September 2, 2024, 4:18 pm | Read time: 4 minutes
Studies have shown that Germans are world champions in nude bathing. But which federal state is the absolute champion when it comes to nudism? Which region is the most prudish? And is it true that Germany as a whole is more modest than it was before reunification? A study reveals the answer – and offers some surprising results.
Germany remains a nation of contrasts, even decades after reunification. This is clearly demonstrated by a representative survey* that Expedia commissioned from an opinion research institute in 2015 to mark the 25th anniversary of reunification assessing views on nudism.
The goal was to gauge the popularity of nudism across the various German states and to see if attitudes have shifted since reunification. The respondents were not only asked to state whether they themselves bathe naked most of the time, but also whether they find nudism “repulsive” or “completely natural”.
Unexpectedly, Berlin is prudish
Surprising result: it turns out that the capital city itself is pretty prudish. 28 percent of Berliners said they found nude bathing “repulsive.” This represents nearly one-third of the respondents. This puts the generally open-minded metropolis in second place in the ranking of federal states with little tolerance for nudism (you can find the complete ranking at the bottom of the article). Interestingly, Berlin has historically been a pioneer and a bastion of the nudist movement.
The founders of Germany’s first naturist club, established in 1898 in Essen, might be turning in their graves: North Rhine-Westphalia shares second place on the prude hit list with Berlin. The same goes for Saarland. Only Bavaria surpasses these three federal states, taking the lead in the anti-nudist ranking: Here, 31 percent of respondents found nude bathing “repulsive.”
Meck-Pomm is nudist champion
Conversely, in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, nudists can feel at ease: 51 percent of residents consider nude bathing to be “completely natural.” 17 percent also go nude bathing there “generally or frequently” – more than any other federal state. Thus, this bathing paradise on the Baltic Sea coast, with its stunning beaches and idyllic lakes, is the undisputed champion of nudism. It is closely followed by Brandenburg, where 16 percent always or often go nude on the beach. The complete ranking of nudist-friendly areas can be found at the conclusion of this article.
With the notable exception of Berlin, an invisible ‘swimsuit seam’ persists across Germany, even after more than 25 years since reunification. In the former GDR, measurably more people sunbathe naked on the beach than in the old federal states. However, this is no longer the case in terms of negative perception. For example, 20 percent of people in Thuringia find nudism “repulsive,” while in Bremen, 17 percent take offense at it – although only 6 percent of people in Bremen say that they practice nudism themselves. In Thuringia, the figure is more than twice as high at 13 percent.
Older people are more tolerant
Both in the new and in the old federal states, nudism seems to be on the decline since reunification: 41 percent of East Germans and 33 percent of West Germans state that they lie naked on the beach less often today than in 1990. This trend may also be attributed to the modesty of the younger generation: While 37 percent of 18 to 29-year-olds find nudism “repulsive,” only 17 percent of the over-60s do. Only 15 percent of 18 to 29-year-olds describe nude bathing as “completely natural.”
The most nudist-friendly
By percentage of respondents who “generally or frequently” bathe in the nude:
1. Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (17 percent)
2. Brandenburg (16 percent)
3. Thuringia (13 percent)
4. Saxony & Saxony-Anhalt (9 percent each)
5. Hamburg & Rhineland-Palatinate (7 percent each)
6. Bremen & Schleswig-Holstein (6 percent each)
7. Lower Saxony & North Rhine-Westphalia (5 percent each)
8. Bavaria & Berlin & Saarland (4 percent each)
9. Baden-Württemberg (3 percent)
10 Hesse (2 percent)
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The ranking according to anti-nudist responses
By percentage of those who answered “very disgusting” or “a little disgusting” to the question “Do you find nude bathing disgusting or completely natural?”
1. Bavaria (31 percent)
2. Berlin & North Rhine-Westphalia & Saarland (28 percent)
3. Baden-Württemberg & Hesse & Rhineland-Palatinate (26 percent)
4. Schleswig-Holstein (22 percent)
5. Lower Saxony & Thuringia (20 percent)
6. Hamburg (19 percent)
7. Bremen (17 percent)
8. Brandenburg (15 percent)
9. Saxony-Anhalt (13 percent)
10. Saxony (12 percent)
11. Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (7 percent)
*The representative survey was conducted online in Germany between September 11 and 18, 2015, as part of the “#reisewende” campaign by Norstat on behalf of Expedia. A total of 2,100 adults over the age of 18 were surveyed.
The terms “new” and “old “old” federal states refer to the current population in the so-called new federal states of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Berlin, Saxony and Thuringia, as well as in the old federal states of Schleswig-Holstein, Bremen, Hamburg, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate, Saarland, Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria.
(mgr)