Now Caliente is circulating plans to add an RV section that could threaten
some of the smaller resorts that cater to motoring nudists.
"There is nothing like this in the nudist world," Bowen said of the resort.
"I felt we could do it better, which, obviously, we have," Foster said. "Como
is rustic. Paradise is Motel 6. This is the Ritz Carlton."
Doug and Adele Butler, a Virginia couple looking to settle into early
retirement, chose Caliente over a nudist resort in Palm Springs, Calif.
"We love the freedom of being nude. And look at our view," said Adele Butler,
pointing to the lily-covered lakes behind her $500,000 Caliente home. "We come
home to a resort."
But Caliente left Illinois retirees Denny and Arlene Reed a little cold.
"We had considered it, but Lake Como seemed more friendly to us," said
63-year-old Denny Reed, sitting poolside wearing only a baseball cap and a deep
tan. "Competition is a good thing. They all look at each other and learn. Each
one offers a different experience."
Cheri Alexander, founder of the Travelites nudist club in South Carolina,
said the larger resorts such as Paradise and Caliente tend to capture most of
the attention of the American Association of Nude Recreation.
"I don't think the mom-and-pop operations are being pushed out, but I think
marketing is being focused on the larger clubs instead of the smaller ones like
Lake Como," Alexander said. "I sometimes have to remind the powers-that-be in
our organization to remember the mom and pops."
The American Association of Nude Recreation estimates nudists pump about $400
million into the global tourism economy, up from $120 million in 1992. The
association says its ranks have grown 75 percent to 50,000 members in that time.
Nudists can chose from 270 clubs, resorts and campgrounds in the United States.
And a lot of that business comes to Pasco County, where the six resorts are
concentrated along a six-mile stretch of U.S. 41 in Land O' Lakes, about 20
miles north of Tampa.
County officials say it impossible to put a tax value on the dozens of
condos, homes and hundreds of acres of land owned by nudists.
"They're good neighbors," Pasco County Commissioner Pat Mulieri said. "They
provide a wide tax base. It's great. We get people from all over the world."
Nudist resorts brought in a sizable chunk of the US$807,000 in tourist tax
revenue collected in the county last year, good money in an area with no major
tourist attractions. Pasco has reserved a spot on its tourism board for a
nudist.
Florida's collection of nudist resorts are barely acknowledged by state and
local tourism officials who stick to safer terrain such as Disney, the mermaids
of Weeki Wachee springs or Busch Gardens, all major attractions that flank
Pasco's nudist resorts in all directions.
Still, Lettelleir likes to think Pasco's "It's only natural" ad campaign is a
cheeky nod to the nudist economy.
"We thought that was great," Lettelleir said. "We call it our joint slogan.
They don't see it that way. They're not willing to carry that as their theme,
but the county and city governments aren't ashamed of us."
All three major resorts aim to keep the money train rolling, with additional
condos and RV space. Paradise and Caliente are opening new locations in other
states and the Dominican Republic.
They are also marketing to college-age kids.
Caliente wants to capture part of the young party crowd in Tampa's Ybor City.
Paradise joined forces with a 21-year-old University of South Florida public
relations student to market free admission, cheap beer and reverse strip
poker - you lose, you put clothes on.
Lettelleir acknowledges it's a hard sell. Contrary to Paradise's alluring ad,
most of the bare bodies poolside are decidedly middle-aged.
"I think the industry will continue to grow, but it will not grow through the
college ranks," Lettelleir said. "The younger generation doesn't have a problem
with the nudity; they just don't particularly go and belong to things."