Easiest Beaches to Reach in Europe

We rank the top 40 of 242 easy-access beaches in Europe. Cala Brandinchi (Italy) comes first with 4.8 / 5, followed by Elafonissi Beach, Palombaggia.

The sea reaches about 23 degrees C in season, and most of these beaches are at their best from June to September. 40 of the 40 have easy access, and 5 are hidden gems.

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1Cala Brandinchi

San Teodoro, Sardinia, Italy · 4.8 / 5 · Easy access · about 23 °C

A long bay of fine pale sand and very shallow, clear water backed by stone pines, with Tavolara island rising on the horizon.

2Elafonissi Beach

Crete, Greece · 4.8 / 5 · Easy access · about 25 °C

A rare pink-sand lagoon at the southwestern tip of Crete, where shallow crystal-clear waters meet rose-tinted sands.

3Palombaggia

Corsica, France · 4.8 / 5 · Easy access · about 24 °C

Red granite boulders, parasol pines and soft pale sand — Corsica's most photographed shoreline.

4Ses Illetes

Formentera, Spain · 4.8 / 5 · Easy access · about 25 °C

A long strip of white sand and shallow, almost Caribbean-coloured water on the northern tip of Formentera.

5Voidokilia Beach

Pylos, Messinia, Greece · 4.8 / 5 · Easy access · about 23 °C

A near perfect omega shaped bay of fine sand on the Messinian coast, with calm shallow water and the Gialova lagoon wildlife area just behind it.

6Zlatni Rat

Brač Island, Croatia · 4.8 / 5 · Easy access · about 26 °C

The famous "Golden Horn" — a distinctive pebble cape that juts into the Adriatic and magically shifts shape with the currents and winds.

7Cala d'Hort

Sant Josep, Ibiza · 4.7 / 5 · Easy access · about 24 °C

A small, beautifully framed cove in south-west Ibiza where the dramatic rock of Es Vedra rises from the sea just offshore.

8Es Trenc

Mallorca, Spain · 4.7 / 5 · Easy access · about 24 °C

Mallorca's finest untouched beach — miles of pristine white sand, turquoise shallow water, and no high-rise hotels in sight.

9Falasarna Beach

Chania, Crete · 4.7 / 5 · Easy access · about 23 °C

A broad golden beach on the far west coast of Crete, with clear turquoise water and views toward the Gramvousa peninsula.

10Falassarna Beach

Chania, Crete, Greece · 4.7 / 5 · Easy access · about 23 °C

A long, wide beach of pale sand and clear shallow water on the far west coast of Crete, known for its sunsets.

11La Cinta Beach

San Teodoro, Sardinia · 4.7 / 5 · Easy access · about 24 °C

A long strip of soft white sand and shallow turquoise water just outside San Teodoro, with a lagoon behind it.

12La Pelosa

Stintino, Sardinia, Italy · 4.7 / 5 · Easy access · about 24 °C

A shallow white-sand lagoon facing the Torre della Pelosa at the northwest tip of Sardinia.

13Playa de Bolonia

Tarifa, Andalusia, Spain · 4.7 / 5 · Easy access · about 20 °C

A wide, wind-swept Atlantic bay on the Costa de la Luz with a huge sand dune at one end and the Roman ruins of Baelo Claudia just behind the beach.

14Porto Giunco

Villasimius, Sardinia · 4.7 / 5 · Easy access · about 23 °C

A wide sandy beach in the south-east of Sardinia, with an old watchtower on the headland and a lagoon behind.

15Praia da Bordeira

Carrapateira, Algarve · 4.7 / 5 · Easy access · about 21 °C

A wide, wild Atlantic beach on the west Algarve coast with dunes, cliffs and a shallow lagoon that forms behind the sand.

16Punta Rata Beach

Brela, Makarska Riviera · 4.7 / 5 · Easy access · about 24 °C

A long arc of small white pebbles under pine trees in Brela, with clear turquoise water and a rock off the shore.

17Ramla Bay

Xaghra, Gozo, Malta · 4.7 / 5 · Easy access · about 25 °C

A wide sandy beach on Gozo known for its reddish-orange sand, with Calypso's Cave in the cliffs above.

18Rondinara Beach

Bonifacio, Corsica, France · 4.7 / 5 · Easy access · about 24 °C

A horseshoe-shaped bay of pale sand and shallow, turquoise water on the south-east coast of Corsica, backed by low scrub and quiet hills.

19Sarakiniko

Milos, Greece · 4.7 / 5 · Easy access · about 24 °C

A lunar shoreline of smooth white volcanic rock sculpted by wind and sea, with deep clear water for swimming from the rocks.

20Simos Beach

Elafonisos, Peloponnese, Greece · 4.7 / 5 · Easy access · about 24 °C

Two wide bays of fine pale sand and shallow turquoise water, separated by a strip of dunes on the small island of Elafonisos.

21Spiaggia Grande

Amalfi Coast, Italy · 4.7 / 5 · Easy access · about 23 °C

Nestled beneath the pastel-coloured cliffside village of Positano — one of the most dramatic and romantic settings in Europe.

22Tuerredda Beach

Teulada, Sardinia, Italy · 4.7 / 5 · Easy access · about 23 °C

A crescent of fine pale sand and shallow turquoise water on the south coast of Sardinia, facing a small island just offshore.

23Cala Galdana

Cala Galdana, Ferreries, Menorca · 4.6 / 5 · Easy access · about 23 °C

A half-crescent cove of white sand and calm, shallow water on the south coast of Menorca, ringed by pine-covered cliffs.

24Cala Santanyi

Santanyi, Mallorca · 4.6 / 5 · Easy access · about 24 °C

A small sandy cove tucked between pine-covered cliffs on the south-east coast of Mallorca, with calm turquoise water.

25Cala Saona

Formentera, Balearic Islands, Spain · 4.6 / 5 · Easy access · about 24 °C

A sheltered sandy cove on the west coast of Formentera with clear shallow water and traditional boat houses on the rocks.

26Formentor Beach

Pollensa, Mallorca · 4.6 / 5 · Easy access · about 24 °C

A sheltered bay of pale sand and shallow turquoise water at the foot of the Formentor peninsula in northern Mallorca, backed by pine trees.

27Kavourotrypes Beach

Sithonia, Halkidiki · 4.6 / 5 · Easy access · about 24 °C

A string of small coves on the east coast of Sithonia, also known as Orange Beach.

28Koukounaries Beach

Skiathos, Greece · 4.6 / 5 · Easy access · about 24 °C

A wide sandy bay fringed by pine trees on the south-west coast of Skiathos, with a small lagoon behind the beach.

29Lama Monachile

Polignano a Mare, Puglia · 4.6 / 5 · Easy access · about 24 °C

A small pebble cove at the foot of Polignano a Mare, framed by tall limestone cliffs and houses built right at the edge.

30Los Genoveses Beach

Cabo de Gata, Almeria, Spain · 4.6 / 5 · Easy access · about 22 °C

A broad, undeveloped sandy bay inside the Cabo de Gata-Nijar natural park, backed by dunes and low hills.

31Playa de la Concha

San Sebastian, Basque Country, Spain · 4.6 / 5 · Easy access · about 20 °C

A sheltered, shell-shaped city beach with fine golden sand, a long promenade and a small island in the bay, a short walk from the old town of San Sebastian.

32Playa de Valdevaqueros

Tarifa, Cadiz, Andalusia · 4.6 / 5 · Easy access · about 22 °C

A long open beach west of Tarifa, backed by the large Punta Paloma dune.

33Porto Santo Beach

Porto Santo, Madeira · 4.6 / 5 · Easy access · about 22 °C

A nine-kilometre golden beach on the island of Porto Santo, with calm, shallow, clear water.

34Praia da Comporta

Alentejo coast, Portugal · 4.6 / 5 · Easy access · about 20 °C

A long, quiet stretch of pale sand backed by dunes and pine woods on the Alentejo coast.

35Praia de Odeceixe

Odeceixe, Algarve, Portugal · 4.6 / 5 · Easy access · about 18 °C

A horseshoe shaped beach on the west coast of the Algarve where the Ribeira de Seixe river curls behind the sand to meet the Atlantic, with calm river pools on one side and surf on the other.

36Praia do Amado

Carrapateira, Aljezur, Algarve, Portugal · 4.6 / 5 · Easy access · about 19 °C

A broad sandy beach with hills behind it on the west coast of the Algarve, popular with surfers.

37Praia Dona Ana

Lagos, Algarve, Portugal · 4.6 / 5 · Easy access · about 21 °C

Golden cliffs, sea stacks and a sheltered turquoise cove, a short walk from Lagos town.

38Punta Molentis

Villasimius, Sardinia · 4.6 / 5 · Easy access · about 23 °C

A small beach of pale sand and clear shallow water near Villasimius, between low granite rocks.

39Punta Rata

Brela, Makarska Riviera, Croatia · 4.6 / 5 · Easy access · about 24 °C

A fine-pebble beach backed by pine forest, with Brela Rock rising from the sea at its western end.

40Rajska Plaza

Lopar, Rab, Croatia · 4.6 / 5 · Easy access · about 25 °C

Also called Paradise Beach, the best-known beach on Rab, a long stretch of brown sand where the warm, shallow water reaches far out.

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How we picked these beaches

Included when our access rating is Easy (a short, flat walk or direct road access), then ranked by editorial score. See how we rate beaches for the full method.

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More lists

• Easiest Beaches to Reach in Greece
• Easiest Beaches to Reach in Spain
• Easiest Beaches to Reach in Italy
• Easiest Beaches to Reach in Portugal
• Easiest Beaches to Reach in France
• Easiest Beaches to Reach in Croatia
• Easiest Beaches to Reach in Montenegro
• Easiest Beaches to Reach in Albania

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