What does “textile-free” mean in South Tyrol?

Textile-free means that you do not wear swimwear in this area. Hotels and public pools in South Tyrol have sauna areas with and without swimwear, and the label always applies to the area it is given for. What else applies there, for example regarding towels or the minimum age, depends on the rules of the individual hotel or public pool.

The label applies to one area

A property can have textile-free saunas and still require swimwear in the pool. Likewise, a textile-free area can include more than the sauna cabins, for example a whirlpool, a pool or a relaxation room. So the pool, relaxation room and day spa are neither automatically textile-free nor automatically exempt. What matters is how the property describes its areas.

Hotels also use the term nude area. The counterpart is called a swimwear sauna or swimwear area: there you use the sauna in swimwear. In addition, a property may explicitly allow both for a single facility, for example a whirlpool that you can use with or without swimwear. That is then a rule for this facility. It does not change what textile-free means.

Towels and bathrobes

The textile-free label only says something about swimwear. How you use towels and bathrobes is up to the property. For example, a towel large enough to sit or lie on may be required in the sauna cabin, and a bathrobe may not be enough for this. In relaxation rooms or at a sauna bar, on the other hand, the rule may be that you cover up with a towel or bathrobe. Before booking, ask the property whether towels and bathrobes are provided for you or have to be borrowed.

Age and separate areas

A textile-free area may have its own minimum age, for example from age 14 or 16, or it may be reserved for adults. A family hotel may, for example, have a swimwear sauna for families and a separate textile-free adults-only area. If you are traveling with children, ask which sauna you can use together.

If you would rather wear swimwear

That is your decision. Some properties have a separate swimwear sauna for this or individual facilities that you can use with or without swimwear. In a textile-free area itself, swimwear is not meant to be worn. Before booking, ask specifically: Which saunas and areas can I use in swimwear? Does the rule apply at all times of day? Do women and men use the area together? With these answers you will know before you arrive which part of the spa suits you.

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• More questions about rules, age and access