North America's Top 50+ Beaches
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Rockaway Beach // USA
Larnax Visited by over 1 million people every year, this popular, almost chocolate-brown colored sandy beach is located in Pacifica, which is a 20 minute drive south of San Francisco. The beach is easily accessible and parking is nearby so you won't have to worry about any long hikes through the mountains to get here. This is a great place… read more »
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Sharp Park Beach // USA
Not far from the hectic city life of downtown San Francisco lies one of California's few black sand beaches. Further inland, the grains of sand are finer and as you go towards the water's edge the grains become more pebble-like. A little way back from the beach, there is a narrow strip of land with grass, picnic tables and… read more »
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Drakes Beach // USA
Located on the more sheltered easterly side of Point Reyes Headlands is Drakes Beach. During the summer months this is a popular spot and the broad expanse of sand can quickly fill up.
Despite being tucked away, around the corner from the full force of the Pacific Ocean there can still be plenty of waves at Drakes Beach. Before you dive… read more »
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Rodeo Beach // USA
Youngti548 Set near the tip of the Marin Headlands is Rodeo Beach, a narrow strip of pebbly sand dividing the Pacific Ocean from the brackish waters of Rodeo Lagoon. On closer inspection you may notice the sand contains weather-worn particles of red jasper, greenstone and orange chalcedony from the adjacent cliffs.
Rodeo Beach is quite a popular family beach and there are… read more »
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Thornton State Beach // USA
Peter Kaminski Birds in search of a tasty morsel can be seen along the shoreline of this brown sandy beach just south of San Francisco. Positioned below tall bluffs, this park is popular with hikers, boasting equestrian trails on the bluff terraces high above the waterline. There's only a few parking spots nearby and the locals like it that way so… read more »
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Hermosa Beach // USA
Hermosa's two-mile swathe of golden sand is one of the most popular stretches in Los Angeles County.
With 94 acres of beach to stretch out on and top-notch conditions for surfing, it attracts visitors of all ages.
At the heart of the beach is the historic pier, which has had pride of place for more than 50 years. If you fancy doing… read more »
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Pacific Beach // USA
Fastily Pacific Beach is the name of both the beach and this neighborhood of San Diego. Known locally as P.B. this stretch of sand runs between La Jolla and Mission Beach.
At the heart of Pacific Beach is the Crystal Pier which dates back to the 1920s. The main beach is the area to the south of the pier, whilst the other… read more »
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Fairfield Beach // USA
© Joe Shlabotnik Fairfield Beach comprises approximately five miles of wide sandy beach on Long Island Sound. It forms a narrow spit or peninsula which runs continuously between Pine Creek Point to the south and Shoal Point to the north, the closest stretch of land to Penfield Reef.
Fairfield Beach's Long Island Sound location has made it a prime spot for building, with almost… read more »
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Pleasure Beach // USA
Bill Pleasure Beach stands guard at the entrance to Bridgeport Harbour. On the same narrow barrier beach peninsula as the better-known Long Beach, Pleasure Beach has a much more natural appearance. Its pale sand is mixed with shingle and pebbles from Long Island Sound, alongside occasional pockets of coastal grasses and areas of washed-up seaweed.
Brought back to life in 2014,… read more »
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Bowman's Beach Park // USA
Mark Sherman Several miles in length, Bowman's Beach sits on the Gulf of Mexico on the southern shores of Florida's Sanibel Island. Situated on one of the quieter parts of island, with just one main road heading north, Bowman's Beach is close to both JN Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge and the lagoon-like waters of Clam Bayou.
Roughly ten minutes on foot from… read more »
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Redondo Beach // USA
btwashburn Forming the third point in a triangle alongside San Francisco to the north and San Jose to the east, Redondo Beach is part of a continuous string of sand beaches on Half Moon Bay that each have their own name and ambience.
One of the quieter stretches of bleached sand on the bay, Redondo Beach is still close to a variety… read more »
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Calusa Beach // USA
Lying close to the southernmost point of Bahia Honda Key, one of the Florida Keys, Calusa Beach comes complete with palm trees and white sand gently-sloping into warm azure blue waters.
One of just a handful of great beaches in the keys, and one of very few that are entirely natural, Calusa Beach is part of Bahia Honda State Park.… read more »
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Green Sand Beach // USA
Roy Luck Officially called Papakōlea, and also going by the name Mahana Beach, Green Sand Beach takes its most common moniker from its unusually-coloured sands. It is one of just four known beaches worldwide to comprise green sand through the degradation of a volcanic rock known as olivine.
Located on Big Island's southeast coast at the end of a small inlet, the rocks… read more »
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Ingonish Beach // Canada
Dennis Jarvis Very much a summer destination, Ingonish Beach pretty much disappears entirely during the winter months, only for the sands to be redeposited afresh by the waves each spring.
Situated within Cape Breton Highlands National Park on Cape Breton Island, the beach forms the ocean-facing edge of a thin strip of land separating a freshwater lake from the Atlantic Ocean.
A boardwalk leads… read more »
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McClures Beach // USA
Buddha Dog McClures Beach lies at the very end of Pierce Point Road, from where walkers head out on the Tomales Point Trailhead. Facing west into the broad expanse of the Pacific blue, rip currents make swimming dangerous, although there is plenty to do on the broad sweep of golden sands instead. Situated between two short headlands, the beach can't be seen… read more »
