Beaches: Destinations & Places

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

  • The famous beach, Source d'Argent at La Digue Island, Seychelles

    Seychelles

    The Seychelles scatter 115 granite islands across the Indian Ocean with Anse Source d’Argent’s boulders, giant tortoises, and water that ranges from turquoise to transparent.

  • Surfer Walking into Ocean at Sunset in Nicaragua

    San Juan Del Sur

    San Juan del Sur is Nicaragua’s Pacific surf town with a giant Christ statue overlooking the bay, consistent waves, and a Sunday Funday that defined Central American party culture.

  • Aerial view of Rio de Janeiro with Christ Redeemer and Corcovado Mountain

    Rio De Janeiro

    Rio puts Christ the Redeemer on Corcovado, Sugarloaf over the harbor, and Copacabana at sea level — a city framed by granite peaks where the geography does the heavy lifting.

  • Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Punta Cana

    Punta Cana

    Punta Cana lines the Dominican Republic’s eastern tip with 30 miles of coconut-palm beaches, all-inclusives, and a Hoyo Azul cenote hidden in the jungle behind the resorts.

  • British Colonial Hotel Nassau Bahamas poolside landscape

    Nassau

    Nassau is the Bahamas’ capital with Atlantis resort, a pirate museum, and a fish fry at Arawak Cay that gives you the local side beyond the cruise port.

  • Airbnb Paris Les Invalides

    New Caledonia

    New Caledonia is a French territory in the South Pacific with the world’s largest lagoon, Kanak culture, and a Nouméa café scene that feels like Paris in the tropics.

  • Tan stone buildings in the ancient city of Mdina, Malta

    Malta

    Malta packs 7,000 years of history into an island smaller than most US counties — Valletta’s fortified streets, Neolithic temples, and a Mediterranean climate that rarely dips below 15°C.

  • Aerial view of the bridge and buildings in Valencia, Spain

    Valencia

    Valencia invented paella and transformed a dry riverbed into the City of Arts and Sciences — a Spanish Mediterranean city that finally gets the attention it earned.

  • Beer and wine tour in Bastille Paris

    Toulon

    Toulon is France’s main naval base with a harbor, a lively provençal market, and Mont Faron cable car views — the Côte d’Azur without the Riviera price tag.

  • Bronze sculpture at Meštrović Gallery in Split, Croatia

    Split

    Split built an entire city inside Diocletian’s Roman palace — 1,700 years later the walls hold bars, apartments, and a waterfront Riva where the Adriatic meets ancient stone.

  • Saint-Malo, France

    Saint-Malo

    Saint-Malo is a walled Breton port city where the tides are among Europe’s largest — walk the ramparts at high tide and the beach appears at low, like clockwork.

  • Positano Amalfi Coast scenic cliffside village with colorful houses and beach

    Positano

    Positano tumbles down a cliff to a pebble beach on the Amalfi Coast — the pastel buildings are vertical, the limoncello is strong, and the staircases are the workout.

  • Shops in Mexico

    Playa Del Carmen

    Playa del Carmen is Cancún’s cooler sibling — Quinta Avenida for the evening stroll, cenotes for the morning swim, and Cozumel a ferry ride away.

  • A bizarre cocktail featuring an animal eyeball submerged in a drink.

    Phuket

    Phuket is Thailand’s largest island with Patong’s nightlife on one coast and quiet Rawai beaches on the other — the range between party and peace is a 40-minute drive.

  • paros destination image

    Paros

    Paros is the Cycladic island between Mykonos and Naxos with Naoussa’s fishing harbor, Kolymbithres’ smooth-rock beach, and a village pace that Mykonos traded away.

  • A bizarre cocktail featuring an animal eyeball submerged in a drink.

    Phi Phi Islands

    Phi Phi’s Maya Bay (the one from The Beach) reopened with visitor caps — the limestone cliffs, snorkeling, and boat access make it Thailand’s most photogenic day trip.

  • Prambanan Temple Ruins Java Indonesia

    Nusa Dua

    Nusa Dua is Bali’s manicured resort peninsula — gated beaches, international hotel brands, and a calm that’s the polar opposite of Kuta’s chaos up the road.

  • Sunset view of Temple of Apollo in Naxos, Greece – Iconic Ancient Greek Landmark

    Naxos

    Naxos is the largest Cycladic island with the best beaches, a marble doorway to an unfinished Apollo temple, and a local cheese-and-potato cuisine that Mykonos can’t touch.

  • View of Mykonos at Sunset

    Mykonos

    Mykonos has windmills, whitewashed alleys designed to confuse pirates, and a Little Venice waterfront where the cocktails cost as much as the sunset is worth.

  • Marseille vs Montpellier: Which Southern French City is Better to Visit in 2025? comparison - ViaTravelers Travel Guide

    Montpellier

    Montpellier is a French university city with one of the oldest medical schools in Europe, a tram-connected beach, and a Place de la Comédie that buzzes until late.

  • Banyan Court Park Lahaina Maui

    Maui

    Maui has the Road to Hana with 620 curves, Haleakalā volcano above the clouds, and whale watching so close you can hear them breathe. The Valley Isle earns its hype.

  • Best Restaurants in Italy

    Messina

    Messina is Sicily’s gateway across the strait from mainland Italy — a cathedral with an astronomical clock, a working port, and a base for exploring Taormina and Mount Etna.

  • Bridge of Ronda, a famous white villages of Malaga, Spain

    Malaga

    Málaga is Picasso’s birthplace with a reborn arts scene, a Roman theater downtown, and a Costa del Sol food culture that runs on fried fish and afternoon wine.

  • Aerial view of Calo des Moro, Mallorca - secluded slice of paradise with stunning cliffs, crystal-clear turquoise waters and lush greenery.

    Mallorca

    Mallorca is the Balearic island that has it all — a Gothic cathedral in Palma, the Serra de Tramuntana mountains, and cove beaches that the mainland can’t match.