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For the past couple years, I’ve been convinced that backpackers and independent travelers were the only folks still traveling in significant numbers — but I guess I was mistaken. A recent Reuters dispatch reports that nudist travel is one of the few tourist sectors still booming in spite of war and terrorism fears. According to the American Association for Nude Recreation, naked recreation and travel is now a $400 million a year industry worldwide.
The main drawback of nudist travel, of course (aside from the obvious question of where to stow your passport), is that it doesn’t leave a lot of room for cross-cultural exchange. That’s why it was interesting to read this rather upbeat article in Arab News about a group of mainly American tourists who recently spent a couple weeks camping and trekking among the Bedu of the Saudi Arabian deserts. The timing of this article is somewhat bizarre, given the recent bombing in Riyadh, but I appreciated its optimistic insinuation that travel puts a human face on cultures in a way that news coverage never will. And while I doubt that nude cruises (or even backpackers) will be welcome in the Kingdom anytime soon, I hope that intrepid infidels will continue to keep these travel bonds alive in Saudi Arabia.
May 16th, 2003 at 8:00 am
From the latest Arab News:
May 16th, 2003 at 10:47 am
Yeah, despite their economic and cultural integrity, backpackers have too much of a tendency for binge drinking, skinny-dipping, and wandering off the accepted travel routes. Thus — considering the religious sensitivity of places like Mecca and Medina — I’d be surprised if there’s ever much of an indie travel scene in Saudi. But I’d like to see guided travel in the Kingdom develop into something involving more homestays and local hospitality; less resort-style sequestration. Guided or not, that would at least put a face on the travel experience there. And, given what I’ve experienced in the countries nearby, I’m sure Saudi hospitality is first-rate.