Monsena Naturist Resort (Croatia) 1998

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Although we have been going to naturist beaches for about fifteen years we have always stayed at textile hotels, this was to be our first holiday at an all naturist resort. Other than the brochure details we had no idea what to expect, and it was in a country which gained it's independence only four years ago - Croatia. Yes we know what you are thinking; 'don't they shoot each other', 'aren't they at war'. Well no they are not, the Republic of Croatia was formed from one part of the old Yugoslavia. The war happened but it has been peaceful since independence, so no worries about being shot! The coastline of what is now Croatia has always been popular with naturists, in the Seventies and Eighties thousands of British, Dutch, Germans and Italians visited. The Brits seem a little slow to return.

We used a UK holiday operator to find our holiday and flew, late afternoon, from London Stanstead airport with Croatia Airlines arriving at Pula airport after about two hours twenty minutes. Monsena is about a forty minute drive from Pula and we were transferred by mini-bus. By the time we arrived it was dark, we checked in at the entrance to the complex, this was handled efficiently and we found our way to our room.

Monsena opened in 1975, it is on the Adriatic coast about 3 miles from Rovinj. Built on the southern slope of a gentle hill it comprises a large complex of "bungalows", which contain hotel type rooms, upstairs ones with balconies, self catering apartments and a large camp site. Plenty of trees and shrubs take away from the starkness of the buildings which are typical 70's concrete buildings. There are plenty of optional day trips available, including a catamaran service to Venice and coach trips to places of interest in the surrounding counties and Slovenia. But if all you want to do is relax then you can. Tennis, volleyball, boulle and water sports are all available in addition to a large pool with water slide and of course the beach and wonderful warm sea.

We went on a half board catering arrangement (breakfast and dinner). These meals were served in a large dining room (which houses 1000 people) at the top of the site. Breakfast was buffet style with the usual continental offerings of breads, cheese, cold meats, cereals, fruit juice and tea/coffee. Dinner was served by a team of waitresses, you had to select what you required the evening before. We found dinner to be rather liked we remembered school dinners in the 60's - wholesome but unexciting! There are other eating places within the complex; an à la carte restaurant, a pizzeria, a taverna and a snack bar. We used the taverna for lunch which was excellent value, as was the pizzeria. There is also a small supermarket, a fruit and vegetable stall and another stall selling beach umbrellas, blow up beds etc.. Bureau de change facilities are available as are safe deposit boxes.

A little to our surprise clothes were expected to be worn for breakfast and dinner, as well as during the evening at the entertainment provided, live bands and disco. No nudity was allowed in the supermarket and a cover up was necessary at lunch times in the various eating places. And we thought we'd come to a naturist resort!

So what did we do? Well very little! On the first day we found a quiet spot on the beach. Really beach is the wrong word as like the rest of Croatia there isn't really a beach, just flat rocks which go into the sea. These are a bit hard but do have a few cracks in to accommodate the beach umbrella! An umbrella is essential for a little shade, we had a top temperature of 100F on one day! The beach is mostly backed by tree's and dense shrubbery offering some shelter from the midday sun and places for a quiet read etc.. Swimming was a pleasure in the warm Adriatic, but beware of sea urchins, although not poisonous there spines are difficult to remove and we recommend some protective footwear.

We mentioned earlier about clothes. During the day, after breakfast, people mostly walked around naked, or a few wrapped in sarongs. We were aware that people had been asked to leave the complex as they were wearing swimming trunks, these were we suspect local boys who had swum in and then walked around to ogle! Fortunately Monsena security soon removed them.

Our room was pretty basic, but very clean, with two single beds, dressing table, wardrobe and an en-suite bathroom. The balcony was equipped with a sun bed, two chairs and a table. If you are considering going make sure you specify you want a first floor room as the ground floor rooms do not have a balcony.

The evening entertainment when we were there was provided by a couple of bands who alternated nightly. There was no sign of any entertainment without children present.

Our only trip outside the complex was to visit Rovinj, an attractive small town with a church on a hill and small narrow streets to explore. This we did using the local bus. We were only at Monsena a week and wanted to make the most of the sunshine. This we did on the beach and Liz has a wonderful all over tan. David is fair so of course has to be very careful!

We plan to visit another part of Croatia sometime in the future, it's a fascinating country trying to get on its feet.

David & Liz

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