The World’s Top 10 Most Extraordinary Beaches

Some beaches are beautiful because they have soft sand and clear water.

Others are unforgettable because they seem almost impossible.

Imagine a beach where the sand is black volcanic glass beneath towering basalt columns. Another where giant granite boulders look as though they were arranged by a sculptor. One has purple mineral streaks beneath a natural stone arch. Another sits below the ruins of an ancient Maya city. And in Australia, impossibly white silica sand swirls through turquoise tidal water like paint.

Those are the beaches we’re looking for here.

This isn’t simply a ranking of the world’s prettiest tropical shorelines. For our list of the world’s 10 most extraordinary beaches, each destination needed something genuinely distinctive—unusual geology, remarkable wildlife, cultural history, spectacular landforms, or a setting unlike almost anywhere else on Earth.

Here are 10 beaches that prove a coastline can be much more than sand and sea.

🌎 The World’s Top 10 Most Extraordinary Beaches at a Glance

Rank	Beach	Location	What Makes It Extraordinary
1	Whitehaven Beach	Australia	98% silica sand & swirling Hill Inlet
2	Reynisfjara	Iceland	Black volcanic sand & basalt columns
3	Anse Source d’Argent	Seychelles	Giant sculpted granite boulders
4	Matira Beach	Bora Bora	Volcanic island inside a turquoise reef lagoon
5	Cathedral Cove	New Zealand	Enormous natural sea arch
6	Pfeiffer Beach	California, USA	Purple sand & Keyhole Rock
7	Tulum Beach	Mexico	Maya ruins above Caribbean water
8	Hanauma Bay	Hawaiʻi, USA	Snorkeling inside an eroded volcanic crater
9	Crane Beach	Barbados	Pink-tinged sand beneath coral cliffs
10	Flamenco Beach	Culebra, Puerto Rico	Caribbean water, white sand & historic tank

🤍 1. Whitehaven Beach, Australia — Where the Sand Almost Glows

Best for: Scenery, sailing, photography and one of the world’s most unusual sand landscapes

Our #1 choice sits on Whitsunday Island in Queensland, Australia.

Whitehaven Beach stretches for roughly seven kilometers beside the turquoise waters of the Coral Sea.

Its defining feature is the sand.

Whitehaven’s sand is approximately 98% silica, giving it an extraordinarily fine texture and brilliant white appearance.

Under strong tropical sunlight, the beach can look almost luminous.

But Whitehaven becomes even more spectacular at its northern end.

🌊 Hill Inlet

At Hill Inlet, tides repeatedly rearrange white sand and turquoise water into enormous swirling patterns.

The landscape changes continually.

A sandbar that dominates the view during one tide may be partially submerged several hours later.

The best-known perspective comes from the Hill Inlet Lookout, where visitors can see the ribbons of pale sand curving through varying shades of aqua and blue.

It looks like abstract art from above.

🚤 Getting to Whitehaven

There are no roads leading to Whitehaven Beach.

Visitors generally arrive by:

• Boat
• Sailing tour
• Private yacht
• Seaplane
• Helicopter

Tours operate from Airlie Beach and several Whitsunday resort islands.

That lack of road access helps preserve the sense that you’ve arrived somewhere genuinely removed from ordinary coastal development.

🪸 Great Barrier Reef Setting

Whitehaven is also part of the broader Great Barrier Reef World Heritage landscape.

The Whitsunday Islands lie within one of the world’s most celebrated marine environments.

Swimming, sailing, snorkeling excursions and scenic flights can all be combined with a visit.

⭐ Why Whitehaven Is #1

Lots of beaches have white sand.

Whitehaven’s combination of nearly pure silica, seven kilometers of shoreline, isolated island setting and the shifting tidal art of Hill Inlet makes it genuinely extraordinary.

⚫ 2. Reynisfjara, Iceland — The Black Sand Beach That Looks Like Another Planet

Best for: Geology, photography and dramatic scenery—not swimming

If Whitehaven looks almost unreal because it’s so bright, Reynisfjara is extraordinary for exactly the opposite reason.

This famous beach near Vík on Iceland’s south coast is covered in black volcanic sand.

Behind the beach rises an extraordinary wall of geometric basalt columns.

Offshore, the dark Reynisdrangar sea stacks stand against the North Atlantic.

The result can look more like a fantasy landscape than a conventional beach.

🌋 Why Is the Sand Black?

Iceland is one of the most volcanically active landscapes on Earth.

Black beaches form as dark volcanic material is broken down by:

• Waves
• Weather
• Rivers
• Erosion

Eventually, larger pieces of lava and volcanic rock become smaller sediment and sand.

At Reynisfjara, that process has created a stark shoreline where nearly everything—from the beach to the surrounding formations—reflects Iceland’s volcanic origins.

🪨 Basalt Columns

The cliff at Reynisfjara includes remarkable columnar basalt.

These almost geometric formations developed as lava cooled and contracted.

The result resembles an enormous stone organ built directly into the cliff.

Nearby Hálsanefshellir cave adds to the otherworldly appearance.

🌊 Reynisdrangar Sea Stacks

Offshore rock pillars known as Reynisdrangar rise from the sea.

Local folklore gives them a much more colorful origin than geology, associating them with trolls caught by daylight and turned to stone.

Science and mythology coexist rather nicely here.

⚠️ Reynisfjara Is Dangerous

This is one beach where the phrase “walk along the waterline” requires a major warning.

Reynisfjara is notorious for sneaker waves.

These unexpectedly powerful waves can travel considerably farther up the beach than previous waves and have swept visitors into the ocean.

Fatal accidents have occurred.

Treat the sea as something to watch from a safe distance rather than approach.

Never turn your back on it.

⭐ Why Reynisfjara Is #2

Black volcanic sand, basalt columns, sea stacks, Icelandic folklore and a brutally powerful North Atlantic create one of the strangest and most dramatic beaches on the planet.

🪨 3. Anse Source d’Argent, Seychelles — Where Granite Giants Meet the Sea

Best for: Photography, shallow water, kayaking and tropical scenery

Some beaches are defined by their sand.

Anse Source d’Argent is defined by its rocks.

Located on La Digue in the Seychelles, the beach is framed by enormous granite boulders that have been rounded and sculpted by weather and time.

They rise from the sand like pieces of monumental sculpture.

Between them are:

• Soft pale sand
• Palm trees
• Tropical vegetation
• Clear shallow water
• Coral reef

It’s one of the world’s most recognizable tropical coastlines.

🏝️ Why Are There Huge Granite Boulders?

The Seychelles are geologically unusual.

Unlike many tropical ocean islands built primarily from volcanic material or coral, the main Seychelles islands include exposed ancient granite.

La Digue’s famous rounded boulders are part of that ancient geological foundation.

Weathering gradually emphasized joints and fractures in the rock, creating the rounded forms visitors see today.

🚲 Getting There

La Digue itself contributes to the experience.

The small island is famous for its slower pace, and bicycles remain one of the best ways to explore.

Visitors commonly reach Anse Source d’Argent through L’Union Estate, adding plantation history, tropical gardens and even giant tortoises to the journey.

🛶 Explore From the Water

The calm shallows surrounding the granite formations can also make kayaking particularly memorable.

From the water, the scale of the boulders becomes even more obvious.

📸 Is It Really One of the World’s Most Photographed Beaches?

Tourism Seychelles regularly describes Anse Source d’Argent as one of the world’s most photographed beaches.

Whether anyone could literally count those photographs is another matter.

But stand between the enormous granite rocks and turquoise lagoon and the claim becomes easy to understand.

⭐ Why Anse Source d’Argent Is #3

No other famous tropical beach looks quite like it.

Those ancient granite boulders turn an already beautiful Seychelles shoreline into something instantly recognizable.

🌴 4. Matira Beach, Bora Bora — A Beach Inside a Volcanic Lagoon

Best for: Swimming, snorkeling, sunsets and the classic South Pacific experience

Bora Bora’s beauty works on several geological levels at once.

In the center of the island rise the jagged remains of an ancient volcano.

Around it stretches a shallow turquoise lagoon.

Around that lies a coral barrier reef.

And at the southern end of the main island is Matira Beach.

The beach itself is gorgeous:

• White sand
• Shallow warm water
• Coconut palms
• Tropical fish
• Extraordinary sunsets

But what makes Matira truly special is the larger landscape surrounding it.

🌋 Volcano + Lagoon + Coral Reef

Bora Bora began as a volcanic island.

Over enormous periods of time, the volcanic land eroded while coral reefs developed around its perimeter.

Today, the towering profile of Mount Otemanu remains inside a broad reef-protected lagoon.

Matira sits along the edge of that lagoon.

Walk into the water and the color changes as the bottom drops away:

Transparent.

Pale aqua.

Turquoise.

Blue.

🏊 One of Bora Bora’s Best Swimming Beaches

Matira’s nearshore water is often remarkably shallow.

That makes it particularly appealing for:

• Families
• Casual swimming
• Floating
• Beginner snorkeling
• Paddleboarding

🤿 Snorkeling

Small reef fish can be seen directly from shore.

More serious snorkelers should also take a lagoon tour to visit coral gardens and other sites around Bora Bora.

🌅 Sunset

Matira is also one of the island’s best sunset locations.

And there’s another advantage.

Unlike many famous Bora Bora shorelines attached to luxury resorts, Matira is the island’s principal public beach.

You don’t need an overwater bungalow to enjoy it.

Read our complete Matira Beach, Bora Bora: White Sand, Swimming, Snorkeling & Visitor Guide.

⭐ Why Matira Is #4

Few places let you swim in a warm lagoon while looking toward the eroded remains of an ancient volcano surrounded by coral reef.

🪨 5. Cathedral Cove, New Zealand — A Beach Beneath a Natural Cathedral

Best for: Hiking, kayaking, photography and geology

On New Zealand’s Coromandel Peninsula, waves have carved a spectacular passage through pale volcanic rock.

The resulting natural arch is so large and graceful that the name Cathedral Cove feels completely appropriate.

Officially known as Mautohe Cathedral Cove, the beach lies near Hahei beside the protected waters of Te Whanganui-o-Hei/Cathedral Cove Marine Reserve.

⛪ The Giant Arch

The famous arch separates two small coves.

Stand beneath or near its entrance and the rock opening frames:

• Pale beach
• Blue-green water
• Offshore formations
• Te Hoho Rock

It’s one of New Zealand’s iconic coastal photographs.

🌋 Volcanic Origins

The surrounding cliffs include ignimbrite associated with ancient volcanic activity.

Because portions of this volcanic material are relatively susceptible to erosion, wind, rain, groundwater and waves have carved:

• Caves
• Arches
• Cliffs
• Pillars

The famous arch exists because the coastline is eroding.

That also creates danger.

⚠️ Rockfall Is a Real Hazard

Cathedral Cove’s cliffs are naturally unstable.

Storms in recent years caused major landslides and walking-track closures.

As of August 2026, the main Mautohe Cathedral Cove walking track is open, although weather-related closures can occur with little notice.

Visitors should remain away from cliff faces and avoid lingering beneath the arch.

🛶 Kayaking to Cathedral Cove

One of the best ways to understand this landscape is from the water.

Kayak trips from the Hahei area can reveal:

• Sea caves
• Cliffs
• Marine reserve
• Offshore formations
• Cathedral Cove itself

Read our full Cathedral Cove, New Zealand: Beach, Walk, Kayaking & Visitor Guide.

⭐ Why Cathedral Cove Is #5

The combination of a monumental sea arch, volcanic geology, marine protection and an active coastal landscape makes Cathedral Cove far more than a beautiful swimming beach.

💜 6. Pfeiffer Beach, Big Sur — California’s Purple-Sand Beach

Best for: Purple sand, sunset photography and wild Pacific scenery

California has thousands of beautiful coastal views.

Very few involve purple sand.

Hidden below Highway 1 in Big Sur, Pfeiffer Beach is reached by following narrow Sycamore Canyon Road toward the Pacific.

Once you reach the beach, you’ll find two extraordinary natural features.

The first is the sand.

The second is Keyhole Rock.

🟣 Why Is the Sand Purple?

The purple coloration comes from manganese-rich garnet eroding from rocks in the surrounding hills.

Rain and runoff transport mineral grains toward the coast.

Waves then sort those darker, heavier grains into streaks and patches within the beach.

The result can include:

• Purple
• Lavender
• Mauve
• Pinkish mineral streaks

The entire beach isn’t violet.

The patterns shift constantly depending on weather, tides and sediment movement.

After rainy periods, the coloration can be particularly striking.

🕳️ Keyhole Rock

Just offshore stands an enormous sea stack with a natural opening through it.

Known as Keyhole Rock, it has become one of Big Sur’s signature coastal formations.

Around the winter solstice, the angle of sunset can align with the opening.

When clouds, tide and waves cooperate, golden sunlight pours directly through the rock.

Photographers arrive from all over to capture it.

🌊 Not a Swimming Beach

Pfeiffer is more suited to photography and walking than swimming.

The Pacific here can produce:

• Powerful waves
• Dangerous currents
• Cold water
• Sudden surges

There are no lifeguards.

Read our Pfeiffer Beach, Big Sur: Purple Sand, Keyhole Rock, Parking & Visitor Guide.

⭐ Why Pfeiffer Beach Is #6

Purple garnet sand beneath enormous Big Sur cliffs would already be enough.

Add a giant natural rock window that catches the winter sunset and Pfeiffer becomes one of America’s most unusual beaches.

🏛️ 7. Tulum Beach, Mexico — Where Maya History Meets the Caribbean

Best for: Archaeology, swimming, cenotes and cultural travel

There are tropical beaches.

There are ancient ruins.

And then there’s Tulum, where the remains of a Maya city stand directly above turquoise Caribbean water.

The archaeological zone occupies limestone cliffs on the coast of Quintana Roo.

Below and around it stretch the white-sand beaches of the Riviera Maya.

🌅 The Ancient City of Zamá

Sixteenth-century sources identify Tulum by the name Zamá, associated with morning or dawn.

That’s especially fitting because the city faces east across the Caribbean.

The modern name Tulum refers to the walls surrounding the ancient settlement.

🏰 A Walled Maya City Beside the Sea

Tulum’s principal archaeological area is enclosed by walls on three sides.

The fourth opens toward cliffs and the Caribbean.

The best-known building, El Castillo, rises dramatically above the coastline.

Tulum was also connected to Maya maritime trade.

The sea was not simply a beautiful view—it was a transportation route.

🌴 Beaches Beyond the Ruins

Nearby beaches include:

• Playa Paraíso
• Playa Santa Fe
• Playa Pescadores
• Playa Maya

Visit the archaeological zone early, then spend the afternoon swimming when conditions are suitable.

💧 Add a Cenote

Tulum becomes even more extraordinary when you head inland.

The limestone Yucatán Peninsula contains enormous underground freshwater systems.

Where cave ceilings have opened, cenotes provide access to remarkably clear water.

That means a single day around Tulum can involve:

Ancient Maya ruins + Caribbean beach + underground freshwater swimming.

Our Tulum Beach, Mexico: Mayan Ruins, Swimming, Cenotes & Visitor Guide has the full planning details.

⭐ Why Tulum Is #7

Few beaches in the world allow you to swim beside a landscape where monumental Indigenous architecture, limestone geology and the Caribbean Sea come together so dramatically.

🐠 8. Hanauma Bay, Oʻahu — A Snorkeling Beach Inside a Volcanic Crater

Best for: Snorkeling, reef fish, geology and marine conservation

At first glance, Hanauma Bay looks almost designed to become a snorkeling beach.

A curved volcanic ridge surrounds turquoise water.

A coral reef lies just offshore.

Tropical fish move through the shallows.

But its extraordinary shape is the product of explosive geology.

🌋 Swimming Inside an Ancient Volcanic Feature

Hanauma Bay formed from volcanic activity associated with the southeastern Oʻahu landscape.

Eventually, marine erosion opened the crater area toward the sea.

Today that eroded volcanic structure shelters a reef-filled bay.

🪸 Hawaiʻi’s First Marine Life Conservation District

Hanauma Bay became Hawaiʻi’s first Marine Life Conservation District in 1967.

Fishing and removal of marine resources are prohibited.

The protected bay supports abundant reef life and has become one of the most famous snorkeling sites in Hawaiʻi.

Possible sightings include:

• Butterflyfish
• Surgeonfish
• Parrotfish
• Triggerfish
• Wrasses
• Turtles
• Numerous other reef species

🎟️ Conservation Changes the Visitor Experience

Hanauma isn’t a beach where visitors simply arrive whenever they want.

Access is managed.

Visitor education is required.

The preserve is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.

Nonresident visitors generally need reservations.

These restrictions exist because Hanauma experienced extremely heavy visitation in the past.

Protecting the ecosystem now takes priority over maximizing the number of people entering each day.

Read our Hanauma Bay, Oahu: Snorkeling, Reservations, Marine Life & Visitor Guide.

⭐ Why Hanauma Bay Is #8

You’re not simply snorkeling from a Hawaiian beach.

You’re swimming inside an eroded volcanic landscape within one of the state’s oldest and most famous protected marine habitats.

🌸 9. Crane Beach, Barbados — Pink Sand Beneath Coral-Limestone Cliffs

Best for: Tropical scenery, photography and a wilder side of Barbados

Barbados is famous for white sand and turquoise water.

At Crane Beach, the sand can develop a subtle pink or peach tint.

The color isn’t fluorescent.

Instead, pale coral-derived sand combines with tiny fragments of shells and other marine material to create a soft blush that changes with:

• Light
• Moisture
• Wave action
• Time of day

Behind it rise coral-limestone cliffs.

🪸 An Island Built From Coral Limestone

Barbados differs geologically from many neighboring Caribbean islands.

Much of the island consists of uplifted coral limestone.

At Crane, that geological history is visible in the cliffs directly behind the beach.

So the landscape combines products of ancient reef systems both beneath your feet and above your head.

🌊 A More Powerful Caribbean Beach

Crane sits on Barbados’ southeastern coast.

It receives more Atlantic influence than the famously calm west coast.

Expect potentially stronger:

• Waves
• Currents
• Wind

Swimming can be possible on calm days, but this isn’t the beach to assume turquoise water automatically means gentle water.

🏨 Historic Resort Above the Beach

The Crane Resort has occupied the cliffs above the shoreline in one form or another since the late 19th century.

That adds another layer to a beach already distinctive for its geology.

Read our Crane Beach, Barbados: Pink Sand, Swimming, Cliffs & Visitor Guide.

⭐ Why Crane Beach Is #9

Blush-colored coral sand beneath towering limestone cliffs gives Crane a character completely different from the flat, calm Caribbean beach many travelers expect.

🌊 10. Flamenco Beach, Culebra — Caribbean Paradise With a Tank on the Sand

Best for: Swimming, snorkeling, tropical scenery and an unexpected piece of history

Our final beach looks like the stereotypical Caribbean paradise.

Which makes its most famous landmark even stranger.

Flamenco Beach on Culebra, Puerto Rico, has:

• Soft pale sand
• Clear turquoise water
• Green hills
• Excellent swimming
• Snorkeling

And an old military tank sitting near the shoreline.

🏝️ One of Puerto Rico’s Great Beaches

Flamenco curves around a broad bay on Culebra, a small island east of Puerto Rico’s main island.

The beach’s protected geography can create beautifully inviting swimming conditions.

It’s popular for:

• Families
• Snorkeling
• Beach days
• Camping
• Long walks

Reaching Culebra requires taking a ferry or flying, which makes the trip feel considerably farther removed from San Juan than the map might suggest.

🪖 Why Is There a Tank on the Beach?

The strange metal landmark reflects Culebra’s military history.

The U.S. military once used portions of the island for training.

When military operations ended, equipment including tanks remained.

One of those vehicles near Flamenco Beach has since been transformed by decades of salt air and layers of colorful graffiti.

The rusty tank against turquoise water has become one of Puerto Rico’s most unusual beach photographs.

🌿 Natural Beauty Beyond the Tank

Don’t let the novelty distract from Culebra itself.

The surrounding island supports important wildlife habitat and extraordinary coastal scenery.

Flamenco remains, first and foremost, a beautiful Caribbean beach.

See our complete Flamenco Beach, Culebra guide.

⭐ Why Flamenco Is #10

A gorgeous Caribbean beach with warm turquoise water would be worth visiting anyway.

A graffiti-covered military tank sitting against that paradise makes Flamenco unforgettable.

🏆 What Is the Most Extraordinary Beach in the World?

For this ranking, Whitehaven Beach in Australia takes the top spot.

The beach itself is extraordinary.

But Hill Inlet pushes it over the top.

Its tides continuously reshape silica sand and turquoise water into enormous swirling patterns, meaning the landscape you’re looking at is never quite identical from one visit to the next.

Still, each beach wins a different category.

Most extraordinary sand: Whitehaven Beach

Most dramatic volcanic beach: Reynisfjara

Most extraordinary rocks: Anse Source d’Argent

Best tropical lagoon: Matira Beach

Best sea arch: Cathedral Cove

Most unusual colored sand: Pfeiffer Beach

Best combination of history and beach: Tulum

Best snorkeling landscape: Hanauma Bay

Best pink-sand-and-cliff combination: Crane Beach

Most unexpected historic landmark: Flamenco Beach

🎨 Beaches With Unusual Colored Sand

Ordinary sand comes in far more colors than many travelers realize.

The color reflects the geology and biological material surrounding the shoreline.

⚪ White Sand

White beaches commonly contain high proportions of either:

• Quartz
• Coral-derived calcium carbonate
• Shell material

Whitehaven’s sand is unusually rich in silica.

Tropical beaches such as Matira are more closely connected with coral-reef environments.

⚫ Black Sand

Black sand often forms in volcanic landscapes.

Dark lava and volcanic material break down until they become fine coastal sediment.

Reynisfjara is one of the world’s most famous examples.

🟣 Purple Sand

Pfeiffer Beach demonstrates how heavy mineral grains can create unexpected coloration.

Manganese-rich garnet contributes to the purple streaks.

🌸 Pink Sand

Pink beaches commonly receive their blush from mixtures containing fragments of shells, coral or tiny marine organisms.

Crane’s coloration is generally subtle rather than bright pink.

🌋 Most Extraordinary Beaches for Geology

If geology is your priority, start with:

Reynisfjara

For volcanic black sand, basalt columns and sea stacks.

Cathedral Cove

For volcanic cliffs actively being carved into caves and arches.

Pfeiffer Beach

For mineral-rich purple sand and coastal erosion.

Hanauma Bay

For an eroded volcanic crater now occupied by reef and ocean.

Matira

For the broader story of an eroded volcano surrounded by a coral lagoon.

These beaches demonstrate something easy to forget:

A coastline is never finished.

Waves are still building, removing and rearranging it.

🏛️ Best Extraordinary Beach for History

Tulum wins easily.

Few places allow you to stand among ancient monumental architecture while looking directly down toward tropical Caribbean water.

But Flamenco has a fascinating modern contrast.

Its military tank tells a much more recent story of how Culebra was used before becoming known internationally for tourism and conservation.

History doesn’t have to be beautiful to become part of a landscape.

🐠 Best Beaches for Snorkeling

From this list, our top choices are:

1. Hanauma Bay
2. Matira Beach
3. Flamenco Beach
4. Cathedral Cove area under appropriate conditions

Hanauma earns first place because marine conservation is central to the identity of the bay.

For Matira, the bigger snorkeling adventure comes from combining shore snorkeling with a Bora Bora lagoon excursion.

🏊 Which Extraordinary Beaches Are Best for Swimming?

Choose:

• Matira Beach
• Flamenco Beach
• Whitehaven Beach under suitable conditions
• Tulum beaches when calm

Crane can sometimes offer good swimming but receives stronger waves and currents.

Cathedral Cove can be swimmable when conditions are calm, though there are no lifeguards.

🚫 Which Beaches Should You NOT Treat as Swimming Beaches?

Reynisfjara

This is the clearest answer.

Sneaker waves are potentially deadly.

Stay well back.

Pfeiffer Beach

Powerful Pacific surf, cold water, currents and lack of lifeguards make it much better for scenery.

Crane Beach on Rough Days

The southeastern Barbados coastline can experience strong currents.

Don’t force a swim just because you’re on vacation.

A truly great beach trip sometimes involves deciding not to enter the water.

📸 Which Beach Is Most Photogenic?

It’s almost impossible to choose.

For distinctive composition:

Anse Source d’Argent — giant granite formations.

For aerial photography:

Whitehaven Beach — Hill Inlet.

For sunset:

Pfeiffer Beach — Keyhole Rock.

For dramatic contrast:

Reynisfjara — black sand against white surf.

For historical scenery:

Tulum — ruins above turquoise water.

For tropical perfection:

Matira or Flamenco.

🌅 Best Beaches for Sunset

Our favorites from this list:

Matira Beach

Probably the best pure tropical sunset experience.

Pfeiffer Beach

Especially during the winter Keyhole Rock alignment.

Anse Source d’Argent

Granite formations create beautiful foregrounds.

Crane Beach

Beautiful evening light, although its southeastern orientation means it isn’t Barbados’ classic direct-over-water sunset beach.

🌍 Extraordinary Doesn’t Always Mean Remote

One interesting thing about this list is how different the logistics can be.

Whitehaven requires a boat or aircraft.

La Digue requires reaching a small Seychelles island.

Flamenco requires a trip to Culebra.

Cathedral Cove requires walking or water access.

But Hanauma Bay sits right beside metropolitan Honolulu.

Tulum is one of Mexico’s busiest tourism destinations.

And Pfeiffer Beach is only a narrow road away from Highway 1.

A place doesn’t have to be undiscovered to remain extraordinary.

It simply needs to be protected well enough that what made it extraordinary survives its popularity.

🗓️ When Is the Best Time to Visit These Beaches?

There’s no universal beach season.

Whitehaven Beach

The Whitsundays can be visited year-round, although weather and marine-stinger considerations vary seasonally.

Reynisfjara

Accessible year-round, but Icelandic weather can become severe quickly.

Seychelles

Warm throughout the year, with local wind and rainfall patterns varying seasonally.

Bora Bora

May through October is generally the drier period.

Cathedral Cove

New Zealand summer offers warmer beach weather, while current track conditions should always be checked.

Pfeiffer Beach

Fall can offer clear California weather; winter provides the famous Keyhole sunset alignment.

Tulum

November through April generally combines pleasant weather with lower sargassum risk.

Hanauma Bay

Hawaiʻi is a year-round destination, but reservations and current sea conditions matter more than the month.

Crane Beach

December through April is generally Barbados’ drier high season.

Flamenco Beach

Puerto Rico is warm year-round, with Atlantic hurricane season affecting late summer and fall planning.

🎒 What to Bring to an Extraordinary Beach

The more unusual the destination, the more important it is to pack for the actual environment rather than the photograph.

Consider:

• Sunscreen
• Hat
• Sunglasses
• Reusable water bottle
• Towel
• Swimsuit
• Walking shoes
• Light jacket
• Rain layer
• Snorkel gear
• Dry bag
• Waterproof phone pouch
• Portable charger
• Offline maps

You obviously won’t pack the same way for Reynisfjara in Iceland and Matira in Bora Bora.

Our Free Beach Vacation Packing Checklist is a good starting point.

🐚 Extraordinary Beaches Deserve Extra Care

Many places on this list are extraordinary precisely because they contain fragile resources.

Consider what makes each beach special.

At Hanauma, it’s the living reef.

At Pfeiffer, it’s the mineral sand.

At Cathedral Cove, it’s an unstable natural arch.

At Whitehaven, it’s pristine silica sand.

At Tulum, archaeological heritage and protected coastline coexist.

At Reynisfjara, visitors are interacting with a powerful natural environment.

The basic rules are simple.

Leave Sand Where It Is

Don’t bottle colored sand as a souvenir.

Don’t Take Coral

Living or dead coral plays a role in coastal ecosystems.

Leave Occupied Shells

Someone is already using them.

Respect Wildlife

Don’t chase animals for photographs.

Stay on Established Trails

Particularly around cliffs and dunes.

Follow Closures

A closed trail isn’t an invitation to prove that you can get around the barrier.

Pick Up Your Trash

And consider safely removing a little extra litter if you encounter it.

Our guide to The Top Beach Cleaning Tools: Protecting Our Coastlines One Cleanup at a Time has an easy cleanup setup.

❓ Extraordinary Beaches FAQs

What Is the Most Extraordinary Beach in the World?

Our choice is Whitehaven Beach in Australia’s Whitsunday Islands because of its exceptionally white silica sand and the constantly changing patterns of Hill Inlet.

What Beach Has Purple Sand?

Pfeiffer Beach in Big Sur, California is famous for purple streaks produced by manganese-rich garnet.

What Beach Has Black Sand and Basalt Columns?

Reynisfjara in Iceland combines black volcanic sand with spectacular basalt columns and offshore sea stacks.

What Beach Has Giant Granite Boulders?

Anse Source d’Argent on La Digue in the Seychelles is famous for enormous rounded granite formations.

Which Beach Has Maya Ruins?

Tulum in Mexico features the ruins of an ancient Maya settlement on cliffs overlooking the Caribbean.

Which Beach Is Inside a Volcanic Crater?

Hanauma Bay on Oʻahu occupies an eroded volcanic landscape that has opened to the sea.

Which Beach Has a Giant Rock Arch?

Mautohe Cathedral Cove in New Zealand is famous for a monumental sea arch connecting two coves.

Which Beach Has Pink Sand?

Crane Beach in Barbados can display a subtle pinkish or blush hue from coral- and shell-derived material.

Which Beach Has an Old Tank?

Flamenco Beach on Culebra, Puerto Rico has an abandoned military tank that has become a colorful shoreline landmark.

Which Beach Has the Whitest Sand?

Whitehaven Beach is famous for sand containing approximately 98% silica.

Which Extraordinary Beach Is Best for Swimming?

Matira Beach in Bora Bora is one of the best choices because of its warm, frequently shallow lagoon water.

Which Is Best for Snorkeling?

Hanauma Bay is our top choice because of its protected reef habitat and abundant fish.

Which Beach Is the Most Dangerous?

From this list, Reynisfjara requires the most explicit ocean warning.

Its sneaker waves have caused fatal accidents.

Stay far from the water even if previous waves appear small.

Can You Visit All of These Beaches Year-Round?

Most remain destinations throughout the year, but seasonal weather, storms, road conditions, track closures, tides and marine conditions can affect access.

Always check current official information before traveling.

🌅 The World’s Best Beaches Don’t All Look Like Paradise

White sand.

Palm trees.

Turquoise water.

That’s the image most of us picture when someone says “perfect beach.”

And sometimes that’s exactly right.

Matira and Flamenco prove it.

But the world’s most extraordinary coastlines are much stranger than that.

One is black.

Another turns purple.

Another blushes faintly pink.

One has giant granite boulders.

One sits inside a volcanic crater.

One lies beneath a Maya city.

Another is being slowly carved into a stone cathedral.

At Reynisfjara, the ocean itself is part of the danger.

At Whitehaven, the tide becomes an artist.

At Pfeiffer Beach, minerals wash from mountains into patterns across the sand.

And at Hanauma Bay, a volcanic landscape has become shelter for an underwater world.

That’s the real reason to travel for beaches.

Not simply to find increasingly perfect versions of the same white-sand shoreline.

But to discover how many different things a beach can be.

A geological laboratory.

A wildlife sanctuary.

An archaeological landscape.

A sacred place.

A reminder of a difficult history.

Or simply one astonishing meeting point between land and water.

The world has thousands of beautiful beaches.

These ten are something more.

They’re extraordinary.

🔗 Related Articles

• Matira Beach, Bora Bora: White Sand, Swimming, Snorkeling & Visitor Guide
• Cathedral Cove, New Zealand: Beach, Walk, Kayaking & Visitor Guide
• Pfeiffer Beach, Big Sur: Purple Sand, Keyhole Rock, Parking & Visitor Guide
• Tulum Beach, Mexico: Mayan Ruins, Swimming, Cenotes & Visitor Guide
• Hanauma Bay, Oahu: Snorkeling, Reservations, Marine Life & Visitor Guide
• Crane Beach, Barbados: Pink Sand, Swimming, Cliffs & Visitor Guide
• Flamenco Beach, Culebra
• 10 Best Beaches in the United States
• 9 Best Beachcombing Destinations in the World for Shells, Sea Glass & Treasures
• Free Beach Vacation Packing Checklist

📚 Sources

• Queensland — Whitehaven Beach
• Queensland — How to Visit Whitehaven Beach
• Queensland National Parks — Whitsunday Islands National Park
• Visit South Iceland — Reynisfjara and South Iceland Beaches
• Visit Iceland — Reynisfjara Safety
• Tourism Seychelles — Anse Source d’Argent
• Tourism Seychelles — Beaches of the Seychelles
• Tahiti Tourisme — Matira Beach
• Tahiti Tourisme — Beaches of Bora Bora
• New Zealand Department of Conservation — Mautohe Cathedral Cove Updates
• Big Sur Chamber of Commerce — Big Sur Beaches
• INAH — Tulum Archaeological Zone
• Hawaiʻi DLNR — Hanauma Bay Marine Life Conservation District
• Visit Barbados — Barbados Beaches
• Discover Puerto Rico — Flamenco Beach