Beach Type

Bay Beaches

Wide sweeping bays with gentle waves and panoramic ocean views

What are bay beaches?

Bay beaches curve along natural indentations in the coastline, creating wide stretches of sand with gentle, sheltered waves. Their crescent shape often provides beautiful panoramic views and calmer swimming conditions than exposed beaches.

24 beaches found

Croatia

Ambrela Beach

3.3 / 5

A Blue Flag pebble bay on Pula's Verudela peninsula with netted swim zones, deep pine shade, and a 4 km hop from the city centre on bus line 2.

pebble bayswimmingsnorkeling

Hawaii·United States

Anahola Beach Park

3.2 / 5

The Kauai east-shore family beach on Hawaiian Home Lands, where locals walk from the homestead community to a half-mile bay protected by an offshore reef. Calm at the east end, dangerous at the river mouth, and quiet on most weekday mornings.

sandy bayswimmingsnorkeling

Assos, Kefalonia, from the hills high to the east: the pine-covered castle peninsula with Venetian walls along its ridge, joined by a low isthmus to the red-roofed village, with yachts anchored in the sheltered cove below

Greece

Assos Beach, Kefalonia: Two Pebble Coves and the Castle Walk Above Them

3.8 / 5

Assos Beach is the pebble waterfront of Assos village in northwest Kefalonia: a small main cove with loungers in front of the tavernas and a quieter one by the castle road. A steep, winding road leads down, parking is tight in July and August, and a free Venetian castle walk starts above it.

pebble bayswimmingsnorkeling

Aerial view of Camusdarach Beach near Morar, the curving white shell-sand crescent and green-turquoise water with rocky outcrops, machair and the Highland hills behind

Scotland·United Kingdom

Camusdarach Beach: How to Visit the Local Hero Beach (Parking, Walk and the Silver Sands Question)

3.6 / 5

Camusdarach Beach is the curving white shell-sand crescent near Morar where the 1983 film Local Hero was shot, a five-minute dune walk from a small B8008 car park that goes pay-and-display in 2026, with views to Eigg and Rum and no facilities at all.

white sand bayswimmingwalking

Aerial view of Cavtat near Dubrovnik, the wooded twin-bay peninsula with its yacht-filled harbour, orange-roofed old town and forested headlands beside the clear Adriatic

Croatia

Cavtat Beach: Rat, Zal and the Quiet Swim 25 Minutes From Dubrovnik

3.5 / 5

Cavtat's beaches are pebble, not sand, but the water is some of the clearest near Dubrovnik. Rat for the scene, Zal for families, plus the bus 10, the ferry and the best time to swim.

pebble bayswimmingsnorkeling

Croatia

Firule Beach

3.3 / 5

Firule beach is the shallow sandy bay just east of Bacvice in Split, with water that stays knee-deep a long way out, fine sand rare on this coast, picigin most evenings, and the Old Town a 15-20 minute walk away. The family pick when Bacvice gets too loud.

sandy bayswimmingpicigin

Puerto Rico

Flamenco Beach, Puerto Rico: Getting to Culebra, and Why to Stay the Night

4.2 / 5

Flamenco Beach on Culebra, Puerto Rico, is a sheltered horseshoe of white sand close to a mile long, ranked 41st in the world for 2026. Reaching it means a 90-minute ferry from Ceiba or a 20-minute flight from San Juan, and the ferry seat is the hard part.

white sand bayswimmingsnorkeling

Elevated view of Harlech Beach in North Wales, a vast curve of golden sand backed by marram dunes, with tidal channels on the sand and the hills of Eryri across the bay

Wales·United Kingdom

Harlech Beach: Four Miles of Sand, Dunes and a Castle on the Skyline

3.7 / 5

Harlech Beach is a four-mile sweep of golden sand and growing dunes in Eryri, under a UNESCO castle with the Snowdonia mountains behind. Wild, often empty, no lifeguards. What to expect, how to get there and when to go.

sandy bayswimmingwalking

Wide low-tide view of Hayle Towans beach curving along St Ives Bay with marram dunes behind and a big Atlantic sky

England·United Kingdom

Hayle Beach (Hayle Towans), Cornwall

3.6 / 5

Hayle Beach is the town-end of a three-mile sand-and-dune sweep along St Ives Bay, where the right move depends on which Towans you pick, where you park (Harveys from about £1.20/hr, Gwithian £3/hr), the dog rules by season, and the estuary current you keep clear of.

sandy bayswimmingsurfing

Hawaii·United States

Kalihiwai Beach

3.5 / 5

The Kauai North Shore bay where the Kalihiwai River meets the ocean. A crescent of gold sand backed by ironwood trees, a calm summer swim, an expert winter surf break, a kayakable river running inland, and almost no facilities. The North Shore's quietest accessible beach.

sandy bayswimmingsurfing

Keem Beach, Achill Island, from above: the curve of pale sand with swimmers in the clear blue-green shallows, the lifeguard hut by the steps and the cliff road climbing behind

Ireland

Keem Beach on Achill Island: How to Get There Before the Car Park Fills

4.0 / 5

Keem Beach (Keem Bay) is a sheltered Blue Flag cove at the far western end of Achill Island, reached by one cliff road that gardaí have closed on hot days. How to get there, when it's lifeguarded, and the walks above it.

sandy bayswimmingsnorkeling

Hawaii·United States

Kua Bay Beach

3.9 / 5

The white-sand crescent in Kekaha Kai State Park north of Kailua-Kona, with calm turquoise water in summer, dramatic lava rock cliffs at both ends, and the new 2026 non-resident fees that older travel guides do not mention.

sandy white sandswimmingsnorkeling

Croatia

Labadusa Beach

3.1 / 5

A long pebble bay on the southern side of Ciovo island near Trogir, just along the coast from the lively Copacabana strip at Okrug Gornji. Pine shade, clear water, a beach club and a campsite tavern, and crowds that pile in once the parking fills.

pebble bayswimmingsnorkeling

Aerial of Margate Main Sands in Kent, a broad curve of golden sand beside the seafront town, with the old harbour arm curving out to the left and a rectangular tidal pool marked out in the shallows

England·United Kingdom

Margate Beach: Main Sands, the Tides and a Day Trip From London

3.1 / 5

Margate Main Sands is a broad, family-friendly town beach at the heart of Kent's coolest seaside town, 90 minutes from London by high-speed train. The tides, the swimming, Turner Contemporary and Dreamland, plus the quieter bays nearby.

sandy bayswimmingsunbathing

Moloa'a Bay's half-moon crescent of white sand bordered by green cliffs on Kauai's north-east shore

Hawaii·United States

Moloa'a Beach

3.5 / 5

The Kauai north-east shore half-moon bay where Gilligan's Island was filmed in 1963 and almost nobody has been since. Treacherous currents in the centre, calm at the ends, no lifeguard, no facilities, and limited parking on a residential road. Quiet on purpose.

sandy bayswimmingsnorkeling

Aerial view of Navagio Shipwreck Beach in Zakynthos with turquoise water and white limestone cliffs

Greece

Navagio Beach (Shipwreck Beach), Zakynthos

3.7 / 5

Navagio Shipwreck Beach on Zakynthos: a rusting wreck on white sand under sheer limestone cliffs, closed to landings and swimming over rockfall risk, and seen today from a boat or the clifftop platform.

sandy cliff beachphotography

Nugal beach on the Makarska Riviera, a pebble cove of clear turquoise water with sunbathers on the shore below towering white cliffs and pine, a small boat anchored in the bay

Croatia

Nugal Beach: The Hidden Cove You Walk to from Makarska

3.5 / 5

Nugal beach is the hidden pebble cove you reach on foot from Makarska, a half-hour coastal forest walk to clear water, cliffs, and the riviera's best-known naturist beach.

pebble bayswimmingsnorkeling

Pallas Beach, Lindos, from the air: the jetty and the crescent of Pallas Beach below a row of white tavernas on the left, the long main beach curving along the right foreground, and the white village below the Acropolis

Greece

Pallas Beach in Lindos: How to Walk Down, Swim and Eat Below the Acropolis

3.6 / 5

Pallas Beach is the small sandy bay at the east end of Lindos Bay on Rhodes, directly below the Acropolis, with a jetty and a taverna on the sand. How to walk down, parking, the sunbeds, the taverna and when to go.

sandy bayswimmingsunbathing

Aerial view over Playa Balandra near La Paz: rippled turquoise shallows and a deep blue pool, the curved main beach beside a small conical hill, a mangrove patch and inner lagoon among brown desert hills, with Pichilingue port in the distance

Mexico

Playa Balandra, La Paz: How to Get In, and When the Bay Looks Its Best

4.1 / 5

Playa Balandra is a shallow, sheltered bay about 25km north of La Paz in Baja California Sur, known for its white sand and the El Hongo rock. Entry is by a 125-peso wristband in one of two daily shifts capped at 450 people, and online wristbands cover only the afternoon shift.

sandy white sandswimmingsunbathing

Playa Xpu-Ha from above: the Serenity Beach Club's thatched palapas and red parasols under the palms, swimmers in the clear blue shallows and resort buildings on the far point

Mexico

Xpu-Ha Beach, Riviera Maya: How to Get On the Sand and What It Costs

3.1 / 5

Playa Xpu-Ha is a calm, sandy-bottomed bay off Highway 307, 25 minutes south of Playa del Carmen, ranked 37th in the world for 2026. The sand is public by law, but most ways onto it cross private land and beach-club gates.

sandy white sandswimmingsnorkeling

Elevated view of Sablicevo beach in Rijeka's Pecine district, a pebble cove of clear green water below the cliffs, with sunbathers, a swim-zone buoy line and the stone stairs down to the shore

Croatia

Sablicevo Beach: Rijeka's Rare Natural Pebble Cove in Pecine

2.6 / 5

Sablicevo beach is the rare natural pebble cove in the port city of Rijeka, tucked under cliffs in Pecine. How to get there, the bar and stairs, and whether it's worth it.

pebble bayswimmingsnorkeling

Australia

Wharton Beach, Esperance: How to Visit the World's 3rd-Best Beach

4.3 / 5

Wharton Beach near Esperance jumped to the world's 3rd-best beach for 2026, a free, facility-light 4.5km arc of white sand an hour east of town with sealed-road parking, optional 4WD beach driving, no kangaroos and no park fee to reach the turquoise water.

white sand bayswimmingsnorkeling

Wineglass Bay in Freycinet National Park, Tasmania, seen from the lookout saddle: the curved white beach and blue water below the forested southern peaks, with pink granite boulders in the foreground

Australia

Wineglass Bay, Tasmania: How to Get There and How Far You'll Walk

3.8 / 5

You can't drive to Wineglass Bay. The lookout is a steep 1.3km climb in Freycinet National Park and the sand is about 1,000 stairs below it. How to see it, what it costs, and whether to walk down.

white sand bayhikingswimming

Žukova Bay, Hvar, seen through pine and olive branches: small fishing boats moored in turquoise water, a red-roofed stone building on the rocky shore and a wooded slope behind

Croatia

Žukova Beach, Hvar: A Pine Cove Near Stari Grad, and What to Bring

3.6 / 5

Žukova Beach (Uvala Žukova) is a pine-shaded bay on Hvar's north coast near Rudina, about 3km north of Stari Grad. The shore is mostly rock with one pebble strip, the walk from the parking area is about 300m, and there is nothing to buy, so bring food, water and water shoes.

rocky pebbleswimmingsnorkeling