ISLAND QUEEN

Every year in the middle of August the election of an "island Queen" becomes the climax of the season. Joy, merriment and laughter.

Ile du Levant in the nude n°111 Special Edition Sun & Health (Holidays) Limited 1967

Queen 1961 Marie-France

ILES D'OR

Name of the islands in the sea between Hyeres and Le Lavandou. From the west to the east, Porquerolles, Bagaud, Port Cros, Ile du Levant. Another name for them is : Iles d'Hyères.

Ile du Levant in the nude n°111 Special Edition Sun & Health (Holidays) Limited 1967

HARPOON

Those armed with a valid "Permis de chasse sous marine" may kill all the fish they meet who are tired of life - They won't get the others anyhow. Diving with compressed and bottles may be carried out without a permit of any kind. But if you carry a harpoon while doing so you may reckon with a stern penalty.

Ile du Levant in the nude n°111 Special Edition Sun & Health (Holidays) Limited 1967

SEASON

The only holidaymakers who come to Heliopolis in July and August  are those unable to determine the time of their vacation independently. Unfortunatly this class encompasses very many travellers, more than the small island's capacity. Dumb witness to the overcrowding is given by the masses of litter in the maquis, as the shore and in the water : paper, tin cans, empty bottles, cigarette cartons, dirty rags, filth of every description. Is your litter really necessary ? The island drowns in the dust cast up by its "worshippers" who are at one and the same time its "destroyers". Despite the dirt made by the visitors the Ile du Levant is a paradise for those in the know compared with the snobbish carrying-on on the Côte-d'Azur.

Ile du Levant in the nude n°111 Special Edition Sun & Health (Holidays) Limited 1967

Dictionnaire naturiste - "L'ILE DU LEVANT, NOUVEAU GUIDE 1958" : X - En algèbre, X représente l'inconnue. Problème : quelle est la justification, l'explication, le mobile de l'adhésion au naturisme ? Pour chacun, cet X peut être différent. Certains pratiquent le naturisme par goût du bronzage intégral, d'autres par désir de fuir le bruit, l'agitation assommante, l'épais flot d'autos et de vacanciers qui déferle partout, d'autres choisissent le naturisme comme manière de vivre, aussi souvent que possible, une libération reposante du corps et de l'esprit. S'il fallait, dans la formule du Levant, remplacer X par un mot précis, nous dirions : liberté. L'île est en effet un lieu où la liberté est ressentie comme un plaisir physique, où il semble que la liberté du corps, sa nudité, ne soient que la suite logique, naturelle, d'une attitude libre de l'esprit.

GROTTES

The Grottoes. A small path leads from the harbour through a gap in the wire, along the rocks, to the sandy beach at the Grottoes. The ideal spot for newcomers to the island. There is a tempting pinewood with shady nocks above the bay. The holidaymakers have their annual festival calles "Election of the Island Queen" at the Grottoes. Should the gap in the fence happen to be closed do not simply circumnavigate it. A closed door means that the Navy are on manoeuvres and need "freedom of action". Contravention can bring unpleasantness in its train and can annoy the military who are generally so equable.

Ile du Levant in the nude n°111 Special Edition Sun & Health (Holidays) Limited 1967

FIRE RISK

Exists everywhere on the island (Danger d'incendie). A cigarette carelessly thrown away can cause a disaster. Be careful !

Ile du Levant in the nude n°111 Special Edition Sun & Health (Holidays) Limited 1967

ELECTRICITY

There are only a few hotels on the island that have  electricity supplied by generators. The better class bungalows have very bright gaslight

Ile du Levant in the nude n°111 Special Edition Sun & Health (Holidays) Limited 1967

22 ans plus tard....l'électricité à Port Cros et au Levant !!

DURVILLE

Two doctors from Paris (Andre and Gaston Durville). During the holiday season they live in the old Fort Napoleon at the tip of the island. The Durville brothers founded Heliopolis. Their motto : a healthy mind in a healthy body.

Ile du Levant in the nude n°111 Special Edition Sun & Health (Holidays) Limited 1967

CAMPING

The public "Camping Municipal" no longer exists and there is no change of new camping arrangement for all and sundry. (Danger of epidemics, lack of sanitary installations, shortage of water). The few private sites avalaible are always overcrowed. Property owners may only rect three tents as the maximum according to the latest police regulations. (See a special article on this subject in the present issue).

Ile du Levant in the nude n°111 Special Edition Sun & Health (Holidays) Limited 1967