20 of the best beaches in Europe

No matter your taste in beach, Europe obliges. The continent’s astonishing 38,600km of coastline ranges from wild, wind-lashed shores along the Atlantic and mountain-fringed Arctic bays to sun-drenched, snuggled-away coves in Italy and Greece. With thousands of varied and wonderful places for swimmers, sunbathers and surfers, there are many busy bays as well as lesser-visited spots tucked between dramatic cliffs with picture-perfect scenery. Be inspired by our pick of Europe's very best beaches.

1. Haukland Beach, Lofoten Islands, Norway

Rearing out of the Norwegian Sea like a dragon’s backbone, the Lofoten Islands off Norway’s northwest coast offer the Arctic dream – whether seen in the never-dying light of the midnight sun or under dancing northern lights in winter snows. Haukland Beach is out of this world, with spiky granite peaks thrusting above creamy sands and sapphire sea. The water makes for a chilly swim, never hitting more than 15°C (59°F), but you’ll be itching to jump in all the same.

Getting there: Haukland Beach is on the island of Vestvågøy, and is a 15-minute drive from Leknes.

2. Cala Goloritzè, Sardinia, Italy

On Sardinia’s east coast, Golfo di Orosei gets top marks all around for coastal beauty. But few beaches make you audibly gasp like sublime Cala Goloritzè, with its snow-white pebbles giving way to a sea of purest aquamarine blue. Limestone cliffs jut dramatically above the bay, as does Monte Caroddi, a 148m-high needle of rock beloved by climbers.

Getting there: Reach it by boat or hike the Cala Goloritzè Trail.

3. West Beach, Berneray, Scotland

Speckling the wild North Atlantic, Scotland’s Outer Hebrides are home to some of Europe’s most remote beaches. Singling out one is tough – but West Beach on the wee isle of Berneray is just divine. After a walk through dunes and wind-bent machair grasses, you reach this ravishing 5km expanse of white sand that slides gently into a turquoise sea. It’s often empty but for seabirds trilling overhead and the occasional porpoise or otter.

Getting there: There's a parking lot nearby soon after Berneray Village Hall. It's a short walk to the beach from there.

4. Plage de Palombaggia, Corsica, France

Plage de Palombaggia, in Corsica’s southeast, is one of the best beaches in France. Its long curve of pale, powder-soft sand shelving into cerulean blue waters as clear as glass simply bewitches. Backed by fragrant umbrella pines, hemmed in by wooded hills that strum with cicadas come sundown, and overlooking the Îles Cerbicale, this could well be the beach of your wildest Mediterranean dreams. Bring snorkel gear and a picnic.

Getting there: There is a parking lot near the beach. A free shuttle service runs the 12km from Porto Vecchio to Plage de Palombaggia in July and August.

5. Platja Illetes, Formentera, Spain

With its long sweep of bleach-blonde sand and translucent azure waters, Formentera’s Platja Illetes fits the barefoot-paradise bill neatly. You might swiftly compare the scene to the Caribbean – but frankly, why would you want to imagine yourself anywhere else? The beach forms the western section of the slender Trucador Peninsula, and just offshore lie the two illetes (islets), Pouet and Rodona, that give the beach its name.

Getting there: Arrive early for a spot in the parking lot, otherwise take a taxi or hop on board bus line L3 from La Savina port.

6. Barafundle Bay, Pembrokeshire, Wales

A breezy walk over gorse-cloaked clifftops on Wales’ Pembrokeshire Coast Path ramps up the anticipation for Barafundle Bay: an arc of butterscotch sand rimmed by dunes that ease their way gently to clear turquoise water. This bay often tops the polls of the UK’s finest beaches – and if you avoid busy weekends in summer, you’ll feel the magic.

Getting there: There's no road access so be prepared to walk at least 800m from the nearest parking lot at Stackpole Quay.

7. Praia da Arrifana, the Algarve, Portugal

On the Algarve’s wild, wind-whipped west coast, crowds are few, and the Atlantic waves are tremendous. Cliff-wrapped Praia da Arrifana is a gorgeous golden crescent with a ruined fortress, beachside restaurant and plenty of serious surf. For more of the same, hop south to lagoon-side Praia da Bordeira, where dunes fizz away into the brilliant blue sea.

Getting there: Praia da Arrifana is a 10km drive from Aljezur.

8. Cala Macarella, Menorca, Spain

Making just a tiny indentation on Menorca’s southwest coast, Cala Macarella is the stuff of fantasy, with flour-white sand and startlingly turquoise waters. Nestled among cliffs stippled with pines and holm oaks, the horseshoe-shaped bay gets incredibly busy in summer, so time it right by arriving early or late in the day or visiting in the low season.

Getting there: It can only be reached on foot (1.5km, approx 25 minutes) or by boat. 

9. Navagio Beach, Zakynthos, Greece

The Greek beach of a million postcards, Navagio in Zakynthos is better known by its nickname, Shipwreck Beach, due to the rusted hulk of a cargo ship that washed up on its shores. With mighty cliffs flinging up above a perfect arc of sand and sea so blue it looks enhanced by Photoshopped, this heaven-on-earth beach is no secret. But if you dodge the high season, it’s still worth coming out here to be momentarily floored by its beauty.

Getting there: Hire a boat or book on an excursion from island ports.

10. Platja des Coll Baix, Mallorca, Spain

Half the fun is managing to find this remote, thrillingly wild beauty of a beach on Mallorca’s off-the-beaten-track Cap des Pinar peninsula. A walking trail descends through pines and scrambles down the coast to Platja des Coll Baix. A lovely scoop of pale pebbles and crystal-clear sea rimmed by crumbling cliffs, the bay is at its peaceful best early or late in the day.

Getting there: It's only accessible on foot or by boat. From Alcúdia, drive about 8km to an open spot in the woods where you can park and it's about a 45-minute hike to the beach from there.

11. Île de Porquerolles, Côte d’Azur, France

Too petite to name just one of its beaches, the car-free islet of Île de Porquerolles, dangling just off the coast of Hyères, offers a delicious amuse-bouche of the French Riviera – providing you sidestep the sun-worshipping day trippers in the height of summer, that is. Come in the low season to truly appreciate this crescent-shaped beach of pearl-white sand, skirted by pine and eucalyptus woods.

Getting there: Ferries depart from La Tour Fondue harbour near Hyères. Hire a bike and enjoy a leisurely pedal around the island's beaches.

12. Rauðasandur, Westfjords, Iceland

On the Látrabjarg Peninsula in the remote Westfjords and reached by a winding mountain road, Rauðasandur – one of Iceland’s best beaches – is vast, empty and staggeringly beautiful. Formed by crushed scallop shells, its bronze sands are buttressed by dark cliffs, backed by an azure lagoon and tormented by a wild, wild sea. If you hike on Látrabjarg’s seabird cliffs, look for puffins and seals lounging on the rocks below. On clear days, views reach to the Snæfellsjökull glacier volcano, some 65km across the water.

Getting there: You'll need a 4WD for this one. Take Rte 612 from Látrabjarg, then drive the steep, winding Rte 614 for about 10km.

13. Praia as Catedrais, Galicia, Spain

If you want to worship at the altar of the beach gods, Praia as Catedrais in Galicia is heaven. Taking its name – Cathedral Beach – from the way wind and water have gnawed this stretch of coastline into spectacular rock arches, towers and chambers, it's best visited at low tide when its long golden sands are properly exposed. In the height of summer, a free permit is needed to visit.

Getting there: Esteiro train station is 1.3km from the beach, or drive and park nearby.

14. Sveti Stefan, Montenegro

The Adriatic doesn't get much more ludicrously photogenic than at the fortified island village of Sveti Stefan (Свети Стефан), which has one of the loveliest beaches in Montenegro. Here, pines, olive trees and oleanders peek above 15th-century stone villas, which quietly survey pink sands and limpid waters from their rocky perch. You can laze on the public beach, but unless you’re staying at the Aman Resort, you can't go inland.

Getting there: Drive or take the bus from Budva 10km away.

15. Lara Beach, Cyprus

A taste of Cyprus before the dawn of tourism, delightfully secluded Lara Beach makes a little notch on the island’s west coast. It’s a bumpy drive, but all the bounce becomes worth it when you reach the tremendously unspoiled sands and pristine waters of this conservation area – an important hatchery and nesting ground for loggerhead and green turtles. Monk seals also inhabit sea caves around the peninsula.

Getting there: It's 26km north of Paphos down a dirt track off the main road. A 4WD is advisable.

16. Zlatni Rat, Brač Island, Croatia

The poster child of Croatia’s coast, Zlatni Rat on Brač Island is no secret – but don’t let that stop you. Get a wriggle on in the low season instead to find greater peace at this phenomenal sand-and-pebble beach, which dips its pale, slender toes into the inky Adriatic and gazes wistfully up to the rugged cliffs and forested mountains of Dalmatia. Pine trees offer welcome shade.

Getting there: Walk the 1.5km-long pedestrian promenade from the pretty town of Bol, take a taxi boat from the old-town harbor, or drive.

17. Dueodde, Bornholm, Denmark

Appearing like a work of art in the painterly pastel light of sunset, Dueodde reclines at the southernmost tip of the island of Bornholm in Denmark, on the Baltic Sea. Backed by expansive dunes and pines, its sand is as white and soft as talcum powder – so fine-grained, in fact, that it was once used in hourglasses. You can walk for miles, finding space and solitude, and wade out to sea forever with water only reaching your knees. By night, the only light comes from the stars and blinking lighthouse.

Getting there: Fly into Bornholm or take a ferry from Ystad in Sweden (1 hour and 20 minutes). Dueodde is a 30km drive from the port town of Rønne.

18. Keem Bay, County Mayo, Ireland

Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way hides a crock of gold in its dramatic coastline, and nowhere more so than at gloriously remote Keem Bay at the far west of Achill Island. A precipitous coastal drive fires the appetite for proper wilderness – and here you have it. Bearing the brunt of stormy seas and the fickle whims of the Irish weather, this half-moon bay of golden sand spreads out at the foot of steep cliffs and grassy slopes. Basking sharks can sometimes be spotted offshore.

Getting there: It's a stunning drive from Keel, 8km to the east, with expansive views across the water as the road climbs beside steep cliffs.

19. Myrtos Beach, Kefallonia, Greece

The road that helter-skelters down the steep hillside to Myrtos on the Greek island of Kefallonia quickens the pulse as much as the bay itself. From above, it looks as though mighty Poseidon has emerged from the deep and cleaved the coast in two, leaving behind this fiercely beautiful white-pebble bay, framed by sheer cliffs and lapped by the sea that ticks almost every blue on the color chart. It’s justifiably popular, so avoid peak times and seasons.

Getting there: Drive (parking is limited) or take a taxi. The closest village is Divarata.

20. Spiaggia dei Conigli, Sicily, Italy

Sicily has some fantastic beaches along its gorgeous circumference, but a more wondrous spiaggia yet lies off the coast on far-flung, still-kind-of-a-secret Lampedusa, Italy’s southernmost island, which is closer to Tunisia than the mainland. Here you’ll be blown away by the Spiaggia dei Conigli (Rabbit Beach), with its bleached sands and shallow aquamarine water. The beach forms part of a marine reserve where loggerhead turtles nest, making it off-limits at night from roughly May to August. In high season, reserve a space online in advance.

Getting there: It's about 5km from Lampedusa town to the parking lot and accessible from there on foot.

Be inspired by more stunning coves, bays and strands with Lonely Planet's book Best Beaches: 100 of the World's Most Incredible Beaches.