The ten best beaches

Here are ten of the best beaches for baring all, taken from Bare Beaches, which lists more than 200 around the world.

1. Leucate Plage, Mediterranean coast, France

This superb beach has half a mile of fine golden sand. The water is normally calm and the shore shelves gently into the sea. Three naturist resorts share the coastline but the beach is open to all.

Go north from Perpignan on the N9 and turn right on to the D83, signposted Port Bacares. After five miles turn left on to the D627, drive through Port Leucate and the beach is on the right.

2. Playa Es Pregons Gran, south coast, Majorca

A wonderful little bay with a perfect crescent of fine yellow sand washed by a crystal-clear sea. There are no beach bars so bring your picnic and drinks. It's the jewel in the crown of the popular Es Trenc beach area.

Access is via a 15-minute walk along the shore, heading north from Colonia Sant Jordi. Start at the Hotel Marques Del Palmer and it's the third bay along.

3. Haulover Beach, Sunny Isles, north Miami

This sandy beach enjoys glorious weather for most of the year and has Miami on the doorstep. The bare area is more than 800 yards long and has its own lifeguards and unobtrusive police patrols.

The beach is on Collins Avenue (A1A), just north of Bal Harbour.

4. Vera Playa, Costa Almeria, Spain

Spain's capital of bare bathing has bars, sunbeds, pedalos and beach volleyball. Most European nationalities park their bottoms here, giving it a cosmopolitan atmosphere.
Take the coast road north from Garrucha, through Puerto Rey and Vera Playa is well signposted.

5. Banana Beach, Skiathos, Greece

Banana Beach is the collective name for three sandy bays well loved by nude bathers on the south-west coast. The name refers to the fact that the beaches are yellow and curved. During peak season bare bathers mainly use Little Banana, one of the smaller coves and often called the best bare beach in Greece, as clothed holidaymakers descend on the main beach.

There is a bus terminus and car park at the end of the Koukounaries Road, coming from Skiathos town. The footpath to Banana Beach then takes 15 minutes through olive groves.

6. Valalta, Istria, near Rovinj, Croatia

If you feel the need for a truly naked de-stress, Valalta is everything you could wish for. It's so good the nudist campsite here was voted the best in Croatia last year - among all sites, not just bare ones.Its two miles of sand and rock beaches and secluded coves are lined by olive trees and vineyards.

The beach is on the Istrian peninsula, 60 miles south of Trieste and five miles from Rovinj.

Playa de Maspalomas, southern Gran Canaria

Hundreds of acres of sand dunes, looking just like the Sahara, frame the beautiful beach between Maspalomas and the popular resort of Playa del Ingles. The bare areas, like the swimsuited ones, have sunbeds and umbrellas for hire.

You can walk to the bare beach areas from either end, although it's slightly quicker from Maspalomas.

8. Euronat, Atlantic coast, France

The south-west coast of France is almost one vast nude beach, stretching more than 100 miles from Biarritz to the Gironde. Euronat stands out for its clean golden sand, supervised swimming and friendly atmosphere. Thousands of families gather here.

9. Plakias Beach, south-west Crete

A fabulous setting of cliffs, mountains and a huge sweep of golden sand makes this beach a wonderful place for all-over tanning and fine snorkelling. The sea shelves gently and there are showers available.

The nude area is the last section of the beach, to the left as you face the sea.

10. Les Grottes Plage, Ile du Levant, Mediterranean coast, France

This small natural cove of white sand slides gently into the turquoise sea, providing excellent swimming and snorkelling. Seventy years ago Ile du Levant was the birthplace of nude leisure in France. Today, there is a tiny resident community and lots of holiday accommodation.

The easiest way to get there is by ferry from Le Lavandou, between St Tropez and Toulon.