This Country Allows Women To Swim Topless

Berlin’s authorities have ruled that women are now allowed to swim topless in public pools. The decision came after a woman was thrown out of an open-air pool for sunbathing topless, and a second woman was told to cover up while at an indoor pool in December.

The authorities agreed that both women had been victims of discrimination and clarified that all visitors to Berlin’s pools were now entitled to go topless.

The ruling is in line with Freikörperkultur, which translates to free body culture, a movement that champions public nudity in some settings. Public nudity in Germany is considered appropriate and healthy in certain situations, which can surprise foreign visitors.

Last summer, two other German cities, Göttingen and Siegen, also allowed women to swim topless. However, Berlin’s pool operator, the Berliner Bäderbetriebe, has not changed its rules, which state that bathing costumes must cover the genitals. They have merely clarified that this rule applies to all visitors, regardless of gender.