It’s long been a cliché, but it is true: Germans are very matter-of-fact about their nakedness. These days it is not so prevalent as it once was, but walkers in Munich’s Englischer Garten, for example, or even on a certain trail in the Harz Mountains, may find their jaws drop and their eyes pop as they encounter the unexpectedly textile-free.

Being married to a German, I encountered my parents-in-law, eye-poppingly starkers, on the very first weekend I went to stay with them. It was quite a shock when it happened, I can tell you, but over the years I guess I have become immune, although I’ve not joined them and have yet to be convinced of the health benefits or even metaphysical benefits of spending more time naked. Germany’s younger generation is broadly of the same opinion as me, although most are still prepared to divest themselves of all clothing when the occasion demands.

Anyway, stepping into a German sauna last week reminded me of certain key bits of sauna etiquette, the sort of things that sauna virgins, or infrequent visitors, should be aware of. Especially during the holiday season.

• Don’t stare. It’s rude. And giggling is even worse. If you can’t take the heat, get out of the kitchen; if nudity, in its imperfect forms (and most bodies are imperfect, particularly in saunas), disturbs you, then stay away.
• You don’t have to be naked. Nobody insists on it. Although you may feel uncomfortable if you are in your cozzie whilst everyone else is in their birthday suit, which by the way is a sure way of attracting attention to yourself as a potential pervert.
• Some saunas have textile-free zones, which should be clearly marked. Take the cozzie, but be prepared to leave it in the changing room.
• There are always towels, lots of them. Mostly tastefully draped. Make sure you are well equipped in the towel department, and sit or lie on one if you are naked, for reasons of hygiene.
• Even the most beautiful of bodies is still just a body, and it is surprising how unsexy the sauna can make it.
• You may think that everyone is looking at you, but don’t kid yourself; they’ve been to a lot of saunas and seen a lot of bodies, and yours is very unlikely to be any different to all the rest. Unless you’re from the planet Zog.

As anyone who has ventured into a German sauna or onto the beaches of the Baltic will know, Germany is famously relaxed about public nudity, and has been for some decades. The first nude beach (on the island of Sylt) was established in 1920, at a time when the British were still excited by the glimpse of an ankle. Germany’s FKK (Freikörperkultur – free body culture) movement was intent on de-sexualising the naked body, promoting a health and fitness philosophy that emphasised nudity’s naturalness and sense of liberation. It went hand in glove with a vision of a Utopian society, a natural healing movement that believed in the benefits of sunshine and swimming in the sea or in fresh water, and in breaking down social barriers between classes. There’s no one-upmanship when you’re starkers.

However Nazi Germany was not sure whether it approved – it feared the spread of homosexuality – so the movement was intermittently forced underground as World War II approached.

The FKK rebounded with a vengeance during the Communist rule of eastern Germany, for reasons of organised recreation and reducing everyone to the same level, and many beaches and even parks were designated as nudist-friendly, although any sexual activity was (and is) strictly prohibited. The FKK even became partly politicised as a left-wing movement in capitalist West Germany, too.

There’s no one-upmanship when you’re starkers

But post-reunification the fashion seems to be passing, along with the swing away from socialism. FKK beaches are still evident on the Baltic coast and islands, as well as on Sylt, but they are no longer that popular with families, and tend to attract older and rather less appealing devotees.

But this is still the nation which pioneered totally naked flights, from Erfurt to Usedom on the Baltic Coast (visions of Ryanair charging passengers for wearing clothes) and has a specifically designated 18km naked hiking trail for Nacktwandern through the Harz Mountains. Saunas are still predominantly naked, although these days most people take a towel, to sit on. And sunbathers are allowed to strip off totally in a Munich city centre park, the English Garden, where they often prove a real surprise to unprepared tourists, especially as the vast majority come from Munich’s active homosexual community.

More information on FKK locations in Germany.