I posted this on Cat's Chat, but it seems a good question to post here as well. It is mostly addressed at those frequenting Eurpoean beaches, but perspectives from any country are welcome.

I haven't been on a textile beach in France for more years than I care to remember. I'm curious -- is it still commonplace for people to strip off and change into swimwear on the beach? It certainly used to be. And what about elsewhere in Europe?

Of course the practice of textiles has little to do with naturism, but I'm curious to know how changing societal views of nudity are reflected. There certainly seems to have been a change over the years in the US and UK, where even changing openly in a single-sex locker room is much rarer than in my childhood. Are only Anglophones affected?

I then posted this follow-up:

I don't mean to suggest that the practice of changing on the beach reflects general views on naturism, but it says something about a country's view on nudity in general if (as used to be the case in some countries) it is relatively common to change without more than a token attempt to remain hidden while doing so. I have read much about the decrease in popularity of toplessness among the younger beachgoers in France and wondered if it extended to a new coyness about brief nudity while changing, and what people's recent experience of other European countries was.

In the past, I have observed Germans to be even less coy about changing in public than the French, and I wouldn't be surprised to hear it is still or more so. The Scandinavians seem pretty comfortable with it too. I don't know about the Dutch.

On a similar note, I remember many years ago swimming pools in France where people would remove and rinse their swimsuits in the mixed showers without anyone batting an eyelid, but I don't know if it happens any more.

Dino

From what I've seen in the USA, it seems most common for people to have their swim suits on under their street clothes, then take off their "outer wear" once on the beach.