Best Beaches in Europe: Our Top 10

We have made a selection of the best and most beautiful beaches in Europe. Are you looking for that perfect spot for your holiday? Check out our top 10 of Europe’s best beaches and start planning your trip!

10. Nissi Beach, Cyprus

Nissy Beach is one of the island’s finest white-sand beaches with turquoise blue and clear waters. Nissi Beach is an arc of pearl white sand that melts into the turquoise sea. It draws a young crowd for its daytime beach parties, but there also are plenty of quiet spots around its edges. Best of all, just offshore is a little island – that’s what ‘nissi’ means in Greek – which is home to a buzzing watersports centre.

9. Scopello Beach, Sicily, Italy

This little cove is hidden away near the village of Scopello in the Zingaro nature reserve. It is the prefect meeting of a beautiful natural location with some fine old crumbling buildings. Just off the coast, rising dramatically out of the crystal clear waters are the faraglioni, a series of natural rock towers.

8. Macarelleta Beach, Menorca, Spain

Macarella is an idyllic cove with fine, white sand, where the sea is a calm pool of turquoise water. Sheltered by hills covered in pine trees and holm oaks, it is often warm enough to sunbathe, even in winter a no brainer for our best beaches top 10.

7. Barra Beach, Isle of Barra, Scotland

The area of Barra is roughly 60 square kilometres (23 sq mi), the main village being Castlebay (Bàgh a’ Chaisteil). The west of the islad has white sandy beaches backed by shell-sand, machair and the east has numerous rocky inlets.

6. Porto Santo, Madeira, Portugal

Porto Santo is one long beach with a bit of an island attached. Along its nine kilometres of soft white sands, you’ll find just a handful of hotels and restaurants, making Porto Santo one of the last ‘undiscovered’ resorts in Europe.

5. Zlatni Rat, Bol, Croatia

Zlatni rat beach (Golden cape) in Bol is about 500 metrs long pebble beach that changes the shape under influence of the sea currents. Size of the pebble is variable from big ones to the small ones as you go closer to the waterfront. Also, there is a pine trees wood on the Zlatni rat beach – it is really great since it offers shade in hot and dry days during the summer. So when You have enought sunbathing, take a nap in the wood.

4. Praia da Cova Redonda, Algarve, Portugal

In a sheltered spot between rocky cliffs, the small sandy beach of Praia da Cova Redonda spreads out below a settlement with hotels and holiday apartments. The cliffs and a tall rock towering out of the water create a fantastic natural backdrop. The calm waters and the gentle slope into the water make the beach an ideal destination for families.

3. The Concha, San Sebastian, Spain

This town beach is situated right in the city centre, between the fishing harbour of San Sebastián and Pico del Loro. It is one of the most famous, photographed and elegant beaches in the Basque Country. It offers a wide range of services and facilities. You can practise sports like surfing, windsurfing, kayaking and beach football, and for the children there are platforms in the sea with small water attractions.

2. Apela Beach, Karpathos Island, Greece

Apella is among the most picturesque beaches on Karpathos. It is actually a lovely cove with exotic water and lush greenery.

1. Cale Goloritzé, Sardinia, Italy

The number one of our best beaches in Europe: Cale Goloritzé, located at the base of a ravine on Sardinia’s windswept northeastern coast, feels like a hidden oasis: a tiny stretch of bone-white sand and Bermuda-blue water tucked between soaring limestone cliffs. In fact, the beach was considered to be so special that it was made a UNESCO site in 1995.