Boulders Beach, famed for its adorable penguin residents, has snagged 40th place in an international list of the world’s best beaches.
Canadian travel agency FlightNetwork, gathered the opinions of over 600 editors, bloggers, travel journalists and specialists about their favourite beaches in the world. Beaches were judged against criteria of sand and water quality, beauty, remoteness, annual days of sunshine and average annual temperature.
Despite South Africa having some of the most idyllic stretches of coastline in the world – at least according to us – the closest our nation fared to finishing in top place was at number 40 – with Cape Town’s beloved Boulders Beach scoring highly across the board. This is the consensus of Boulder’s Beach from FlightNetwork’s index:
“Plush white sands. Ancient granite boulders. Small penguins. Venture to Boulders Beach in the Cape Peninsula of South Africa where a tropical day truly becomes a new adventure. The deepest blue waters stay protected and calm, hidden amongst the granite so that your swim is peaceful and serene. As a national landmark, Boulders Beach and its penguin inhabitants remain clean and welcoming for their 60,000 annual visitors. Travelers will find themselves tanning in the average 22°C weather and 295 days of sun, splashing in the many rock pools or strolling along the beach’s boardwalk through nature’s beauty. Whatever you find yourself hoping for in a tropical vacation, Boulders Beach has it all.”
Grace Bay, in the Turks and Caicos Islands, came out tops, with Whitehaven Beach in Australia taking second place. Here is the top ten:
- Grace Bay, Turks and Caicos
- Whitehaven Beach, Australia
- Anse Lazio, Seychelles
- Pink Sands Beach, Bahamas
- Navagio Beach, Greece
- Baia Dos Porcos, Brazil
- Playa Paraiso, Mexico
- Hyams Beach, Australia
- Hidden Beach, Mexico
- Trunk Bay, US Virgin Islands
Photography Courtesy