Before the bikini: Fascinating black and white photographs shows how bathers used to cover up on the beach 100 years ago Photos from across the beaches of Europe show the evolution of the seaside holiday Expansion of the railway system meant traveling to the coast became accessible to all Reveal the demure all-in-one outfits worn by both men and women, including caps and shoes The bathing machine was used to change into the cumbersome outfits in privacy It was then wheeled right into the sea to allow bathers to enter the water in ease Bikinis have been shrinking at a faster and faster pace in recent years, with some now resembling little more than a few strings of dental floss. But incredible pictures of seaside holidays 100 years ago shows how people used to frolic in the sand in near head-to-toe outfits, complete with hats. Before the 1900s women hit the waves in full gowns and bloomers but the impracticality of this meant that the all-in-one fitted beach suit began to be introduced for women as well as men. The swimming champions of England in November 1919, wearing the streamlined swimwear of the day (L-R: S F Sawcroft, Gladys Jones, Bell White, Doris Hart, Harold Anderson and tutor Walter Brickett) Bathing belles show off the modest white cotton calf length long sleeved dresses, complete with bathing caps adorned with bobbles, on the beach at Southend-on-Sea, Essex in August 1919 A woman perches on the edge of a bathing machine parked in shallow sea on Ostend beach in July 1911 Bathers enjoying a splash in the sea at Ostende, Belgium in July 1880, wearing bathing caps and swimming dresses The fitted tunic often came down to the knees, and could be with or without sleeves, depending on the wearers preference. Women generally kept their hair out of the way under a hat that resemble a modern shower cap and both sexes opted for beach shoes, which they wore both in and out of the water. Heading to the beach has been a popular holiday choice for decades, ever since the expansion of the railway system made transport to the coast accessible to all. Unsurprisingly, with such extensive and cumbersome outfits to change into, beaches soon became lined with wooden bathing machines. These wooden huts were perched on top of wagons and would be wheeled down onto the beach each day to allow people to change inside them in total privacy. The swimmer could then be wheeled all the way into the water to avoid the unseemly gazes of their fellow bathers on their state of undress and allow the bather to enter the water with ease. Ostend beach in Belgium in around 1900 when beach holidays began to become popular as the new railways allowed long distance travel at ease A young woman emerges from her bathing machine in 1911 dressed for the beach with bathing hat and all-in-one fitted outfit that comes well down the leg Stereoscopic photography showing a male swimmer in a full length striped swimming costume emerging from the sea on the beach of Ostend circa 1900 The bathing machines would we wheeled right down into the water to allow the bather to enter the water with ease, a reduce the stares of other bathers Two bathers in Ostend Belgium in 1900 show that the modest outfits could still show off a woman's curves, or conceal them, depending on her preference Girls wearing swimsuits emblazoned with 'BDSV v 1909' pose for a picture at Ostend Bathing beauties show of the must have beach fashions in front of a portable bathing hut in Ostend, Belgium, circa 1920 A woman Bather in poses as she alights from her wheeled bathing cabin in the most fashionable suit of the period between the war, as costumes began to become more detailed and embellished An early postcard in Ostende Belgium, which could be sent to friends and family back home as the tourism industry began to emerge A stunning panoramic view of a beach town in 1909, revealing that women would often relax on the beach in full black skirts and corsets Reclining bathers in the water's edge on the beach at Le Touquet Paris-Page, northern France in August 1913 Bathers have fun in the sea at Aberystwth August 1916 in the traditional swimming attire of the period Youngsters brave the chilly water in the Thames at Weybridge in June 1914 A young women catches some sun outside her changing tent on Gorleston beach in July 1914 Bathing huts and pleasure seekers on the beach at Gorleston in July 1914: While some women chose short suits (foreground), others preferred to have ankle length cover (back right) Two bathers play the fool at Paris Plage in August 1913 (left), and right, Miss McKay and Miss Kerr, champion swimmers for Scotland and Australia Women bathers at the lido, Southport, Lancashire take a shower: by 1918 swimming and beach holidays were a well established vacation for families A women wears a rather decorative hat in the sea at Ostende beach: As swimming holidays became common, beachwear became more of a way to express yourself Bathers dance hand in hand on the beach at Plymouth, Devon in July 1921 wearing rather unusual costumes that seem to have been inspired by Grecian togas Bathers laugh as they collect seaweed on the beach at Aberystwyth, Cardiganshire on 18th August 1916 Women dress in white in an attempt to reflect the heat as they paddle in between the moored boats at Southend-on-Sea, Essex in August 1919 Bathers outside the changing rooms at the open air baths in Chiswick, west London in August 1919