Watch out for that hot gravy! Nudists from UK's first luxury naturist hotel reveal they'll be lunching in the buff this Christmas
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A group of naturists from the UK's only luxury naturists' hotel have appeared on This Morning to tell viewers they will be spending Christmas day in the buff.
Tim Higgs, 56, and his team from the Clover Spa in Birmingham joined Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford on the breakfast show's sofa to reveal their plans for a very naked festive season.
To much guffawing from the seemingly tickled This Morning hosts, the naturists explained their decision - and told the nation it is 'liberating' to go without clothes at Christmas.
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Naked lunch: Naturists Emma Stokes, Andrew Welch, Vicki Hinks and Tim Higgs from Birmingham's Clover Spa appear on This Morning to say they'll be eating their Christmas dinner in the buff this year
Higgs, who opened the Clover Spa, a seven-bedroom retreat for naturists, in 2011, says he will be enjoying turkey with all the trimmings unclothed - along with guests who have booked to stay over the festive period.
Of course, the hosts couldn't resist asking the question on everyone's lips: what happens if one guest is attracted to another, and there is a 'physical reaction', as Ruth delicately puts it.
'It doesn't happen,' Higgs reassures his host. 'There is fear, but it doesn't happen when it comes to it.
'You are fully exposed,' agrees Tim. 'But it doesn't happen. Maybe one time in 10,000. But you can just go off and have a cold shower.'
'At least you know what you're getting,' says Ruth.
Higgs was joined on the This Morning sofa by his hotel receptionist Vicki Hinks, guest Emma Stokes and Andrew Welch, who has been a naturist for over twenty years.
Andrew said: 'Most people can't separate sex from nudity, that is not what it's about.
'Years of social conditioning have made people feel awkward and embarrassed about a naked body, and we all have one.
'We are having fun and frolicking around but not in that way it's just normal people not in their clothes.'
Emma stokes added: 'There is nothing to hide behind in a naturist environment. It has allowed me to be happy and comfortable in my skin.'
Manager Tim Higgs, his deputy Vicki Hinks, and guests Emma Stoke, left, and Andrew Welch, right, appeared on This Morning today to talk about their plans for a naked Christmas
Higgs, whose four children and wife prefer to live a clothed existence, says he loves to go naked, and will be holding four Christmas parties in the run up to the big day.
'It is liberating,' he said in an interview earlier this week with Closer magazine. 'Everyone has lumps and bumps - clothes are a disguise.'
He stresses that his hotel is not a venue for swingers, but rather a place that offers visitors the freedom not to wear clothes.
'As a naturist, you don't look at people's bodies in a sexual way, you just see the people.'
But as with all things, there are health and safety concerns surrounding the naked Christmas party.
'I have to be careful of the sausages when I'm carving the turkey!' he laughs.
Higgs confirmed that while all the rooms at his nudist hotel have already been reserved for the big New Year's Eve party they are still taking bookings for the evening event.
VIDEO: Some tips for the perfect nudist Christmas...
INSIDE BRITAIN'S FIRST NATURISTS' SPA HOTEL
The seven-room hotel, set in a 1920s former private residence, boasts luxury spa facilities – sauna, steam room, hot tub on the patio and a cold plunge pool (‘you go in a man and come out a boy,’ Higgs jokes), as well as oil-scented treatment rooms for naturist massages and facials.
There’s a picturesque garden where guests gather in warmer weather, or heated, mosaic-tiled lounging areas for cooler days.
It's a sociable hotel, where guests meet to read, chat or play board games.
Contradicting the stereotypical Carry On image of nudist camps, there's no naked volleyball or ping pong – no one wants things ‘bouncing around’, laughs Higgs - although he does concede to a spot of French boules.
Fun al fresco: Guests at Britain's first naturist spa hotel mingle in the garden, where they can enjoy the hot tub or a game of boules. 'Nothing too strenuous - no one wants things bouncing around,' jokes owner Tim Higgs
Gap in the market: Higgs, who also runs a hotel for 'textiles' (clothed people) next door to the spa, opened Clover Spa in a 1920s former private residence after struggling to find decent naturist spots in the UK
A café provides healthy food – no alcohol (getting a license is ‘onerous’, says Higgs, and anyway, alcohol and saunas ‘don’t mix’) – although guests are welcome to bring their own bottle of wine.
Since the launch of the hotel in the Midlands suburb in January this year, a steady flow of naturists have sojourned at the establishment. And, while it’s early days yet, 55-year-old Higgs is allowing himself to hope that the future for Birmingham as the hub of Britain’s naturist scene is bright.
'We’ve only been open a few months, but those who are coming have given us a fantastic review,’ he says.
As this is a start-up business, Higgs admits he’ll need plenty of visitors to make the hotel successful in the long-run. But he is optimistic.
‘To get any new business off the ground takes a year, maybe two,’ he says. ‘But we’re growing at a good pace, and the feedback is such that we expect it to be well-populated.’
Sociable: Naturists gather in the communal areas to read, play games or chat. 'It's very friendly,' says Higgs
A keen naturist himself, Higgs decided to open the hotel after noticing the lack of suitable holiday spots for naturists in Britain.
‘On the Continent, nudity is normal,’ he says. ‘Naturism is a common experience, and people wouldn't dream of wearing swimming costumes in wellness facilities in Austria, Germany, Denmark or Hungary. In Southern Europe, many beaches are naturist. But here, there’s very little.’
Until Tim opened Clover Spa, he says he had nowhere to go in the UK for his ‘fix’.
‘Many of the places advertised weren’t very nice,‘ says Higgs.‘There are too many places who had hijacked the term ‘naturism’ but turned out to be swinging lairs with dark corners and things going on you don’t want. Or at least,' he says, 'I didn’t want.’
There will be no such shenanigans at Clover Spa. ‘Our hotel is clean, bright and above board,' he says. ‘There are no dark corners; there’s nothing illegal or immoral going on.
'We have had inquiries from the sort of people who like that kind of thing, but we advise them not to come along.‘
In fact, guests have reported that Clover Spa is particularly welcoming, even for the first-time naturist – or ‘textile’, as naturists call clothed people.
Higgs agrees. ‘It’s very sociable – one of the friendliest places around,’ he says. ‘People are very open, they’re more vulnerable when naked, and respectful of other people. It’s a unique atmosphere.’
Luxury: Tim, left, enjoys the hot tub on the patio with a fellow staff member
Modern: The bedrooms and bathrooms at the Clover Spa hotel have been newly refurbished
Relaxing: Guests have use of sauna and steam rooms as well as cold plunge pool and hot tub
Higgs explains that often it’s the husband in a couple who is the keen naturist, while their wives come along for the ride. But he is adamant that even novice naturists will enjoy Clover Spa.
‘Many women come to support their husbands, but leave converts. ‘They like that there’s no perviness, no voyeurism. It’s genuine good quality stuff.
'Once they've done it, they realise how liberating it is to be at ease with their bodies.
'We find they come back time and time again.'
Rules are few: No smoking, no swimwear, no cameras, no clothes. Once a guest enters the doors of the hotel, they must leave their clothing in their rooms, but can choose to wear a towel or robe if they please.
The eight members of staff at Clover Spa are clothed when they’re working at the front desk, but all disrobe ‘when they can’, while Higgs’ takes the opportunity of time off to mingle naked with the guests.
His own wife is less keen on joining her husband in the altogether, although she supports him on the business side of things. As for his four children - aged between 15 and 30 - they were naturists once – children take to it instinctively, says Higgs – but they now steer clear. ‘They hate seeing photos of me naked in the Press,’ he admits.
This confession does nothing to promote naturism as a young person’s game. It’s a truism that naturist resorts tend to attract the more mature clientele, and the Clover Spa hotel’s guests seem to prove the theory.
'Maybe it's down to cost, time, competing recreational activities - or that they're not yet comfortable enough with their bodies - but we don’t have many guests under 30,’ he says.
'But there are some. Just this weekend we had a young Italian couple with a two-month-old baby, and we had someone celebrate their 70th birthday, so there’s a real range.’
Given the prevalence of naturism in the old over the young, and in men over women, there’s an untapped market out there – something Higgs is keen to change.
‘We’re always looking to attract new customers, and we use feedback to keep improving the experience for everyone,’ he says.
Rooms cost £120-£150 a night, but Higgs says there are always deals available. He is planning to add some light entertainment in the evenings, supply women’s magazines and chilled fruit salads in the lounging areas - and target non-nudist women's magazines with marketing.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2248094/Nudists-UKs-luxury-naturist-hotel-reveal-theyll-lunching-buff-Christmas.html#ixzz2F2T4SHBg
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