Eastney Beach (Eastney Naturist Beach)

Eastney is a long, fairly wide, pebble beach at the eastern end of an approximately 3.5 km (2 mile)continuous stretch of coast between Southsea Castle and Fort Cumberland.  The southern suburbs of Portsmouth are close by, so locals find this a convenient place to swim and cool down on hot, sunny days. To the west, the beach merges with Southsea Beach. 

Eastney beach is an important plant habitat, with more than 100 different species which have adapted to growing in sand and shingle and tolerating large amounts of saltwater. The beach is popular for swimming and many water sports, with zoning for windsurfing. 

Parking, including disabled spaces, can be found along Eastney Esplanade, which runs for most of the length of the beach and offers visitors direct access to the shore. Public toilets can be found at the eastern end of the esplanade. Further along there is a café which overlooks the beach. 

The old Royal Marines museum on the esplanade has recently been converted into a luxury hotel.

Eastney Naturist Beach

The area towards the eastern end of the beach is a popular spot for nudists. Whilst the it may not be officially recognised as being a naturist beach Eastney has long been recognised as such.

You should know you have reached the nudist part of the beach for obvious reasons, if not it is the section in front of the disused military buildings of the Fraser Range. Not the prettiest backdrop, but there has long been talk of the area being redeveloped. What effect this will have on the beach’s status is yet to be seen.