What makes a beach beautiful? Is it simply one that we all agree demands to be photographed – or something less tangible: how the foaming waves glide across roaring pebbles, the way the surf slides over smoothed-out sand, a unique framing of rugged rock and hanging palms?
Those which are widely considered most beautiful are many and varied. Some are bright white or a warm honeyed gold, while others are black or even grey, made up of molten lava, crushed rock or assorted pebbles. Some languish in ever-warm temperatures in some of the globe’s sunniest destinations, while others stand at what feels like the ends of the Earth under perpetually moody skies.
In the end, beauty is subjective, and though the list below is studded with heavyweight contenders, it’s inevitable that some spectacular little cove or well-loved stalwart will be missing from the pack. I’m willing to bet few visitors have ever set foot on the below and left without taking a photo.
Have we missed the most beautiful beach you’ve ever visited? Let us know in the comments.
West Sands, St Andrews, Scotland
Known for the 1981 Oscar-winning film Chariots of Fire, this broad creamy sweep of sand starts on the fringes of St Andrews town centre – right beside the world-renowned Old Course golf links – and continues for almost two miles. Backed by sand dunes and washed by the North Sea, it’s best suited to a blustery stroll or bracing dip and is a cracking spot to watch the sunrise.
Seaton House has doubles from £260 B&B.
Chesil Beach, Dorset, England
This 18-mile-long shingle barrier beach on the Dorset coast made for a moody and atmospheric backdrop to the 2018 film of Ian McEwan’s Booker-shortlisted novella On Chesil Beach. It’s easy to believe its role as a place where lives are forever changed, its vast scale echoed by the pounding surf that crashes across its pebbles, a salty spray hanging in the air between the sea to one side and a brackish lagoon to the other.
Moonfleet Manor has doubles from £140 B&B.
Reynisfjara, Iceland
It’s not difficult to see why location scouts love this dramatic, black-sand beach – it’s all crashing waves and dark basalt sea stacks, set beneath wild northern skies. You might recognise it as Eastwatch-by-the-Sea from Game of Thrones, or perhaps one of various other-worldly locations from the Star Wars or Star Trek films. It’s also one of Iceland’s best puffin-spotting locations, its rocky cliffs home to hundreds of nests and offering up near-guaranteed sightings from June to August.
Hótel Kría has doubles from £178 B&B
Praia da Falésia, The Algarve, Portugal
How did this Portuguese beauty nab the top spot in TripAdvisor’s Travellers’ Choice Award for best beach in 2024? Perhaps it was the soft, warm golden sands that stretch for miles. Or the russet-red clay cliffs that rise like honeycomb for more than 100ft behind it. The dependably blue skies and calm child-friendly waters certainly won’t have hurt, not to mention its resident population of dolphins.
Pine Cliffs has doubles from £300 B&B.
Elafonisi Beach, Crete, Greece
It’s the pink sand that does it – this incredible Cretan beach is constantly at the top of best beach lists (it was TripAdvisor’s pick for 2025) and forever all over Instagram. No filter needed, just the crushed shells of millions of tiny organisms called foraminifera, whose pink and red shells lend their colour to the soft sands. The water is a perfect turquoise, too.
Elafonisi Resort has doubles from £52.
Banana Beach, Príncipe, São Tomé and Príncipe
Bacardi chose this beach – curved, as you might guess, like a banana – as the setting for its 1990s adverts, and it remains the perfect backdrop to barefoot dancing while sipping a rum cocktail. Lush tropical jungle runs along behind its golden sands and its shallow waters make for an idyllic swimming spot – not least because this is practically the Equator, and you’re floating just off the coast of West Africa.
Roca Belo Monte has doubles from £422 B&B.
Grace Bay Beach, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos
This Caribbean beach consistently hogs the top spots of various best beach lists, and it’s not difficult to see why. Its sands are smooth and white, its waters turquoise and gin-clear, its skies almost always blue. The offshore barrier reef keeps conditions calm, while the trade winds tend to blow seaweed elsewhere. Paradise? It might be.
Seven Stars Resort & Spa has doubles from £364 B&B.
Isla Pasion Beach, Cozumel, Mexico
TripAdvisor recently crowned this its top beach for 2026, and it alone makes the effort of reaching this teeny island off the Mexican coast worthwhile. Yes, you’ll need to pay for a boat trip – and you can’t stay overnight – but snorkelling here often yields sightings of rare loggerhead and hawks-bill sea turtles, as well as numerous rays and bright tropical fish. That’s in addition to the obvious, of course: powdery white sands and turquoise waters.
Meliá Cozumel has doubles from £218 all-inclusive.
Praia do Sancho, Brazil
Located in the protected Fernando de Noronha Marine National Park, this sandy beach has been voted the best in the world numerous times and is (unsurprisingly) frequently described as Brazil’s best. There’s an exclusive vibe here, with limited accommodation leading to high prices – which only makes it more swooned-over. It’s also the setting for some of Brazil’s best diving, and you can expect to spot dolphins and turtles aplenty.
Pousada Maravilha has doubles from £357 B&B.
Entalula, The Philippines
According to the folk at The World’s 50 Best Beaches, this serene strand is currently number one. Located in the Palawan archipelago of the Philippines, it’s only accessible by boat, meaning you have a good chance of getting its soft, white sands to yourself. Float on your back in that calm, clear water, gazing up at the limestone cliffs towering above swaying palms, and you might forget there’s anyone else on Earth.
Pangulasian Island Resort has doubles from £880 B&B
Maya Bay, Thailand
Recognisable instantly as the famous shoreline from the 2000 film The Beach, Maya Bay – on the uninhabited island of Koh Phi Phi Leh in Thailand – was closed to visitors in 2018 to protect its fragile ecosystem, particularly its coral reef and blacktip sharks. Although the bay remains closed to boats, since 2022 it’s been possible to visit once more, walking in via a boardwalk from the other side of the island. Swimming isn’t permitted, but standing ankle-deep in aquamarine waters and looking across to limestone cliffs that appear to float on the water is an incredible experience nonetheless.
Phi Phi CoCo Beach Resort has doubles from £97 B&B
Monuriki, Mamanuca Islands, Fiji
Back in 1999 and 2000, Tom Hanks spent several months on the tiny volcanic island of Monuriki, immortalising its pristine pale sands in the hit film Cast Away. Today, the island is uninhabited and accessible only by boat. Book a day trip and you can walk straight from its soft sands into clear, warm waters, the offshore reef packed with turtles and reef sharks.
Sheraton Resort & Spa, Tokoriki Island has doubles from £114 B&B
The Brando, Tetiaroa, French Polynesia
Marlon Brando fell for this atoll in the South Pacific while filming Mutiny on the Bounty in the 1960s, and promptly bought it. He cherished it until his death in 2004, and anyone staying in one of the beachfront villas here will see why – its coral sands are brilliant white, its waters almost impossibly blue. Naturally, the place is packed with marine life, and even the briefest of snorkels promises sharks, rays and sea turtles.
The Brando has villas from £2,108 B&B.
Whitehaven, Whitsunday Island, Queensland, Australia
Queensland may be packed with beautiful beaches, but this is the state’s most photographed – and it’s been voted Australia’s number-one tourist attraction by TripAdvisor to boot. It’s all down to the swirl, created by the turquoise Coral Sea waters as they wind through the dazzling white silica sand. Because it’s silica, the sands stay cool, making it ideal for a stroll – though the beach is best seen from above, at Hill Inlet Lookout.
The Sundays Hotel has doubles from £454 B&B.
Karekare Beach, North Island, New Zealand
Made well known by 1993’s The Piano, this black-sand beach has some of New Zealand’s best surf waves, but is just far enough from Auckland city centre to remain peaceful. There’s plenty of space for sunbathing too, plus copious local birdlife. Since the sands are west-facing, this is also a great place to watch the sunset.
Waitakere Resort & Spa has doubles from £63 room only