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German nudists are able to start their holidays early by
stripping off on the plane if they take up a new offer from an eastern
German travel firm. 
One can sense the awkwardness for anyone seated in the middle
Travel agency OssiUrlaub said it would start taking bookings from
Friday for a trial nudist day trip from the eastern German town of
Erfurt to the popular Baltic Sea resort of Usedom, planned for July 5
and costing 499 euros ($735).
"It's expensive, I know," managing director Enrico Hess told Reuters
by phone. "It's because the plane's very small. There's no real reason
why a flight in which one flies naked should be more expensive than any
other."
The 55 passengers will have to remain clothed until they board, and
dress before disembarking, said Hess. The crew will remain clothed
throughout the flight for safety reasons.
"I wish I could say we thought of it ourselves but the idea came
from a customer," Hess told Reuters by phone. "It's an unusual gap in
the market."
Naturism, or "free body culture" (FKK) as it is known in Germany,
was banned by the Nazis but blossomed again after the Second World War,
particularly in eastern Germany.
"There are FKK hotels where you can go into the restaurants and
shops naked, for example," Hess said. "For FKK fans -- not that I'm one
of them -- it's nothing unusual."
"I don't want people to get the wrong idea. It's not that we're
starting a swinger club in mid-air or something like that," he added.
"We're a perfectly normal holiday company."
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