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Apollo Beach is located at the north end of the Canaveral National Seashore. The clothing optional area has been traditionally south of crossover #5. Unlike, Playalinda Beach at the south end of Canaveral, there is no history of mass arrests and no anti-nudity law. The only problem is very limited parking. The distance between lot 4 and 5 is 2 miles.
Take the New Smyrna Beach/Highway 44 exit off of I-95. Go east. From the intersection of Highway 44 and A1A near New Smyrna Beach, go south for 8 miles and park in parking lot 5 (limited spaces-obey all laws). Walk to the right, south of parking lot 5, to marker 29, where the CO area begins.
Because of the problems in past years at Playalinda, naturist groups had asked visitors to not spend money in Brevard County. On the other hand, they said if you are at Apollo, you are strongly encouraged to spend money in Volusia County. The closest place to stay near Apollo is almost right outside the gate. It is called the Aloha Motel. It is not a nudist facility. Ann, the personable manager and former owner, takes great pains to let one and all know that she welcomes everyone of good character, and that includes nudists.
Tell merchants that you are in the area spending money because you are there for the clothing-optional beach at Apollo. You will not encounter outright hostility against nudists in this area. Many merchants well remember the hit that the local room occupancy rate took a couple of years ago when Wendell Simpson ticked and/or arrested some German tourists for simple nudity. Every German travel bureau knew about these incidents and diverted German tourists to alternate locations until the situation at Apollo was clarified.
There is no current prohibition unless your nudity is accompanied by lewd or lascivious conduct or other breach of the peace. In other words, genuine nudists will have no problem. There is a sign about 30 meters south of the steps from the last parking lot that says "You may encounter nudity beyond this point."
Apollo is packed from front to back most of the time these days with cars. It starts early and it stays that way through the day. The problem with the limited parking is not the nudists, but the publication of an article about "hidden treasures" of the park system in Holiday Travel Magazine. Actual on the beach nudist participation at Apollo is about half of "normal." The park is overflowing with textiles. The Volusia County Sheriff's Office,in past years had been engaged in letting the perception take hold that the crowding and parking problems are the fault of nudists filtering in from Brevard County.
Local Volusia County information can be found at: http://www.volusia.com
The National Park Service search engine is at: http://www.nps.gov/
