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| Haulover Nudist Beach, Miami |
Signposts at Fences
It is clearly signposted at the fences which mark the boundaries of the nudist beach and at most other entrances.
However, the signs aren't as prominent as the one in the photo appears to be.
Wide Sandy Beach
The beach is wide and sandy, sloping gently towards the water and 0.6 km (0.4 mile) long.
Clothing-optional Beach, Not Naturist
Strictly speaking this is a clothing-optional beach rather than naturist, so some people do wear swimsuits, even though there are textile beaches immediately to the north and south. I don't understand this, in fact I think it's bad manners to go to a nudist beach and remain covered up while everyone else is naked.
Gay Areas but Straight Couples and Singles, Too
Gay men tend to congregate together, but you will also see straight couples and singles.
Showers and Toilets Outside Naturist Area
Lifeguards are usually on duty and there are toilets and showers near the beach, but not within the naturist area, so you should at least wrap a towel round yourself if you want to use them.
Drinks, Snacks & Sun Umbrellas
You may encounter a stall operated by BEACHES (Beach Education Advocates for Culture, Health, Environment & Safety) where you can buy drinks, fruit and ice cream, plus books and what the South Florida Free Beaches website describes as “naturist apparel.”
BEACHES is part of the South Florida Free Beaches (SFFB) organization.
Also there could be a trailer selling drinks and snacks, and a sun umbrella-rental concession, but take water, if nothing else, in case everything's closed.
Haulover Marine Center
At the other side of Collins Avenue is Haulover Marine Center, which has a shop where you can buy drinks and snacks and sit at outside tables, plus a restaurant.
Collins Avenue is the busy Highway A1A, so use the pedestrian tunnel to get to the marina.
Pelicans at Marina
You may see pelicans by the jetties at the marina.
Pioneer Naturists Establish Clothing-optional Beach
South Florida Free Beaches (SFFB) organization founded the clothing optional beach in 1991.
A few dozen pioneer naturists cordoned off an isolated area of the beach and erected signs saying “Nude Sunbathing zone. Persons offended by nudity should avoid entering this area.”
Members of SFFB had contacted Miami-Dade County, which runs Haulover Beach Park, but no permission had been granted.
Nude Sunbathers Arrested
The following year Miami-Dade Police arrested five nude sunbathers and charged them under Florida Statute 800.03 Exposure of sexual organs.
This statute states: “It is unlawful to expose or exhibit one's sexual organs in public or on the private premises of another, or so near thereto as to be seen from such private premises, in a vulgar or indecent manner, or to be naked in public except in any place provided or set apart for that purpose.”
Being Nude in Public Not a Violation of Statute
However, charges were dismissed, and Miami-Dade Police Legal Bureau issued legal note 92-4, informing officers that “the mere act of being nude in public is not a violation of Section 800.03...(absent) lewd or lascivious exhibition...”
Miami-Dade County Publicizes Naturist Beach
In 2002, the Miami-Dade County Commission approved a plan which included specific mention of the naturist beach as a park feature.
Pressure from South Florida Free Beaches/Florida Naturist Association resulted in an expansion of the clothing-optional area of the beach, lifeguard huts, new restrooms, showers, thatched beach shelters and improved access for the disabled.
From South Beach to Haulover Beach Park
Haulover Beach Park is about an hour's bus ride from South Beach (S or 120, fare $2, exact money only) or a 20-minute drive north up Collins Avenue.
Parking on Opposite Side of Collins Ave from Beach
There is plenty of parking on the opposite side of Collins Avenue from the nudist beach, either at Haulover Marine Center, or just to the south.
The Miami-Dade Parks and Recreation Director estimated in 2009 that "$800,000 in parking revenue is directly attributable to users of the clothing-optional beach.”
Directions to Haulover Nudist Beach in Google Transit
For bus schedules and full driving directions to Haulover Nudist Beach, click on the Google Transit link in the right-hand sidebar of this blog and search for Haulover Marine Center, which is opposite the beach.
If you'd like tips on how to use Google Transit read this post: Directions in Miami - Walking, Driving, Bike, Buses & Train.
Special Events
Check out the South Florida Free Beaches/Florida Naturist Association website for special events at the Haulover Nudist Beach.
Is this the only one in the area?
ReplyDeleteHi Bill,
ReplyDeleteDepends what you mean by "the area." Haulover is certainly the only official naturist beach in Miami, and as far as I know in South Florida.
Give it a try. There are both straight and gay areas, so don't be put off by your first impression.
At present I'm in Málaga, in the south of Spain, and there are plenty here, including one in a town called Benalmádena Costa with a bar on the beach where you have to be naked to get served. Spain is a much more civilized country than the USA.
David
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