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North America

Beach sights in North America

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  1. West Dennis Beach

    West Dennis Beach, off MA 28, is a gorgeous mile-long beach on Nantucket Sound. It’s quite popular; facilities include a snack bar and rest rooms. It’s a good bet for finding a parking space on even the sunniest of days, as the parking lot extends clear down the beach, with room for 1000 cars.

    reviewed

  2. Chapin Memorial Beach

    Wade in to the gently sloping waters at dune-backed Chapin Memorial Beach. As with all bayside beaches in Dennis, you can walk far out onto the tidal flats at low tide. This mile-long beach is also ideal for walks under the light of the moon. To get there, take New Boston Rd opposite Dennis Public Market on MA 6A and follow the signs.

    reviewed

  3. Coast Guard Beach

    All roads lead to Coast Guard Beach. The main road from the Salt Pond Visitor Center deposits you here, as do biking and hiking trails. And it’s for good reason – this grand beach backed by a classic coast guard station is a real pleaser that attracts everyone from beach strollers to hard-core surfers. Bird-watchers flock here for the eagle-eye view of Nauset Marsh. Facilities include rest rooms, showers and changing rooms. In summer, when the small beach parking lot fills up, a shuttle bus runs from a staging area near the visitors center.

    reviewed

  4. Corporation Beach

    Corporation Beach, off MA 6A, is another popular bayside beach that’s backed by dunes and is also one of the best equipped, with picnic space and wheelchair facilities.

    reviewed

  5. First Encounter Beach

    First Encounter Beach, where Samoset Rd meets Cape Cod Bay, is an excellent location to watch the sunset. With its vast tidal flats and kid-friendly, calm, shallow waters, it offers a night-and-day contrast to the National Seashore beaches on Eastham’s wild Atlantic side. While it’s a thoroughly pleasant scene today, the beach takes its name from a more checkered history – it was on these shores that the first arrows and musket fire exchange took place between Native Americans and the Pilgrims.

    reviewed

  6. Nauset Light Beach

    Cliff-backed Nauset Light Beach, north of Coast Guard Beach, is the stuff of dreams. Its features and facilities are similar to Coast Guard Beach, but there’s a large parking lot right at the beach. Nauset Lighthouse, a picturesque red-and-white striped tower, guards the shoreline. And don’t miss the Three Sisters Lighthouses, a curious trio of 19th-century lighthouses saved from an eroding sea cliff and moved to a wooded clearing just five minutes’ walk up Cable Rd from Nauset Light Beach.

    reviewed

  7. Black's Beach

    Hang-gliding at Torrey Pines State Beach takes you by this 'clothing optional' beach that's popular with naturists.

    reviewed

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  9. Grand Bay West Beach

    Located a short distance west of town, the long shore is backed by grassy dunes, which are breeding grounds for the endangered piping plover. The Cormack Trail (11km) leaves from here and flirts with the coast all the way to John T Cheeseman Provincial Park.

    reviewed

  10. Shallow Bay

    The gentle, safe, sand-duned beach at Shallow Bay seems out of place, as if transported from the Caribbean by some bizarre current. The water, though, provides a chilling dose of reality, rarely getting above 15°C.

    reviewed

  11. A

    Boardwalk

    What's trendy in beachwear this season? Seventeenth-century Polish gabardine coats, apparently. There are plenty of skimpily dressed hotties on the Mid-Beach boardwalk, but there are also Orthodox Jews going about their business in the midst of gay joggers, strolling tourists and sunbathers. Nearby are numerous condo buildings occupied by middle-class Latinos and Jews, who walk their dogs and play with their kids here, giving the entire place a laid-back, real-world vibe that contrasts with the nonstop glamour of South Beach.

    reviewed

  12. B

    Playa Municipal

    Playa Municipal is the least appealing beach on the bay.

    reviewed

  13. C

    Playa San Pedrito

    Playa San Pedrito, is the closest - and dirtiest - beach to town.

    reviewed

  14. Carmel Beach

    If you're afraid of sunburn, you'll love the Carmel Beach, a nice crescent of white sand.

    reviewed

  15. D

    Block Island

    Enjoy the close proximity of a picturesque town (booze) and a pristine beach (swim) at Block Island.

    reviewed

  16. E

    Forest River Park

    Two miles south of the town center, Forest River Park has two beaches, picnic areas and a saltwater swimming pool.

    reviewed

  17. Playa Conejos

    Around a headland at the east end of Bahía Conejos is the more sheltered Playa Conejos, whose land access is only by a steep path.

    reviewed

  18. F

    Mismaloya

    Mismaloya, the location for The Night of the Iguana, is about 12km south of town. The tiny scenic cove is dominated by a gargantuan resort.

    reviewed

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  20. Playa La India

    The easterly Playa La India is one of Huatulco's most beautiful beaches and one of the area's best places for snorkeling. No comedores here.

    reviewed

  21. G

    Beachfront Park

    Beachfront Park, is situated between B & H Sts. It has a great harborside beach for little ones - with no waves - and picnic tables and a bicycle trail.

    reviewed

  22. H

    Smathers Beach

    Smathers Beach is further east than the other city beaches, off S Roosevelt Blvd, and is more popular with jet skiers, parasailers, teens and college students.

    reviewed

  23. I

    Playa Madera

    Playa Madera is a pleasant five-minute walk east from Playa Municipal along a concrete walkway (popular with young couples in the evening) around the rocky point.

    reviewed

  24. J

    Playa Norte

    Flanked by a broad malecón (waterfront street) popular with joggers and strollers, the golden sands of Playa Norte begin just north of Old Mazatlán.

    reviewed