Last
updated 16 March 2008
Samos
Tsamadou
From Samos port, follow the northwest coastal road for 12km. At the bend in the
road, there is a taverna and a car park. A steep but easy path leads to the
beach from this point. At the bottom, there is a snack bar that has some basic
supplies. The snack bar seems to be the point where the nudist section begins
and continues to the right (southeast).
Barefoot reporters advise that the first thing to get is a ROAD EDITION map of
the island - 4.20 Euros from tourist information, this map has great detail and
all the beaches and roads are marked. The access path down from the car park
and Taverna at the top is now mostly concreted and presents no real problems.
the beach is of pebbles and, providing you have something on your feet, getting
in and out of the water isn't a problem. The beach, when our Barefooters
visited in the first week of May 2006, was totally nude from just to the left of
the snack bar, all the way to the right as you look at the sea. the snack bar
served good sandwiches hot and cold drinks and ice creams, this was also the
man who hired the sunbeds at a cost of 6 euros per set per day. The
toilets were clean and flushed (but watch out for lack of toilet paper) and the
fresh water shower was very welcome. A good beach for couples, but not ideal
for children because the water went deep quickly. If you like pebbles, it
rates 95%.
A short distance along the road from the taverna on the bend there are several
alternative routes to various tavernas on the beach.
 The nudist section of the beach is about 75m long and 10m from water to beach
top. It consists of large pebbles. Facilities include the afore mentioned snack
bar and there are also three tavernas to choose from. There are also two beach
cubicle toilets near to the snack bar. There are sun loungers and parasols for
hire at 6 Euros for two people. And the luxury of two fresh water showers.
Access to the water is very tricky and painful on bare feet. The combination of
the pebbles and the surging waves makes leaving the water as difficult as
entering it. On the days we were there, the waves were a few feet high and
could cause panic in poor swimmers.
A Barefoot reporter who spent the summer in Samos in 2003 says the beach is
divided into 2 parts next to each other: The part on the right side as you
approach the beach (a small cantina exactly at the entrance is considered the
"border") was totally nudist for 50 metres along the beach. The part on the
left was either for textiles or for topless women for 300 metres. From June up
to the end of September there were sometimes more than 50 nudists. The textiles
could approach the same number but the most days, the ratio was 66%-33% or
80%-20% for the naturists especially in September. The age of them was
exclusively 40-60, and they were mostly from Germany. The age of the textiles
or topless women on the left side was younger.
Tsamadou was the only beach with a large number of sunbathers even at the end
of September. The ratio those days was 80%-20% in favour of the naturists.
The background landscape was very beautiful. The very big disadvantage:
dangerous rocks under the waters instead of sand which can cut bare feet.
The nudist section of this beach was almost 100% nudist. The scenery at this
part of Samos is spectacular and the approach to the beach is delightful. The
character of the beach was relaxed with the majority of occupants being
couples. The facilities at this beach were good and the atmosphere was laid
back, but the poor access to the sea and the potential for danger of the sea
limited its score to 75%.
This was a pebble beach; very crowded
even in September. It is very long and while steeply shelved at the Kokhari
end, this does not apply to the Southern end which is also generally free
of the rather strong currents. Our correspondents' experience, two Octobers
in succession, was that while the whole beach has a majority of textiles the
Southern end had a majority of naturists (at least counting on the basis
that a group is naturist if it has at least one unclothed person to signify
a sympathetic attitude, and possibly even on a stricter basis) The beach
is also fundamentally German, so you can assume a quite tolerant attitude
to nudity in any case. Our correspondent gave this beach an 80% rating.
A correspondent spent two weeks there
in September 1999 and would say that it was 40/60% naturists, mostly German.
and a "nice beach".
 Some correspondents rave about this beach. One described Tsamadou as
a lovely beach. The atmosphere, sea and beach itself is beautiful.
From the taverna/ bus stop there is a steep staircase down to the beach (but
improved with paving during 1999). On the right hand side the beach is fully
naturist, on the left hand side there are textiles. Two reports from
May 2001 gave it a rating of 100%, which is truly exceptional. One
report confirms that to the right of the staircase it is 100% nudist! The
nudist character of the beach seems to be widely acknowledged, since the
Swedish Travel Agent Apollo in their general information about Samos mentions
Tsamadou as an option for those "who want to bath naked". The beach
is really great and there is some coarse sand here and there in addition
to the pebbles.
A report from August 2001
confirms the above description.
It is evidently quite cosmopolitan
- with a large number of Germans and also people from Scandinavia, England
and Holland too, and even some Greek people on both sides of the beach!
A report from May 2002 says this is still a "marvellous" nudist beach.
And a report from September 2005 confirms that from the staircase and to the
right it is 100% nudist. Mostly gays at the upper right side of the
beach.
A less promising report from 2005, however: at the beginning of June a pair
of Barefoot reporters were the only naked people there. But other
Barefooters who visited in June and July 2007 said that the nudist section had expanded
at least 20m to the left of the cantina. There were sunbeds across the
whole beach. Very popular with Germans, but other nationalities present
in good numbers too. There must have been more than 100 nude people there
and there was a friendly atmosphere. A tiny cable-car provides food and
drink service from the taverna at the top of the hill. The colour of the sea is
wonderful, a sort of cream-blue. The left part of the beach is textile and the
right one is nudist. People are very polite and you can enjoy all the privacy
you want. The entry in/out of water can be tricky on most of the days. There
are some large rocks (sometimes submerged) in the nudist section.
A note of warning: There are several cliffs underwater near the end of the
beach (to the right) 10-15 m from shore. Cliffs in Greece are from lava and
sharp as a razor blade, so be very careful here.
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 Tsambou /
Avlakia
My correspondent found a "much nicer"
beach about two kilometres further away from Kokkari called Tsambou beach
(please note that the Captain previously understood it to be called
Avlakia beach, but it appears that this is a small and rocky town beach
visited only by locals). As the road turns (the entrance to the beach is on a
hairpin bend - a
correspondent knew it was the right place because of the number of scooters
parked by the road), you can go down a cliff (the walk down is dodgy, but
well-travelled) and find a beautiful spot (pebbled
beach) where there were about 20-30 naturists. A July 2000 report confirms
this beach was 100% nude, and an August 2000 one says 98% nude. In
June 2001 it was described as a very nice beach, more intimate and smaller
than Tsamadou. It gets its character from its first visitors of the day, so
it is best to be first! One day it was 100% nude, another 50%. There is shadow
on the western side if you would need it. My contributor rated it 90%.
In August 2001 it was 100% nude with about 20-25 people there when it was
there, all couples. The trek over the cliffs to get to the beach is certainly
not for the less agile and could be dangerous if you slipped. Shade is available
from the cliffs but take plenty of water to drink.
A contributor spent one week on this beach in June 2003 and
found it very quiet and relaxing with no more than 20 people on the beach
each day. Between 0930 and 1100 the beach was 100% nudist (4-5 people) and
again between 1700 and 1800. At weekends the Greek families visited the
beach (usually for 1 hour) and sat amongst the nude sunbathers without
complaint.
A contribution from September 2005 reports only a few couples were
nude, but it is a beautiful beach. Unfortunately another Barefooter
found it completely textile in July 2007, with umbrellas and sunbeds.
Some Barefoot reporters say that the description of the beaches as
being made of pebbles is something of an understatement. They are in
fact sizeable stones, and could be uncomfortable if you do not have a mat
to lie on.
Lemonakia beach is just before
you come to Tsamadou but is a bit more crowded, and also not
as accessible (you have to walk down 50-100m on a wooden path). Only the western
end is nude, but as you can see the water just off the beach is wonderful! A
report from August 2000 suggests that nudism is now prohibited here, so caution
is advised, and a report from May 2001 reports no nudism being practised there
(confirmed in 2003).
Another nice beach, but not suitable
for nudism, was at Psili Ammos, just off the road to Pythagorion. A superb
view of the coast of Turkey. This side of the island can be rather hot and
there is less shade. (There is another beach of the name which is
suitable for nudism - see below.)
Megalo and Micro Seitani
Word reaches me that these are marvellous
beaches but you have to walk. They are west of Karlovasi on the north coast.
Drive west to Potami. Drive as far as you feel able according to the state
of the road (most recent reports suggest it is not really problematic). Going or driving on the car track from Potami look for a cairn
on the right side. One stone in the cairn is painted red. Here you go down
from the car track and will find the path which is then easy to follow
(wonderful scenery through the pine woods). Here
and there along the path stones are marked with red dots. The Seitani
beaches are roughly 40 minutes plus another 30 minutes walk. Micro is first
and is a great place to strip off and swim and rest before going on to Megalo
Seitani where there is much more space to
 get lost in. The walking is on
the rough side. Finding the path was difficult even on my correspondent's
3rd visit in 1998 but on a still day the walk is outstandingly beautiful
and the beaches idyllic. If you go there once you will want to return.
A contributor who visited
in August 2000 tells me that this beach can now be accessed easily by small
boat from Karlovassi port. The boat is called Alexander the Great. Therefore in August about
40 people were on the beach, 75% Greek, and the beach 100% textile!
In August swimming nude only at the eastern end of the beach and only in the
morning. At 12 o´clock the beach is crowded with textile Greeks and
you do not feel comfortable. However sunbathing nude is possible in
the dunes. So in high season unfortunately this beach is not a good
nude beach. My contributor agrees the beach is beautiful, very idyllic, but
at least in high season it does not look like a good bet for nudism.
A report from June 2001 says the walk
to Micro Seitani is marvellous. It is worth every step, an 30-40 minutes experience
of Greek island nature. Unfortunately my contributors could not go further
to Megalo Seitani but that walk is surely of the same quality. Micro
Seitani was 75% nudist when my contributors were there and rated 95%.
 A contributor who visited in September 2005 did the walk to Megalo
Seitani and cautions that its a 2 hours long walk, probably not something
to undertake in the hottest weather. The Captain notes the differences in
these reports! On the other hand they found the beach almost empty -
worth every step. Lots of space - but also a beach that clearly have a
look of having been used a lot in high season (toilet papers behind bushes
in the back of the beach, deserted camp fires, ropes and garbage).
But the beach is beautiful - and the above comments shouldn't dissuade you
from going there.
A Barefooter who visited in July 2006 found it tough going in the heat
to Micro Seitani, but it was 60% naturist. At weekends, however, it
becomes textile. Another report from July 2007 said there were only
a few people on Mikro Seitani, most of them nude. Entry to the water
was tricky because of unpredictable strong currents.
There is a taxi boat from Karlovasi (Alexander the Great), but if the
sea is rough he won't leave. Cost 10 Euro and leaves at 09.00 & 11.00 hrs.
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Fornaki
In the south-west
of Samos, there is a small beach called Fornaki Beach next to Votsalakia
and Marathokampos.
It is much smaller than Tsamadou, but many Barefoot reporters think
much nicer. Typically 10-20 people on beach generally nude. There is a
lovely little beach bar near the end of beach. Good swimming and
snorkelling although the entrance to the water is over pebbles, so beach
shoes are recommended. There is fairly easy access to beach. The beach is
backed by cliffs so tends to go into shade from early evening (about 6.30
when my reporters were there). There is no shade during the day.
There is a long stretch of isolated beach in front of sand cliffs. If
you walk as far west as possible, you will reach a sand beach, sparsely
populated, and with a totally different character than either Tsmadou or
Avlakia. The beach was 100 meters long, 100% sand extending out into
the Aegean for 100-200 meters. No chairs, no taverna, nothing. during the
last week of August 2003, there were 4 to 5 couples and 2 or 3 single
women lying in the sun on this beach. 100% naturist, very relaxed, and
friendly. there is a nice taverna up on the cliff which has fantastic
views of the beach. a scooter, or car, is mandatory, or you'll spend your
whole day walking.
It is easy to find: there is a sign down to the beach just after the village
of Kampos. It is said to be about 70% nude, but there are other beaches
nearby where you can go nude (report dating from July 2000). A report
from June 2001 confirms that Fornaki is about 60% nudist. There are several
coves, so walk further if one is textile.
The stones aren't
so smooth here, but if you keep on walking another couple of hundred metres there
are some little beaches that were been used by naturists - only two or three
couples. My contributor found these to be very rocky and evidently was slightly
concerned lying under the cliffs which didn't look that safe as they were mud
and stone.
A keen Barefooter says that those who say the beach(es) is (area) rocky
and not nice haven't walked far enough. The last one has a very nice sandy
beach with shallow water and some nice cliffs for snorkelling to the west.
This part can also be reached from the road: Drive along the cliff side,
when the road turns inland and a telephone line crosses over, turn of the
road and park. Walk down a dry riverbed through an ancient olive grove.
Someone has painted signs that say "Nocted is forbitten". My intrepid
Barefoot reporter made sure he did not do any nocting, nor did he see
anyone enjoying this activity, whatever it is. During the first two weeks
of Sept 2003, there was every day 4-5 couples at this part, all nude.
There were scattered nudes along the rest of the beach towards Kampos,
with 6-7 couples in the first cove after the abandoned taverna.
This beach is located at the west end of Votsalakia village, the
official name of which is Kampos. There’s a bridge at the end of the
village and behind it there’s a sign on the left and a path down to a
still closed tavern. Following this path, partly leading through the dry
river bed, you come to the beach. It is quite big mostly covered with
pebbles and some sand. After the first 300m long section there is one
beautiful cove where a pair of Barefooters spent a marvellous holiday.
Further on there are two other coves with a little worse access into the
sea. All sections (coves), including the first biggest one were used by
naturists for all two weeks. The first one was 80-90% nudist with about 10
to maximum 30 people on the beach, the second and the following ones were
completely nudist. There were mostly people from Holland, Germany,
Britain, France, Italy and Czech Republic. The atmosphere on the beach was
very friendly. A few people walked around during the day which caused no
problems. They mostly went to see the scenery of the coves towards the
west of the island. The beach is surrounded with rocks consisting of
stones and sand. These rocks look very dangerous like they would collapse
every moment, but not even a stone came down while we were there. My
reporters found this beach an ideal place for a naturist holiday.
Follow the path down to the beach - signposted as Fournaki beach - turn
left for the main Kambos/Votsalakia beach and right for a series for
pebble beach coves. All of these seemed to have a mixture of textiles and
naturists. Mostly quiet, for several days out of the week Barefooters had
a beach to themselves.
The village of Kambos/Votsalakia is stretched out along the beach for a
couple of kilometres with no real centre so you will find yourselves
spending a lot of time wandering up and down the mostly quiet road.
Barefoot reporters tell me that as of July 2006, the western end of the
beach was used mainly by nudists, of various countries. The first part of
the beach had sun beds on and was used by textiles. There were up to 14
nudists using the beach. The beach was a mixture of large and small
pebbles but was sheltered to a certain extent by the cliffs from the wins
which seemed to come mainly from the North of the island. My
reporters rated the beach 75%.
The Beach bar is up and running and serves drinks and light snacks. It is run
by a friendly young couple and is a nice place to escape the very hot sun and
get a bit of shade.
But reports from early July 2007 say that Fornaki
beach now has sunbeds, all textile, so Barefooters went to the next bay
over the rocks and were sometimes alone or with a maximum of eight people,
all naturist. Good swimming and snorkelling. Beach shoes were
essential.
The road from Kampos continues to the west on the edge of the cliffs and
after 2.5 kilometres you reach Psili Ammos Beach. According to our beach
neighbours there were only two naturists at the west end of this very crowded
beach. July - August 2004
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West of Samos
Another correspondent did a quick
tour of the West of Samos by motor bike (well mid-West actually because the
very West coast is a long way from anywhere and probably only realistically
achieved by boat). The Northern coast offered nothing and the Southern coast
yielded a single cove achieved by a steep descent. This was gloriously sandy
with shallowish (3 ft) water out for a considerable way. A lovely place for
children with a number of separate shallow caves to provide shade. It could
accommodate about half a dozen small groups without feeling over-crowded and
its seclusion gave it a narrow majority of naturists during this visit. The
resorts in this part of Samos didn't seem to have anything official by way
of naturist beaches, and the location of this one cove is difficult to explain
and its approach rather hazardous. It is immediately below an isolated taverna
before the main resorts of the South West are reached - a bit vague I fear,
our correspondent wasn't planning to contribute to a newsgroup (or a Web
page) at the time!
Votsalakia
The little village Votsalakia is said
to be nice, not busy, and tolerant. There is a beautiful quiet beach
where my contributor has gone for two years. The easiest way to find
it is to follow the coast in Votsalakia in the direction of the end of the
island (Ag.Kiriaki). After a busy textile beach you walk straight on,
just follow the coast (on your left hand side), and notice that the beach
is getting more and more quiet. After a walk (about 15 minutes) you reach
4/5 little beaches, all separated by rocks. There were only three or
four couples, mostly my contributors were alone. Sometimes there were some
people walking by, but this posed no problem at all.
 Psili
Ammos, near Votsalakia
Barefooters who visited in June 2006 recommend Psili Ammos - a lovely
sandy beach with with shallow water with a sandy bottom - so, unlike
Tsamadou, it is easy to get in and out of the water. It is roughly a
45min walk from Votsalakia (don't mistake it with the one to the south of
Samos Town). Taverna and toilets are available by access point, about 250
meters from nudist section which is at the extreme right as you look at
the beach. sunbeds are available for 6 euros per set per day. This pretty
little nudist area (apparently it used to be a larger section of the
beach) had 5 couples and two families on it with room for a few more, most
were English, all were friendly. It was also interesting that a lot
of people my reporters talked to had been to Samos year after year.
It is a wide beach of fine sand which gently shelves into the see.
Half of the beach is umbrellas (to the left as you enter the beach), about
a quarter of the over half towards the end at the right is naturist, up to
20 people while my correspondent was there at the end of Sept 2002.
Although the road runs at the back of beach this is at an elevated level
and this section of the beach is not easily visible from this road.
My contributor would rate this beach highly (95%). The setting, with
the mountains behind and the Bay of Marathokampos in front, is probably
one of the best he has seen in Greece.
Barefooters who visited in June 2005 found the beach a pleasant
surprise. There were some 30 nudists in the west end, and the beach
was very pleasant, the water clean and good for swimming. Beware of the
slope leading down to the beach - the taverna washes cars and lets out the
soapy water on the slope making it very slippery.
Barefoot reporters who were there in June 2007 described it as a sandy
beach with a small nudist section. On my reporters' visit there were
5 or 6 other nude couples. They rated it 60%.
Mikali
Almost deserted beach west of Psili Amos.
Barefooters found a kilometre just for themselves in July 2007. They even
found a nice beach shelter made of natural materials.
Klima Beach - near the village
of Posidonio
A report comes in from August 1998, in the high season when
many beaches are overcrowded, but my correspondents still managed to find
their way to a very nice little beach near Posidonio. It was not easy
to find on the far south-east coast. They bought a very detailed map, hired
a car and asked the locals. As they came closer, they also found small wooden
signs pointing towards the beach. They really just wanted a beach there was
not overcrowded, and found it was also good for nude sunbathing on the right
side. It was a very small beach with not too many people. On the left-hand
side stood a very nice a little Greek taverna with excellent food, lying
more-or-less on the water, as well as free Sunbeds! On the right side there
are some bigger trees to rest under. They visited this beach than for
many days in a row and found empty sunbeds even at 12 o'clock. Beside
Tsamadou this was the best beach if they did not want to be too close to
their neighbours. They rated it 90%. Be aware that a report from
2000 suggests that nudism is now prohibited here; caution is therefore advised.
An email from June 2001 reported that when my contributors were there there
was one other, textile, couple and since the beach is quite small they felt
it was impossible for them to be naked.
Mikali Beach
A huge pebble
beach very close to Pythagorio. Take the road from Pythagorio to Vathi and
turn right when you see the sign to Psili Amos. Mikali beach is divided in
two parts by a taverna. The part right from the taverna is completely empty.
So that might offer an alternative for people staying in Pythagorio or Vathi
when it is too windy for Tsamadou beach. My contributor rated it 50%.
It must be noted that to reach the empty
area of the beach you have to walk away from the tavernas, shower and
toilet facilities but once there you can virtually do your own thing as
you may not see anybody else all day. To find the beach travelling from
Pythagorio to Samos town, look out for a small turning to the right, not
far after passing a large petrol station that looked like a BP garage. You
are generally turning back towards the coast and just follow the road for
a few kilometres and you will eventually pick up signs for Mikali Beach.
Ireon
West of the airport. Drive to the west
through the village of Ireon. Follow signs to "sauber strand" (clean beach
in German). Follow the dirt road past "pappas beach", about 150m past the
parking lot. A track goes down to a pebble/rock beach. 3-4 couples each
day, all nude (Sept 2003), sun goes down early.
Pototaki
West of the airport. Drive trough
the village of Pototaki. There is a rough dirt road that follows the
beach. Follow this road almost all the way to the western end. You will
notice houses and some small farms appearing. Sand/pebbles by an abandoned
pillbox. Not many people around, some gay men and gay activity in the
afternoon. Not a very pleasant beach, but not far to go from
Pythagorion. A local farmer came every afternoon to collect sand
with his "triketor" and usually took a nude swim afterwards. Rating: 50%.
Aspropetra
Follow the road further through a very
nice terraced olive grove. When you're just ashore of the small island
(Petra), turn left and go/drive past a ruined house down the hill. The
road looks a little bit risky, but a rental Hyundai Atoses made it both
down and up. Park and follow the track down to a very nice
pebble/sandy beach. Sheltered from everything but westerly winds, sun late
in the evening. You can swim through "The Pearly Gate". 2-3 couples
everyday, mostly nude, the textiles didn't seem to mind.
 Agios
Ioannis
A Barefoot reporter declares that this resembles
paradise.
It is located in the most SW part of the island.
Take a road from Votsalakia. There must be a monastery somewhere nearby,
but my reporter didn't see it. The last kilometre is a dust-road, but a
rented Matiz made it without problems.
You will see a small bay with a tiny island in the
middle. You have to pass a few metres through a sort of a jungle. There
you will find a small seemingly deserted house and a wonderful bay. Small,
white pebbles. You can get as much shade as you want. Entry in/out of the
water is perfect.
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