Fever


PROS AND CONS OF CAP
OK, nothing is all good. There's always a downside as well as an upside. So what's the catch with Cap?
WEATHER
The sea is not as warm as in the tropics or Greece and there are usually a few off-days in an fortnight. On the other hand... It beats Blackpool.
NUDISM
If you don't actually like being naked in the sun or in front of lots of other people, then obviously you're not going to get as much out of Cap as most visitors do. On the other hand... You can live outside and come into Cap in the evening, when people are wearing sexy clothes, for the clubs and that louche vibe. There are plenty of other beaches in the area. For Les Quai des Anges and L'Extasia you never have to come into the complex at all.
LANGUAGE BARRIER
It's a very friendly place but if you don't speak French or German it severely limits the number of people you can chat up. On the other hand... If you really only want to go on holiday where people speak English then maybe you should stick to North America, Australasia or Spain. In the playrooms of the clubs there are plenty of circumstances where not understanding each others' language doesn't matter or even adds to the excitement.
CONCRETE JUNGLE
The complex itself is a bit like a vast 60s campus university, all glass and concrete and not very beautiful. Walking to and fro over tarmac ratruns between huge buildings and through carparks and ugly service areas is not uplifting. The corridors through the "commercial centres" are very utilitarian. On the other hand... The place is clean everywhere and the "commercial centres" and most of the residential areas apart from Heliopolis are pedestrianised and designed to human scale. The campsite is different and you can stay there for that Garden of Eden feel. Alternatively you can live outside and come in when you feel like it. For those of us who live in concrete jungles anyway, doing so in blazing sunshine with the incredible Cap vibe is a big improvement.
ACCOMMODATION
The big blocks were built in the 70s when space allocations were less generous than they are in modern hotels. Some have not been kept in tip-top condition. On the other hand... Everything is clean; you usually have a private patio or a balcony; many of balconies have now been roofed in to make the flats bigger and where they haven't there is still an excellent view; you can self-cater in every type of accommodation; you haven't come to hide away from the sun and other people anyway; and you could choose to stay in a pension, gite, hotel or villa in textile Cap, Agde or somewhere else nearby and commute in.
FOOD
Cap is not a gastronomic experience. On the other hand... Few of us eat royally all the time on holiday anyway and if you have kids you probably don't want to; all the food available is perfectly edible particularly at Gymnos in Helipolis; you can self-cater when you wish; and proper French cuisine can be found in textile Cap and other nearby towns. A regular bus service connects the Quartier Naturiste with the other Cap d'Agde neighbourhoods.
LUXURY
Even taking out the nudism, Cap is an unusual experience. It is a firmly mid-market location so you wouldn't go there for that luxurious, upmarket feel. However, the campus format inevitably transmits echoes of Butlins with its downmaket associations to British people. On the other hand... If your primary concern is for material excellence in every single holiday then you shouldn't go to Cap. The luxury comes from the combination of the sun and the scintillating sights and scenes of nudity and swinging on an unimaginable scale that cannot be found anywhere else in creation. If you are swingers, you have to give it a try.
CROWDS
At meal times the restaurants are full, the bars are full afterwards and the clubs are full after that. The playrooms are jam packed and some of the people are just tourists. On the other hand... The popular restaurants do fill up so it's best to eat early, or late, or book. The less popular ones almost always have places. You can travel off-site to eat sometimes, especially if you have hired a car. The very popular bars such as the Melrose fill up too but people move out into the corridor and onto the grass. There are bars literally across the corridor from the Melrose that can be almost empty when it is overflowing, so you can always get a drink. Le Glamour is often packed because it is so convenient and has so many playrooms. It is also where people tend to head excitedly on their first night. Crowds are lighter earlier on in the week and the off-site clubs are never so overcrowded. The playrooms at Le Glamour fill up amazingly early but thin out a lot after about 12.30-1am as people start to leave. There's no doubt that playrooms become too overcrowded at points but overall the sense of crowd is essential to Cap's amazing vibe.
TOURISTS
People can come in from outside at night without ever having to take their kit off and move straight into the clubs for a good gawk. On the other hand... There are hardly any tourists in the smaller clubs. All the tourists have to be in couples both to get in at all and then again to get into the playrooms in many clubs, especially the bigger ones. So tourism doesn't equate to single male pests. Showing off with a flagrant exhibition to tourists can be a thrill, especially as you know they wish they had the guts to swing too, but it is annoying if there are so many that they clog things up.
UNREALITY
You can have too much of a good thing. After a while living in a closed environment with tens of thousands of naked people, wearing fetish gear every evening and swinging every night, you can actually start hankering for a dose of reality. On the other hand... This is a holiday and you're only there for a few weeks so enjoy it while you can. If you rent a car you can live outside or escape to explore the area whenever you feel the need for a reality check. British newspapers are sold a day or two late if you need that big a dose of reality. Nudism is a family activity and there are thousands of families with children of all ages at Cap, bringing in a strong air of healthy normality. Small children move around with their parents while adolescents make new friends and hang around together in friendly crowds. Only on the adult beach and in the clubs do you find a sensual ambience.

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PAGES IN THIS SECTION:

» Introduction
» Dress code
» Weather
» Accommodation
» The Beach
» Living at Cap
» Swinging at Cap
» Clubs in Cap
» Clubs in Agde
» L'Extasia
» Pros & cons of Cap
» Travel
» Booking
» Cap in the media & Literature
» Personal Experiences
» Maps