Naturist club threatens to take protest to the European court after a resort town’s prohibition on nudity is upheld by Spain’s supreme court

Naturists are taking their fight to be able to strip off on a Catalan beach to Strasbourg after Spain’s supreme court ruled that nudism is not a fundamental right.

The ruling sided with a decision in 2009 by the town of Castell-Platja d’Aro, 50 miles (80km) north of Barcelona, to ban nudism on its beaches and impose fines of up to €300 (£215) on those caught stripping off.

Town councillor Antoni Botellé said the regulations were drawn up to appease the many families who frequent the beach in the summer, but local nudists saw the ban as an attack on their freedoms.

“What bothers us is that they include us in the civic ordinance, describing our behaviour as antisocial. There’s nothing further from reality,” Catalan Naturist Club president Joaquim Plana told the Cadena Ser radio network. “They say it’s to protect families, but we also have families. Nudists aren’t odd people.”

His group took the town to court, arguing that the new regulations violated Spain’s constitution by infringing on members’ right to freely express their beliefs. Nudism, said the group, is akin to a philosophy that includes the practice among other factors.

They say it’s to protect families, but we also have families. Nudists aren’t odd people Joaquim Plana

On Tuesday, Spain’s supreme court rejected their argument. “The personal attitude that is consistent with those who go nude in public spaces such as beaches is not an expression of the fundamental right to ideological freedom,” the court wrote in its decision.

The court backed Castell-Platja d’Aro’s prohibition on nudity, noting that nudism can have an impact on “relations of coexistence”. The court’s decision does not affect partial nudity, such as going topless.

The Catalan Naturist Club said it would appeal the ruling at the European court of human rights in Strasbourg. Far from inconveniencing anyone, said Plana, “the only thing we’re trying to do is ensure that the option of going nude is valid and recognised”.

His group had exhausted all other options, he said, including attempting to work with town officials on designating nudist-friendly beaches. “They gave us the most hidden beach, which was tough to access, and a few families with young children asked us to push for a more accessible location.”

The supreme court’s decision echoes a ruling made earlier this month, supporting regulations drawn up by city officials in Barcelona in 2011 that prohibited nudity in the city. The regulations, which set out fines of up to €500 (£359) for anyone caught wandering Barcelona in their birthday suit and €300 for people wearing swimwear, were challenged in court by several nudist groups.

In Spain – home to 450 nudist beaches – two similar cases challenging authorities who prohibited nudity in Cádiz and Valladolid remain before the country’s supreme court. “We’re afraid that the response will be the same,” said Plana.