Wickedly good:

10 things you didn’t know about Jamaica’s most scandalous resort

RUNAWAY BAY, Jamaica –Hedonism. Just the word makes modest folks blush.

In brochures covered with plain brown wrappers, the Hedonism III resort polishes its naughty reputation.

“Be wicked for a week,” it beckons. “Go skinny dipping. Don’t make your bed. Don’t call your mother.”

But what is really behind the high yellow pastel walls of Jamaica’s nude singles-couples resort?

Fewer clothes and more relaxation than you imagine.

At least, during the day.

“Everyone thinks everyone here is walking around having sex with everybody else, and we want the risque feeling, but we don’t want it to seem like a free-for-all,” said Aubrey Lewis, public relations manager at the resort.

“We’re famous, but we’re also infamous.”

Sitting at a bar at Hedonism III in early afternoon, overlooking the gorgeous Caribbean as it sweeps around Runaway Bay, west of Ocho Rios, Lewis is dressed formally in creased trousers, with shiny shoes and a firm handshake.

We go on a tour. The restaurants. The disco. The small but pretty beaches. The lodgings.

The nude pool. The nude pool is not large, but it is packed with nude people of all ages, shapes and sizes. They are lounging on chairs, sitting at the swim-up bar, eating at the Nud-I-Burger or just floating in the water.

Dutch nudists get their own fair

European nudists can discover the latest trends at a new nudists’ fair to be held twice a year in Spaarnwoude, a small village near Haarlem in the north-west of the Netherlands. The international nudist fair is an initiative of Uitgeverij Vizier, publisher of the so-called Campingpas. The Campingpas is a card that gives Dutch travellers reduced rates at camping and holiday sites in the Netherlands.

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Caliente Caribe offers refined, textile-free vacationing

Love is in the air. Pucker up for your sweetie and hitch yourself a ride somewhere sunny. Can’t stand to be on a beach with a swimsuit? The Dominican Republic’s Two if by SeaCaliente Caribe near Puerto Plato may be your next favorite holiday hideaway.

Unlike some clothing optional resorts that take a Gestapo-like approach to being au natural at all times, you can wear (or not wear) what you want, when you want. Most guests prefer to spend their days on the beach in the buff, but dress for dinner.

It’s all up to you.

Caliente Caribe is a 3-star resort, even though most Seacliff Accomodations guests feel it’s under-rated. And there’s nothing GG travelers love more than underestimating a resort.

It’s not perfect though. Dinning choices are limited, but the chef will accommodate special requests. It’s an all-inclusive so your drinks are included, but brand name liquors are provided only upon request.

The beach is small and offers a well-balanced mix of shade and sunny areas.

As one guest said, it’s not the right resort for you if you’re a table-dancing junkie who never goes to bed. But if you’re looking for friction-free vacationing in a laid-back, elegant setting, Caliente Caribe may be your postcard-perfect vacation?

Learn more about Caliente Caribe, formerly Eden Bay Resort

Show a passport - or get carded

To speed security checks at the border, the State Department is introducing a passport card this spring - good for travel by land or sea to Bermuda, Canada, the Caribbean and Mexico - that provides the same privileges as traditional passport books.

Applications for the cards, which are the size of a driver’s license, are available through passport acceptance facilities, which include post offices and some local-government offices (http://travel.state.gov).

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Nudity: Un-covering a bashful American

For the first year I lived in Prague, I found myself blushing whenever I glimpsed a bare body. Between the communal gym showers, topless sunbathing and popular therapeutic spas, it occurred more often than I expected. Although I didn’t think I was a prude, I was used to more privacy and less exposed flesh in similar situations in America.

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