page_title: Hanlan's Point Beach
section_title: Background
hierarchical_section_title: Hanlan's Point Beach / Background
caption_attribution_description: English: A person in front of the clothing optional sign on Hanlan’s Point Beach
context_page_description: Hanlan's Point Beach is a public beach situated on Hanlan's Point in the Toronto Islands near Toronto, Ontario on the shore of Lake Ontario. A 1 kilometre-long part of the beach was officially recognized by the city in 2002 as being clothing optional.
context_section_description: Hanlan's Beach can be reached most directly by taking the Hanlan's Point ferry at the foot of Bay Street at Queens Quay. Aside from the cost of the ferry there is no admission fee. 
  It is the second officially recognized clothing-optional beach in Canada and the only one created by a municipal bylaw. Canada's only other official clothing-optional beach is Wreck Beach in Vancouver, British Columbia.
  The effective beach season starts in late May and ends in late September, while actual swimming off the beach is possible only well within this period. In recent years, the beach and islands as a whole have experienced flooding due to high water levels in the early summer.
  As is common for most public nudist-friendly venues, males make up a large percentage of the users of the beach, but women can make up to one quarter of the total on popular weekends. Recent years continue to see an increase in the number of families who attend. The beach is a popular destination for the city's  gay community. The beach is also the regular site of day trips by several local nudist organizations. 
  Despite its proximity to Toronto Harbour, the beach can boast extremely good water quality since it faces southwest and away from the mainland. Water quality is monitored daily (on weekdays) during the summer and meets a Blue Flag standard set by the Foundation for Environmental Education. 
  The section of the beach closest to the Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport (YTZ) is also becoming a very popular spot for kiteboarding.
caption: A person in front of a clothing optional sign on Hanlan’s Point Beach