Discover the Best Beaches in the World

Grace Bay, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos made TripAdvisor's list, with it's sprawling, white sands and snorkeler-friendly reefs. Image source: Candyce H. Stapen

For sand and sea lovers, it’s always worth it to travel to a great beach. According to TripAdvisor’s Travelers’ Choice Awards 2017, the best beach in the world is Baia do Sancho, Fernando de Noronha, Brazil. If you don’t want to travel that far, you can savor Siesta Beach, Siesta Key, Florida — a strand that the booking and travel site’s users rated as the top beach in the U.S.

Additional best beaches relatively near the U.S. are Grace Bay, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos, and Eagle Beach in Aruba. More winners included La Concha Beach, San Sebastian, Spain; Playa Norte, Isla Mujeres, Mexico; Radhanagar Beach, Havelock Island, India; Elafonissi Beach, Crete, Greece; and Galapagos Beach at Tortuga Bay, Galapagos Islands, Ecuador. For work-weary urban dwellers, TripAdvisor’s beach list offers drool-worthy travel inspiration.

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Top 5 Travelers’ Choice Beaches in the World

1. Baia do Sancho, Fernando de Noronha, Brazil: Three years in a row, TripAdvisor’s users voted the beaches on Fernando de Noronha, part of a 21-island archipelago off the coast of Brazil, as being among the best beaches in the world. Visitors come for the white sands as well as the good snorkeling and diving. TripAdvisor’s average nightly rate for nearby hotels is $248. In April, the least expensive month to visit, the average hotel rate drops to $190 per night.

2. Grace Bay, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos: Grace Bay features 12 miles of sugar-white sands. Despite development in recent years, Provo offers a slow-paced beach getaway. The Princess Alexandra Marine National Park offshore rewards divers and snorkelers with schools of fish and myriad coral formations. TripAdvisor’s average nightly rate for nearby hotels is $712. In September, the least expensive month to visit, the average hotel rate drops to $492 per night.

3. Eagle Beach, Aruba: TripAdvisor’s users admire Eagle Beach’s white sands and turquoise waters. I would never put Eagle Beach on a best beach list because the sands are right next to a main road. Average nightly hotel rate is $399. In October, the least expensive month, rates drop to $301.

4. Playa Paraiso, Cayo Largo, Cuba: The apt name translates to Paradise Beach. The stretch of powder-white sands and typically calm waters is about three miles from the hotel zone. Average nightly hotel rate is $199. In June, the least expensive month, rates drop to $106.

5. Siesta Beach, Siesta Key, Florida: Siesta Beach’s fine, white, quartz sand stays relatively cool under your feet. Lifeguards and concessions make the beach family-friendly. The average nightly hotel rate is $260. In September, the least expensive month, rates drop to $214.

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Follow Candyce H. Stapen on Twitter: @FamilyiTrips