We have visited hundreds of beaches across every continent during our travels, and in this blog we name our Top 10 Most Beautiful Beaches in the World.
When finding the best beaches, personally we look for amazing water clarity, pristine white sand, turquoise tones and those indescribable vibes of the place and country.
Here’s our top picks – we’d love to hear your suggestions too!
Top 10 Most Beautiful Beaches in the World
1. Whitehaven Beach, Queensland, Australia
Whitehaven Beach is a globally award winning beach found in the Whitsunday Islands of Queensland Australia. The 7km long stretch of pristine white silica sand has calm turquoise waters and absolutely no development on its foreshore or anywhere in sight.
Bondi Beach may be one of the most popular beaches in Australia, but it can’t beach Whitehaven Beach when it comes to natural beauty. The remoteness and untouched nature of Whitehaven makes this Whitsunday Island beach so special, and you can still find yourself here with no one else around!
Combined with the iconic shifting sands of Hill Inlet at the end of this beach, Whitehaven is a one of the most beautiful beaches in the world.
Find out how to see Whitehaven Beach from above with a scenic flight or how to sail the Whitsundays to see Whitehaven Beach. If you are looking for other islands to visit in Australia, don’t miss two of the best islands in the Great Barrier Reef, Wilson and Heron Islands.
2. Lankanfushi Island, Maldives
The Maldives has some of the most perfect tropical beaches in the world, with insanely vibrant turquoise lagoons featuring clear blue waters surrounding idealistic palm laced, white sand islands.
Our favourite beach is unofficially known as Palm Beach on the resort island of Lankanfushi. Picture the most perfectly sized U-shaped beach with palm trees dotted throughout and surrounded on all sides by a vibrant, almost neon, lagoon that’s home to eagle rays and reef sharks.
It’s not uncommon to have the beach and the scattered hammocks all to yourself. Take a dip in the warm water and walk along the soft white sand to your heart’s content or go snorkeling to see the coral reefs.
We can’t get enough of the Maldives and the Indian Ocean, but Palm Beach tops our list of the best beaches in the Maldives.
For more Maldives travel tips, find our favorite Maldives resorts, our favorite affordable Maldives resorts, and our top Maldives resorts for couples.
3. Cala Coticcio Beach, Sardinia, Italy
Known as ‘Little Tahiti’ due to its dazzling water colours, this little gem is found on the island of Caprera – part of the Maddalena archipelago off the coast of Sardinia, Italy, located in La Maddalena National Park.
It’s not easy to get to this part of Italy and even the beach access requires some hiking down rocky trails. However that all adds to the charm.
Cala Coticcio Beach is a tiny little cove that has beautiful clear, calm water that’s hugged by a pastel orange rocky coastline.
4. Rangiroa Lagoon, French Polynesia
Rangiroa is an atoll of French Polynesia, reached by plane from the capital of Tahiti. The atoll is largely uninhabited and can best be described as a ring of palm laced motus (very small islands) that encompasses a huge lagoon.
It’s one of these motus that we reached via catamaran that makes our list of the world’s most beautiful beaches. The clear and shallow waters of this remote location were perfect for exploring this South Pacific beach.
We rose early and took paddleboards ashore to reach a perfect lagoon inlet with calm waters that was surrounded by coconut palm as far as the eye could see. When I think of tropical island perfection, I think of this place.
5. Lucky Bay, Esperance, Australia
Lucky Bay officially has some of the whitest sand in the world and is found in the remote parts of southwestern Australia, near the town of Esperance. It’s also one of the best places to visit in Australia.
Apart from a camp ground there’s no sign of civilisation out here and that makes this absolute gem of the natural world so special. The other amazing drawcard for Lucky Bay that makes it one of the most famous beaches in Australia is that it is regularly visited by wild kangaroos and their joeys who love the soft sand just as much as we do!
Get our complete guide to Esperance and Western Australia here.
6. Isla Mujeres, Mexico
This tiny island off the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico packs a punch. When we visited many years ago Isla Mujeres was a slow paced dreamy tropical island where you could grab a rum spiked coconut and laze on the white sand beaches, with the most crystal clear waters.
7. Sarakiniko, Milos, Greece
The Greek Islands are home to many stunning beaches, though it’s the white rock moonscapes of Sarakiniko on the island of Milos that won my heart.
The matte tones of the rocky cliffs and deep blue waters create a truly unique place to lay a beach towel and soak up the summer sun. We’ve had some amazing days here rock jumping from the limestone cliffs and climbing over the rocky landscapes.
While Navagio Beach is often listed as the most beautiful beach in Greece, Sarakiniko has my heart when it comes to Greek beaches.
Get our full guide to Milos here.
8. Little Exuma, Bahamas
We only found this tiny protected little cove on the island of Little Exuma thanks to a tip from some friendly locals. Even if I could remember the name I was sworn to secrecy!
If you have a car and are adventurous you’ll be able to find this little place too, with a gravel tiny track taking you there from the main road on the way to Tropic of Cancer Beach. I could have stayed in this turquoise water for days!
For more Bahamas travel tips, check out our Exumas travel guide and our 5 day Exumas sailing itinerary. Find out more about another beautiful beach, Grace Bay Beach, in our guide to Providenciales in the Turks and Caicos islands.
9. Hellfire Bay, Esperance, Australia
Another insane beach in the southwest of Australia (near #5 Lucky Bay), Hellfire Bay boasts a secluded white sand beach surrounded by rocky peaks of the Cape Le Grand National Park.
Chesh surfed here and we both laid on the sun baked rocks until sunset and were the only souls leaving the carpark on dusk. Magic!
10. Paje Beach, Zanzibar (Africa)
So far our favourite beaches in the African continent are on the island of Zanzibar, part of the country of Tanzania. It’s the culture and people, combined with long white sand beaches and azure waters that made this place so special.
We sat under our timber shade shelter after an ocean dip and watch traditional sailing boats cruise across the clear waters. I will need to head back here soon.
Camps Bay Beach in Cape Town, South Africa, is another one of the most beautiful beaches in the world, but Zanzibar takes first place for us right now.
There are so many more beaches that could be considered among the top 10 most beautiful beaches in the world, but these are our current favourites.
Some other top contenders to add to your beautiful beaches bucket list include Anse Source d’Argent in the Seychelles, Matira Beach in Bora Bora, Maya Bay and Railay Beach in Thailand.
For more tropical travel destinations, check out the following:
Exuma Islands Travel Guide
Top 20 Maldives Resorts
Esperance & Western Australia Itinerary
Sailing the Whitsunday
What to Do in Bora Bora
Seychelles Travel Guide
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