Beaches: Destinations & Places

Beach-focused travel content — coastline rankings, swim conditions, beach club reviews, and quiet-cove alternatives across the Mediterranean, Caribbean, and Pacific.

  • Monument in Omaha Beach, Normandy

    Normandy

    Mont Saint-Michel at low tide, with the causeway still wet — that’s the version most visitors miss by arriving at the wrong hour.

  • Woman on the Top of a Vehicle Looking at a Volcano

    Uvita

    The whale’s tail sandbar at Marino Ballena is real — low tide reveals the full shape, and humpbacks pass twice a year.

  • The Wagon Wheel Motel, Cuba, Missouri

    Cuba

    Ninety miles from Florida, Cuba feels like another world — crumbling Havana facades, 1950s Chevys, and son music spilling onto every corner.

  • Treehouse with the view of Diamond Beach in Nusa Penida Island

    Bali

    Skip Kuta. The Bali worth your time is Ubud at dawn, Tegallalang before the tour buses, and a temple ceremony nobody planned for.

  • Fruit Stand in Bridgetown

    Bridgetown

    Bridgetown’s street grid was designed to confuse invaders — it still confuses GPS. The colonial layers here run deeper than any other Caribbean capital.

  • Aerial view of La Salvaje Beach Barinatxe, Sopelana, Basque Country, Spain with surfers and cliffs.

    Basque Coast

    San Sebastián has more Michelin stars per capita than anywhere else on earth. The pintxos bars alone justify the trip.

  • Beach Chairs at Kamari Beach Santorini, Greece

    Santorini

    Oia’s sunset crowd arrives 2 hours early. Skip it — Imerovigli has the same caldera view with half the people.

  • St Barths Resort Pool and Skyline

    St. Barts

    No cruise ships, no all-inclusives, no high-rises. St. Barts enforces its exclusivity by design — and the 22 beaches back it up.

  • The alt text for the image should be "Vintage red bus parked in front of The Verb Hotel in Boston, Massachusetts."

    Massachusetts

    Boston’s Freedom Trail covers 400 years of American history in a 2.5-mile walk. Massachusetts rewards the curious traveler who goes deeper.

  • Bird's eye view of a vibrant hockey game in a brightly lit arena Close-up action of players on the hockey rink Comprehensive view of the intense hockey game from a medium distance

    North America

    One continent, arctic tundra to Caribbean sand. North America rewards the specific traveler more than the checklist one.

  • Berjaya Langkawi Resort, tropical paradise getaway.

    Penang

    George Town’s assam laksa alone justifies the flight. The street art, clan houses, and hawker stalls make it hard to leave.

  • Lookout and cliffs of the Kalaupapa in Molokai, Hawaii

    Molokai

    Molokai has no traffic lights, no high-rises, and no resort strip. That’s the point — and exactly why it feels like Hawaii used to.

  • Aerial view of Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in Sofia, Bulgaria

    Bulgaria

    Bulgaria does Thracian ruins, Orthodox monasteries, Black Sea beaches, and ski resorts — all for a fraction of what Greece or Croatia will cost you.

  • Aerial view of turquoise bay of San Sebastian or Donostia with beach La Concha, Basque country, Spain

    San Sebastian

    San Sebastian has more Michelin stars per capita than almost anywhere on earth — and the pintxos bars in Parte Vieja cost just €2 a bite.

  • Lardarina Stairway in Corniglia Cinque Terre Italy

    Cinque Terre

    The train between Riomaggiore and Monterosso costs under €5 and beats the ferry on time. Save the boat for Vernazza.

  • Achilleion palace in Corfu Island, Greece

    Corfu

    Corfu’s Old Town isn’t just pretty — it’s Venetian, French, and British all layered on one island. That mix is what makes it different.

  • Skyline and Little Cayman in Cayman Islands

    Cayman Islands

    Stingray City is the tourist trap that actually delivers. The wall dives off Little Cayman, though — that’s what serious divers fly here for.

  • Bora Bora Sunset Scenery

    Bora Bora

    Mount Otemanu doesn’t just backdrop the lagoon — it reframes every overwater bungalow photo you’ve ever seen as an understatement.

  • Captain Kid Amusement Oregon

    Oregon

    Oregon’s coast, forests, and food scene pull in opposite directions — and that tension is exactly what makes it worth the trip.

  • Iconic Christiania Entrance Sign and Sculpture Against Blue Sky in Copenhagen, Denmark

    Denmark

    Tivoli Gardens took half my day and I regret nothing. The real Denmark, though, is cycling past half-timbered houses to a sand-buried lighthouse.

  • alt=Ad Hoc Italy travel guide and map

    Portofino

    Portofino’s harbor looks like a movie set — and costs like one. Skip lunch on the piazzetta and walk the coastal trail to Paraggi instead.

  • Mother monkey with baby in Manuel Antonio National Park

    Manuel Antonio

    Manuel Antonio packs 109 mammal species into 19km² — spot the rarest squirrel monkey on earth, then swim at four beaches in one afternoon.

  • Palais Longchamp, historic landmark with gardens, fountains, museums in Marseille, France

    Marseille

    Marseille gets skipped for Paris or Nice. That’s a mistake — the Old Port alone rewrites what French cities are supposed to feel like.