SURAT THANI - Signs prohibiting public nudity have been erected at beaches on Koh Phangan, home of the infamous full moon parties, after frequent complaints about tourists going naked.
Local officials put up the signs on Wednesday and handed out leaflets to visitors to the island and local tourism businesses, including restaurants and hotels at Zen Beach and Secret Beach.
Public nudity is outlawed in Thailand and violators face having their visas revoked, Koh Phangan police chief Pol Col Apichart Chansamret said.
He said there had been complaints about foreign tourists swimming, sunbathing, playing music, drawing pictures and pursuing other recreational activities while naked at Secret Beach and Zen Beach.
“They come to the beaches for relaxation, drawn by word of mouth because the beaches are beautiful and serene,” Pol Col Apichart said.
However, public nudity was against Thai law, with a fine of up to 5,000 baht, he said.
Koh Phangan resident Thawil Ruangthong said many kinds of people visited the island. Some of them went naked in public places, showing a disrespect for the local culture.
The no-public-nudity campaign follows the arrest of a Polish couple seen naked and hugging each other in the middle of a road on the island on Monday.