About two years ago my wife & I discovered how much we enjoy nude sunbathing, and have since been having some fun visiting different locations that allow that particular form of recreation. In our brief experience we have been to Couples Ocho Rios, Grand Lido Braco, Sandy Hook NJ, and a few trailer-park type nudist camps. This past weekend we made our first trip to Caliente Resort, which is near Tampa, FL.
As an au-naturel facility, Caliente is spectacular. There is a very large, unheated pool (with a beautiful waterfall) and a smaller heated pool in the main area, and a heated conversation pool and Jacuzzi in a secluded adults-only area. This is conveniently close to the disco. There must have been more than 200 people there yesterday (Sunday), but there were still plenty of beach chairs. There are two bars in the pool area (no swim-up bar, unfortunately), and charming topless waitresses to bring drinks and food. Speaking of drinks, I can say that the mixed drinks are not very strong. I couldnt get the least bit of a buzz, even after 2 or 3. My wife & I ended up ordering martinis and cosmos to make sure we got something that actually had alcohol. But if nude sunbathing is an important part of your vacation, I cant imagine a nicer place than Caliente.
The other big highlight is the disco. The music & dancing start around 8:00pm, they play good dance music on a first-class sound & video system. The men mostly tended to dress as they would for any upscale disco, but this is really a place for the ladies to show off, and young or old, any body shape, they all looked great. Most wore very revealing outfits, and as the night went on a lot of tops came off, much to the delight of husbands and boyfriends. Few people were totally naked, but the music and dancing were very erotic, more so than any night club Ive ever been in. Then there was the conversation pool nearby to cool off. This is not to say there were any obvious PDAs going on, I didnt see any, but it is dark and easy to find a quiet corner.
Caliente is a lot different than Braco and Couples. It is not mainly a tourist resort, but is a gated, residential community. We walked around a lot; it seems about the size of a large golf course, with residences ranging from a few RVs and double-wides to condos and million-dollar homes. The central recreation area, adjacent to the where the pools & disco are, is called the Clubhouse. Next to the clubhouse is a small, ~ 50 room motel, which is where we stayed. The room was small but adequate for our 4 day visit. Condo units can also be rented, which we will do in the future for longer stays. In the clubhouse is a small boutique (they are building a larger shopping area), health & beauty spa, well-equipped gym, sports bar, and restaurant that is open for breakfast, lunch, & dinner. The food was excellent, but we did not have any dinners there. For that we went to a restaurant down the road called Rapscallion, which I also highly recommend.
The crowd at Caliente was mainly, like us, couples in the 45-65 age group. There were also people much younger and older, a few families with small children, a few singles. The size of the crowd on the weekend vastly outnumbered that during the week, which makes me think that most people were local. Those we met were mostly from Florida or other southeastern states.
Last, but not least, Caliente is a bargain. We figured that, with the cost of the room, membership fees, food, and drinks, we still were paying much less on a daily basis than we did at the all-inclusives. Airfare to Tampa is cheap, compared to Jamaica or Cancun. Its nice not to have to worry about customs, passports, etc. Our cell phones worked fine there, maximum signal.
I think we will be going back, often.
Alan