectly to nude recreation is Greece. In addition to a large mainland, there are over 200 inhabited islands (and thousands more that aren’t) with a resulting coast line that might never been measured entirely, containing a multitude of glorious sandy beaches, perfect for lazing about when you have nothing on. The weather’s not bad either. It’s surprising, therefore, that the number of Naturist places to stay is the lowest in Europe. With the exception, perhaps, of Luxembourg.
And so, I’m pleased to report on a new Naturist hotel - Viva Tourismo on the island of Rhodes in the Dodecanese. Some readers will remember or even have visited Naturist Angel Hotel on that same island - we even ran a group holiday there back in the day. Viva Tourismo is owned and operated by the same people, Nikos (Nick) and Eleni, who have now built their own venue a short way up the road and closer to the beach. As inferred, it’s brand new with all mod cons (that’s ‘conveniences’ not ‘Conservatives’) with a really stunning swimming pool and surrounding area, with plenty of squashy sunbeds and parasols, and a gate that gives direct access to the beach and the sea. The pool is filled with spring water and kept clean by a method that doesn’t involve chemicals. A hot tub is planned for 2025.
Accommodation is on a half-board basis and the quality is superb, everything cooked fresh in the hotel kitchen. In fact, ‘fresh’ doesn’t do it justice as the majority of what is on your plate is grown in the hotel grounds. I asked Nick to take me on a tour. As a new venue it’s a work-in-progress but I counted 28 different items of produce including fruit trees, vegetables, salads and herbs. There’s a long line of banana plants. Nick picked a small, green one that you might reject in Aldi. ‘Eat!’ he said, thrusting it in my direction. It was the sweetest banana I’d ever tasted. There is no menu as such, with everyone being served the same - starter and main course - but guests are asked about allergies/dislikes on arrival. I particularly enjoyed my tzatziki, souvlaki, and a beef stew with orzo pasta.
At breakfast there is a table with tea and coffee, bread for toasting, condiments and fruit, with each guest also being served a tray laden with goodies such as egg and bacon, olive-oil doused slices of cucumber and tomato, bread and butter and a slice of cake. Guests can choose what to eat at lunch (not included in the room price) from a menu containing classic Greek dishes, freshly-made pizza or salad. The chicken Caesar salad and another I had with poached salmon, avocado and perfect hard-boiled eggs would have happily graced the tables of a top eaterie.
The dining room is adjacent to the pool area—with great views of the sea beyond and stunning sunsets—and the shiny bar area which is open most of the day, and well-stocked, with a happy-hour in the late afternoon. The 14 double-rooms have—in addition to the obvious—room-safe, satellite TV, extra bedding, air-conditioning and a patio overlooking the garden. There’s a wet room with rain shower, shower gel and a hair-dryer. Wifi is free. Massage is available and the hotel people will help you hire a car which will be brought to the resort.
Nudity is permitted everywhere with a request that at least bottom halves are covered at mealtimes, though it doesn’t seem that this rule is policed too rigorously.
A visit to Rhodes Town is a must. There is a bus every hour from a stop a short stroll from the hotel. I’d never been on a Greek bus before and so decided to add it to my portfolio of experiences. I remembered my many hours languishing in the cold rain waiting for buses in central London and concluded that standing in the hot, Greek sunshine for up to an hour was something I could happily endure … but 90 minutes later I hadn’t seen a single bus in either direction. I called a cab from the hotel and within twenty-minutes driver Dimitris—full of interesting tales of when he played professional football for Panathinaikos (he showed me pictures)—deposited me just outside the walls of the old city. Rhodes Town is steeped in history, much of it connected to the times of the Knights Hospitaller in the 14th Century, with ramparts and castellated towers, gardens, beautiful cobbled streets and squares, pavement cafés and shady restaurants and—I hardly need mention it—souvenir shops, though of a better quality than I’ve usually seen. I people-watched over a lunch of Gyros and a beer at Filippos taverna, and walked past rows of colossal yachts to where the Colossus of Rhodes, one of the Seven Ancient Wonders of the World, used to stand at the harbour entrance, and marvelled at the sheer size of the Royal Caribbean cruise ship in port and the crocodile of weary guests winding their way back towards it, many swinging shoes from their fingers after a last-minute paddle.
There is one huge advantage to a holiday at Viva Tourismo which also has a downside that I must mention. Rhodes airport is so close that you can literally be swimming in the pool within half an hour of touching down. That does mean that planes fly over as they take off or land but the noise lasts less than half a minute. I chatted to other guests (Belgian, German, Swedish - over a drink, natch) about it and we all agreed it was quite a thing on arrival, but soon became normal and we didn’t notice it. I must say, it was fantastic to be buying my duty-frees less than 20 minutes after checking out of the hotel.
Viva Tourismo is open from April to early November and I was advised that the later months are the best! They’d love to do a BN group holiday too, and so we’ll look into that…
00 30 697 260 7686