Istra FKK in Rovinj Peng Travel Rovinj naturist guide (part of Croatia Naturally web site)

Croatia Holiday 2003: Monsena
by Terry Blunt from the UK

Yesterday evening I returned form Monsena, so thought I'd write a bit about it before I forget the details. This was a Peng booking.

The flight out (from Gatwick) was notworthy in that it was actually 5 minutes early! It was about 2 hours, starting at 21:30 and then another hour travelling by coach to Monsena itself so it was the wee hours of the morning by the time we got to our rooms.

Monsenna is half 'bungalows' and half caravan/camping. The accomodation is pretty basic and mostly actually two story, but clean and adequate. In the camping section there are several large well fitted wash/shower blocks. I stayed in a 2 bed 'bungalow'. This consisted of one room with the beds end-to-end and an attached shower and toilet. I was right in the middle of the complex and on the upper floor. There was a small sun patio area that only got partial sun, but then I was hardly ever thare so it wasn't an issue.

The resort is C/O everywhere (even reception) except the shop and the two on-site resturants. However at the beach resturant you only have to be clothed inside, not if you are out under the awnings and umbrellas. There is a band or singer there most evenings from about 8:30 to midnight.
There is also a bar type resturant well along the beach to the west. This seems to be fully c/o and the food is cheaper! There is yet another bar to the extreme west just outsite the resorts grounds. I kept well away from there though having gone there once and been propositioned, something I found quite distasteful.
The 'main' resturant and games hall is right at the top of the site - literally - but this was closed the first week, and breakfast and dinner were at the smaller beach one.

Alongside the beach resturant there is a sizeable double swiming pool, with a short waterfall/slide between them, and a flume into the top one. The flume was not operating the first week.
The beach area is long, very long! It's a rock beach with some patches of shingle, and quite a long strip of it has a paved footpath at the back with shower stands at intervals.
There is a short concrete jetty with steps and a ladder that were both well used by swimmers. At the east end of the resort, near the resturant there is also a breakwater with more ladders for swimmers. This also forms a sort of harbour for speedboats and canoes etc. that are for hire. From this breakwater there is a white floating boom that streteches back along the beach past the jetty and about half way along the resorts beach area defining a safe area for swimmers.
At my sedate pace it took 6-7 minutes to swim (breast stroke) from the end of the jetty to the boom, and about 20 minutes to swim from the jetty to the breakwater.

Monsena has its own security people. These are *very* discrete, and you would be hard pressed to spot them unless you are close enough to read their name badges. They just look like rather smartly dressed men.
There is a 'no cameras' policy but I did see one or two people taking what were obviously family pictures and nobody seemed to mind.

One thing about Monsena is that there is plenty of shade from trees over the entire site right down to the beach. Indeed, I think Croatia is the greenest hot country I've ever seen.

The local rep standing for Peng can point you to a number of excursions if you want, including an excellent fully naturist Fish Picnic that sets off from the resort. This was an all day event as the ship meandered along the coast, round an island or two and stopping at a bay for anyone to have a dip in the sea. Food was laid on almost continuously, as was drink, and all included in the price. The ship had a large area of awning so you could get under cover if you found the sun a bit too fierce.

My holiday was for just one week at the begining of June. This seems to be the ideal time for me. The resort had only just opened so numbers were low and it was fairly quiet. It was also sunny but not too hot.

When I first arrived there was a sprinking of families, but mostly couples and older singles. The weekend marking the second week of opening there was a major influx and the site opened fully. There were lots more families, but I found the kids were happy-squeaky-noisy rather than rowdy.

Thanks Terry Blunt for this report.

If you would like to submit your trip reports, please write HERE.

Back to Trip Reports