French holiday towns are slapping bare-chested men with fines of up to €150 as local authorities move to ban shirtless walking in public areas, marking a significant shift for a country long associated with relaxed attitudes towards beach attire.
Sunbathing topless on French beaches remains perfectly legal in most places, but town councils are drawing a firm line at the water’s edge. Walking without a shirt through town centres, pedestrian zones and historic areas is increasingly being treated as a matter of public order rather than personal choice, with hygiene and decency cited as the main justifications.
Narbonne is the latest resort to bring in the rules, with a ban that took effect this week and runs through to 30 September. The restriction covers the city’s main tourist and shopping areas, and offenders face penalties of up to €150 (£130). The local authority told The Connexion the measure was designed to protect “public tranquillity, respect for the living environment, and the attractiveness of the city centre,” adding that clothing suitable for the beach was simply not appropriate “in the streets, squares, or heritage areas of the city.”
On the Channel coast, Deauville has dramatically increased its penalties, pushing fines from just €17 (£15) up to €150 (£130). The town’s mayor, Bertrand Malquier, told The Times the reasoning was straightforward. “It’s about hygiene and avoiding exhibitionism,” he said. Fourteen months ago, fifteen visitors were fined under the existing rules — a figure expected to rise as enforcement intensifies. Nice has operated a similar policy for some time, charging €35 (£30) for those caught in swimwear or without a shirt beyond designated beach zones, while Arcachon and Cassis have comparable restrictions in place.
Local businesses have welcomed the move. Anthony Hill, a 53-year-old Australian running a restaurant in the Narbonne area, told The Times the sight of bare-chested customers on a terrace was bad for trade. “Having bare-chested guys on the terrace can put off other customers,” he said.
Not everyone has been so enthusiastic. Online reaction has been divided, with some arguing the bans say more about French self-image than genuine concerns over hygiene. “I think it’s less prudishness and more a desire to keep France classy and elegant,” one Reddit user wrote. “Or at least to keep alive the popular delusion that France is more classy and elegant than the rest of us.” Another took a more pragmatic view: “It is just standard French Riviera stuff — about keeping up appearances, a leftover of 1800s upper-class vacation culture and not wanting to look like Sunny Beach in Bulgaria, Costa del Sol or Mallorca.”
