Best Beaches on Earth for the year 2014

Polihale Beach, Kauai, HI

Best for Seclusion: Barrier dunes frame this wild, seven-mile stretch, ranked No. 1 in this category. It’s the westernmost public beach on Kauai, accessible only via sugarcane farm roads that date back to the early 1900s.

Travel Advisory: The area's unpaved roads can be hazardous. Check with your rental car company for restrictions before heading out.

Saranda Beach, Ioanian sea, Albania

Saranda is one of the most important tourist attractions in Albania with an amazing view of the coast and the crystal water. With almost 330 sunny days a year and with that hospitality, it makes her one of the best destinations in the world.

 

 

 

 

Wailea Beach, Maui, HI

Best for Activities: Thanks to a clutch of mega-hotels along Wailea’s small beach coves, there are plenty of expert guides on hand at this top-ranked beach for activities. They’ll lead the kids on snorkeling, canoeing, and boogie-boarding excursions. 

Black Sand Beach, Waianapanapa State Park, Maui, HI

Best for Dramatic Landscapes: Ranked No. 1 in its category, this protected Hawaiian beach may be small (only a quarter of a mile long), but it makes a big impression because of its black sand and abundance of spiny Hawaiian hala trees.

Seaside Beach, Seaside, FL

Best for Families: Pastel wood-paneled houses border dunes on this picture-perfect Gulf Coast beach, ranked No. 1 for families. After games of waterfront Frisbee, the entire crew can take cruiser bikes into town for a casual seafood dinner.

South Beach, Miami

Best for People-Watching: Gym-goers in short shorts vie for attention with women in skimpy bikinis at this No. 1 people-watching beach along the Atlantic Ocean, famous for its waterfront parties and pastel-colored Art Deco hotels.

Bahia Gardner, Española Island, Galapagos

Best for Wildlife Viewing: Most travelers visiting Darwin’s famous islands stop at this top-ranked beach, Bahia Gardner, where explorers share the sandy shore with sea lions, red lava lizards, Española
mockingbirds, and other native wildlife

One Foot Island Beach, Cook Islands

Best for Seclusion: There are no permanent residents on One Foot Island, ranked No. 2 for seclusion, where travelers can walk through shallow blue waters to long sandbars. Drumbeats at sundown signal the last boat back to neighboring Aitutaki island.

Bells Beach, Victoria, Australia

Best for Activities: This second-ranked beach for activities, just south of Melbourne, plays host to Rip Curl Pro, the world’s longest-running surfing competition

Pfeiffer Beach, Big Sur, CA

Best for Dramatic Landscapes: The miles of cliff-lined Pacific Coast that parallel California’s Highway One are all scenic, but Pfeiffer beats out nearby stretches for its rocky coves and unusual purple sand, earning the No. 2 ranking for its dramatic landscape.

Seven Mile Beach, Grand Cayman

Best for Families: This island’s fine sand and tranquil blue waters would impress any traveler, though parents are especially taken with the all-inclusive hotel options, and kids love the laid-back activities, from snorkeling to shell-hunting, at this second-ranked beach for families. 

Venice Beach, Los Angeles

Best for People-Watching: The two-and-a-half-mile promenade along this California beach, which came in second for people-watching, might as well be a runway for bodybuilders, street performers, and fortune-tellers. Closer to the waves, surfers and volleyball players strut their stuff.

Trunk Bay, St. John

Best for Wildlife Viewing: Located within the Virgin Islands National Park, Trunk Bay, the No. 2–ranked beach for wildlife viewing, is famous both for its marine life—an underwater snorkeling trail has signs to identify coral, sea urchins, and other fish—and the surrounding 7,000 acres of protected jungle.

Voutoumi, Anti Paxos, Greece

Best for Seclusion: No. 3 in the secluded category is Voutoumi beach on Anti Paxos, the smallest of the Ionian Islands. To get to the remote crescent of white sand surrounded by steep cliffs, take a short boat ride from Paxos Island.

Playa Kalki, Curaçao

Best for Activities: Curaçao has seen an influx of visitors thanks to its appearance on NBC’s Bachelorette. But Playa Kalki, No. 3 for activities, has long been prized by expert divers for its reefs and limestone coves, home to eagle rays and damselfish.

Maya Bay, Ko Phi Phi, Thailand

Best for Dramatic Landscapes: With a ring of white sand surrounded by mangroves and limestone walls blanketed by dense foliage, it's easy to see why this beach on the Andaman Sea nabbed the No. 3 landscape ranking—and why director Danny Boyle chose it for  cult-favorite The Beach, starring Leonardo DiCaprio.

Hapuna Beach, The Big Island, HI

Best for Families: At 200 feet, Hapuna is the widest beach on the Big Island. It’s also ranked No. 3 for groups, thanks to well-paved parking lots, picnic pavilions, and plenty of concession stands.

Ipanema Beach, Rio de Janeiro

Best for People-Watching: Along this sexy city beach, ranked No. 3 for people-watching, boardwalk stands sell beer and caipirinhas to throngs of beachgoers, who spend their days sunning in thongs (and little else) or flexing at one of Rio’s waterfront gyms.

 

 

Turtle Beach, Buck Island, St. Croix

Best for Seclusion: The offshore reefs on Buck Island, less than two miles north of St. Croix, get most of the attention, which means that the long, forest-lined beaches like this one, rated No. 4 for seclusion, are often empty. 

 

The Baths, Virgin Gorda

Best for Dramatic Landscapes: House-size granite boulders are evidence of the island’s volcanic origins, creating pools and grottoes that line this popular Virgin Gorda seashore. For dramatic scenes, this beach ranked No. 4.

Railay Beach, Thailand

Best for Activities: Rock climbers from all over the world descend on this fifth-ranked, activity-filled beach east of Phuket to scale the soaring limestone boulders, accessible only by boat from Krabi.