After visiting 100 countries and seven continents, we share the best beaches we’ve seen on our travels
When I first went on holiday, I was 18 years old and on the lookout for the perfect beach. You know the sort: powdery white sand and clear turquoise water set against a blazing blue sky. In those early years of travel, I saw beautiful beaches in Barbados, Tunisia, Thailand, Mexico and Dubai, but none were quite the same as the brochures and the billboards.
They were either lined with high-rise hotels (Waikiki), filled with tourists (Ko Phi Phi), or not quite as soft and powdery as the pictures would have you believe. Eventually, I concluded that all the adverts were photoshopped beyond reality and that there was no such thing as the perfect beach. And then we went to the Maldives and Fiji and Samoa, and I found what I was looking for.
The best beaches we’ve ever seen
To help you discover the same idyll, we’ve put together a list of the best beaches we’ve ever seen, accompanied by photos we took ourselves (i.e. no brochure-style retouching). We also list notable features, choosing from a list of powdery sand, clear water, secluded location, dramatic setting, unspoilt coastline and sea life.
1. Baros
Location: Baros Island, Maldives
Notable features: Powdery sand, clear water, secluded location, sea life
The private island of Baros in the Maldives is one of my favourite places in the world. Located in the North Male atoll, it is a tiny island which takes about eight minutes to circumnavigate. The entire island is carpeted with powdery white sand and the nearby reef is teeming with sea life.
We first visited in 2012 and our private sandbank dinner was likely the most memorable night of my life. We returned 10 years later, in 2022, and while the sand has somewhat receded, Baros remains one of the best beaches we’ve ever seen.
2. Muri Beach
Location: Rarotonga, Cook Islands
Notable features: Powdery sand, clear water, dramatic setting
Rarotonga, the largest of the Cook Islands, is home to volcanic peaks, dramatic ridges and lush rainforest. When we were there in 2014, the island idyll was somewhat disturbed by the glut of bikes and scooters that ply the outer ring road.
Thankfully, there were plenty of places to find some calm, not least Muri Beach. Unlike the other beaches on this list, Muri is somewhat spoilt by its line of hotels, but the beach itself is stunning with powdery sand, gin-clear water and views of Rarotonga’s dramatic interior.
3. Honeymoon Island
Location: Fiji
Notable features: Powdery sand, clear water, secluded location, unspoilt coastline
When it comes to Fiji, we had many beaches to choose from, the top contenders being Malolo Island, Monuriki Island and Honeymoon Island in the Mamanuca Group.
Honeymoon Island won the top spot, partly because we had the entire island to ourselves, thanks to Likuliku Lagoon who organised a private gourmet picnic for us. Whichever beach you opt for, expect vistas like the one above.
4. Little Beach
Location: Tanna Island, Vanuatu
Notable features: Clear water, secluded location, unspoilt coastline
Vanuatu marked the start of our year-long trip around the world in 2014-15. Our time on Tanna Island was most memorable for our visit to Mount Yasur, but Little Beach wasn’t far behind.
We visited this secluded beach for five days straight and had it to ourselves every day, bar one Saturday when we were joined by some cheeky local kids who splashed joyfully in the water. Dotted with volcanic black rock and overlooking the warm waters of the Pacific Ocean, Little Beach calls to mind the swashbuckling films of yesteryear.
5. Tortuga Bay
Location: Santa Cruz Island, Galápagos
Notable features: Powdery sand, clear water, secluded location, unspoilt coastline, sea life
We didn’t see any eponymous tortugas (turtles) here, but we did lounge with marine iguanas when we visited the beach in 2015.
This wide band of white sand is a 40-minute walk from the centre of Santa Cruz island’s main town, Puerto Ayora, so isn’t as populated as it could be – meaning that if you’re very lucky you could have it entirely to yourselves like we did.
6. Motu Tapu
Location: Bora Bora, French Polynesia
Notable features: Powdery sand, clear water, secluded location, dramatic setting, unspoilt coastline
Our first three days in Bora Bora were doomed with bad weather and we hated the thought of leaving without seeing it in its glory. Thankfully, on the fourth day, the skies cleared and we took some kayaks out to Motu Tapu, a small islet a short distance from the main town of Vaitape.
We had the motu to ourselves and spent an entire day with this dramatic view. Our photo doesn’t do justice to the beach – but we promised no retouching!
7. Tafatafa Beach
Location: Upolu Island, Samoa
Notable features: Powdery sand, clear water, secluded location, unspoilt coastline
Our time at Vaiula Beach Fales was a highlight of our trip around the world in 2014-15. These basic beach shacks aren’t exactly the lap of luxury, but they overlook one of the best beaches we’ve ever seen: Tafatafa on Upolu Island in Samoa.
One afternoon, we walked for an hour and saw not another soul – only clear blue water and soft yellow sand. We whiled away the hours dipping in and out of the sea, sunbathing until we got too hot and then having another lazy dip. Pure bliss.
8. Isla Pelícano
Location: San Blas Islands, Panama
Notable features: Powdery sand, clear water, unspoilt coastline
Atlas & Boots
Our time on the San Blas islands
From remote islands in the South Pacific to private resorts in the Indian Ocean, we thought we’d seen the best beaches in the world – and then, in 2022, we washed up on Isla Pelícano in the San Blas Islands of Panama.
Though rustic, this blindingly beautiful archipelago mixes it with the world’s most luxurious beach destinations. We spent the morning on Isla Pelícano, a tiny island with a simple cafe serving cocktails and cold drinks. It did feel somewhat touristy, but our next stop at Piscina Naturales – a natural ‘swimming pool’ in the middle of the sea – sealed the San Blas Islands’ place on this list.
9. Whitehaven Beach
Location: Whitsunday Island, Queensland, Australia
Notable features: Powdery sand, clear water, unspoilt coastline
With swathes of white sand curving like a dervish around a vivid blue sea, Whitehaven in Australia has been called the most beautiful beach in the world. We visited in 2018 with a pertinent question in mind: would this beat every other beach we’ve seen?
It’s difficult to say so definitively – each beach on this list has its own appeal – but it’s certainly one of the best we’ve seen. It’s not just the purity of the sand here; it’s the shape of the landscape. Great, unpredictable strokes of bone-white sand seem drawn by the hand of an artist. The result is one of the world’s most picturesque beaches.
10. Ipanema Beach
Location: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Notable features: Powdery sand, dramatic setting
I didn’t expect to like Rio as much as I did, much in the same way I didn’t expect to like Miami as much as I did. To me, these cities scream noise, raucous partying and overindulgence – but I fell in love with both.
Ipanema Beach in Rio may not be the most secluded beach on the planet, but its dramatic view of Dois Irmãos (Two Brothers) mountain makes it one of our favourite. We spent our time lazing on the warm yellow sand, guzzling cocktails and enjoying that unique Rio vibe that threatens to break into a full-blown party at any given time.
11. Princess Cays
Location: Eleuthera, The Bahamas
Notable features: Powdery sand, clear water, unspoilt coastline
We couldn’t close out this list without honouring the Caribbean. We have been to several Caribbean countries and territories – among them Barbados, Antigua and Barbuda, St Kitts and Nevis, Turks and Caicos, Aruba, Bonaire and the Cayman Islands – but our favourite beach is Princess Cays in The Bahamas, equalled only by Lindquist in the US Virgin Islands (see below).
We spent a day on Princess Cays in 2019 and although the port itself is rather touristy, a mere 10-minute walk led us to a secluded spot perfect for sunbathing, swimming and snorkelling.
12. Lindquist Beach
Location: St Thomas, US Virgin Islands
Notable features: Powdery sand, clear water, secluded location, unspoilt coastline
Lindquist is one of the quieter beaches in the US Virgin Islands. Located in the protected Smith Bay Park, it is a picture-perfect scene of clear blue water, soft white sand and emerald green cays in the distance.
Lindquist is a favoured location for island weddings and Hollywood commercials. Indeed, when we visited in 2019, we found it to be all but deserted. All in all, it was one of the best beaches we’ve ever seen.
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