The goal of this blog is to identify the world's most beautiful beach. One benefit of my search has been that I keep having to revise my scores as I discover more beautiful locations. I once ranked Antigua's Jolly Beach 10 out of 10, and then I experienced Grace Bay. This is, admittedly, a first world-problem as Antigua is still bucket-list worthy, but it's not as staggering as Turks and Caicos. Thus, I have invented subcategories and a new ranking system.
The sub-categories: (1) intimate beaches, (2) party beaches, (3) lagoons, (4) atolls, and (5) natural enclosures- places like "El Cielito" in Mexico and the Nylon Pool in Trinidad. These are not beaches but they are enclosed locations in the middle of the sea in which there is shallow, azure water, and they are usually accessible only by boat.
Every beach on this list is very likely the most beautiful beach some people have seen and all are worth taking a flight specifically to visit. However, there are beautiful beaches and then there is the most beautiful. Now the rankings:
1. S Class: Beamonesque! Worth Visiting At All Costs
Grace Bay: Providenciales, Turks and Caicos, located in the Caribbean currently a colony of the United Kingdom.
Absolutely the most beautiful beach I have seen thus far. It will be hard to top but I look forward to finding one better. The water begins as electric blue, then becomes turquoise. As it gets deeper it transitions to sapphire, then navy, and finally as you leave the bay the water becomes royal blue. But at all times, this water is wholly diaphanous. I actually had to look at a blue color scheme to learn the difference between all these shades of blue. Add to that the dolphins, the ready access to seating, the fact that it is free, the ubiquity of food, drinks, bathrooms, and its cleanliness. It is a full 10 out of 10! I haven't been anywhere that comes close.
Long Bay: Providenciales, Turks and Caicos
The water in Long Bay is a mix of electric blue and mint green, but all the while the water is still wholly transparent. Swimmers may actually prefer Long Bay to Grace Bay because for at least 3.5 miles out, the water never gets deeper than 4 feet. The water's color ranges from electric blue, to Paris Green, to Emerald Green out to 3.5 miles!! I arrogantly tried swimming from the shore to a visible ship wreck. I'm swimming, admiring the fish below and enjoying the rhythm of my own breath, and then I check my watch. The watch says I have been swimming for 30 mins. I look toward the wreck and it looks just as far as it had when I began; I turn back. I can see the shore but not the hotel from which I began my swim. Out of curiosity, I decide to dive down. As I begin to descend, I find that I can still stand. It was surreal but awesome! Later on, some jet skiers tell me the wreck was 3.5 miles out but the water doesn't get deeper for 4 miles.
2. A Class: Worth Visiting Even If You Have to Pay with Credit and Have No Job
Antigua, Grenada, Barbados, St. Lucia, "El Cielo," "El Cielito," and "The Nylon Pool"
All of Antigua's beaches are beautiful. I wish I would have made an excursion to Barbuda back in 2017 but c'est la vie. I visited Grenada, St. Lucia, and Barbados prior to creating this blog so when I visit them again I'll write reviews and upload video. I remember visiting Barbados during crop-over and loving the beach; I spent a few weeks in Grenada when I was around 13 and my uncle was teaching a class there. I visited St. Lucia when I was about 15 and there I saw my first black Sand Beach. I visited the Nylon Pool in Tobago on numerous occasions during my childhood and teenage years and "El Cielito" last December.
In all of these locations the water is blue or at least aquamarine and beautiful, but Turks and Caicos and possibly the Lucaya Archipelago of the Caribbean are just a cut above the rest of the beaches I have seen thus far.
"El Cielito" and The Nylon Pool are not beaches and can only be reached by boat. The water is beautiful but the water in the beaches of the other islands is equally as beautiful without the hassle.
3. B Class: Worth Visiting Even If you Have to Pay with Credit
Isla Mujeres, Jamaica, Tobago, Playa Palencar, Cozumel
The beaches on these islands are beautiful but they are just not quite A class. They are still very much worth the visit. If I could extract Playa Palencar from Cozumel, it would be in the higher category, but I cannot.
4. The Peloton: Worth Saving for a Vacation but not worth paying for that trip with a credit card. Definitely Worth Visiting
Caberete, Dominican Republic- Varadero, Cuba- North Coast, Trinidad, Cancun, Mexico
There are countless reasons to visit the D.R., Cuba, and Trinidad, but these beaches are at the bottom of the Top Tier. These beaches make the list only because of the partying. I have heard that there are beautiful beaches in the D.R. that I missed. To be fair, in 2018, my cousins and I rented an AirBnB abutting a beach in Cabarete in the D.R. The beach was a short walk from the house but it was underwhelming. But for the partying, this beach would not make this list.
I will not review barely passable beaches such as beaches in: Playa Del Carmen, Isla Contoy, South Beach, Miami, Cozumel's other beaches, Koh Larn, Thailand, etc. These beaches are not worth taking a plane to visit. If you are already there and want to hit a beach, then cool, but don't go out of your way just to visit these places.
1. Grace Bay, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos
2. El Cielito, coast of Cozumel, Mexico
3. Long Bay, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos
4. Jolly Beach, Antigua, Antigua and Barbuda
5. Playa Palencar, Cozumel, Mexico
6. Playa Norte/ Playa Centro, Isla Mujeres, Mexico
7. Bacalar Lagoon- Mexico
8. Pigeon Point, Tobago, Trinidad and Tobago
9. Englishman's Bay, Tobago, Trinidad and Tobago
10. Pirate's Bay, Tobago, Trinidad and Tobago
No comments:
Post a Comment