Sep 4

Sep 4 Favourite sea side spots - an update

In the very early days of Heydays I wrote THIS BLOG about some of the beaches I’ve especially loved visiting and spending time on around the world. As I’ve been lucky enough to do a lot more travelling, both in the UK and abroad, since then, it felt like a bit of an update might be due.

Studland Bay, Dorset

An enormous (four mile, if you want to be precise) sweep of sandy coastline a short chain ferry ride from Swanage (you can drive around the coast to get there too) on the south coast of England. Backed by dunes which are a haven for wildlife, and with one of the most popular naturist beaches in the country along one stretch (be warned!), it has an excellent National Trust shop and cafe and various water sport activities. Taking out a canoe is a great way to get a closer up sea view of Old Harry Rocks at the far end, and on a clear day views to Poole and the Isle of Wight. We’ve visited in summer and winter, and even in driving rain, it’s a magical spot.

Camber Sands, Sussex

Another vast, dune-backed beach (I do love a big beach) which is both sandy and has shingle stretches too. A large part of the sandy beach is unencumbered by facilities, but there are cafes and shops alongside the main car park and that stretch does get busy in high season. Regulars of this blog and the These are the Heydays newsletter on Substack will know I rented a house right on the beach for a couple of summers and it holds a special place in my heart as a result. Watching horses canter along the sand at low tide (the spring tides go out incredibly far making the beach even more sprawling) remains one of my favourite seaside memories.

Bamburgh Beach, Northumberland

As I’m clearly on a big beach roll, I couldn’t leave out the stunning 8 mile stretch of sand along the Northumberland coast at Bamburgh. True it rarely gets really hot here even in the height of summer (we visited in April and it was bitterly cold), and the sea is always…brisk, but that’s more than compensated for by the vast vistas and the views of magnificent Bamburgh Castle which dominates the dunes. Read more about the beach and other places I visited in glorious Northumberland HERE

Elafonissi Beach, Crete

The only problem with the temperature on a Greek island during the summer months is that it can be too hot. Fortunately there’s always the crystal clear sea to cool off in and there are fewer beaches that are lovelier to do that than Elafonissi. A shallow lagoon on the south western tip of Crete it’s actually an island connected to the mainland by a sandbar that's submerged under water at high tide, where thanks to the tiny pink shells that line the sea bed, parts of the soft sand can look pinky in colour. Popular and therefore often very busy in high season, because part of it is also a nature reserve where no sun umbrellas or loungers are allowed, it's possible to wander along the seashore and find a quiet cove.

Danta Beach, Costa Rica

After all those generously-sized beaches you might wonder why this smallish, albeit very beautiful, stretch of Pacific coast in Costa Rica makes it onto my list. Well it’s because it’s where I had some of my favourite bird encounter moments on a trip that was absurdly packed with wildlife and nature highlights. It was here that I spent three mesmerising early mornings watching pelicans swooping across the sea edge and plunging vertically into the water to snatch fish in their huge beaks. Just one of the unforgettable moments in a country that, along with New Zealand, is the most stunning I’ve ever visited. Click HERE to discover more about the adventures we had there.

Cala Pregonda, Menorca

You’re spoilt for choice with beaches on this lovely Ballearic island, often confused with its larger neighbour, Mallorca, but this one is my personal favourite. It’s a 20 minute undulating coastal walk to get to it from the car park, but the journey is more than worth it when you reach this beautiful horse-shoe shaped beach with its golden sands, transparent water and rocky headland jutting out to enclose the bay..

That’s not a remotely exhaustive list (I could bang on about my love of beaches and the beaches I love forever) and one I very much hope I will keep adding to in the years to come, but hopefully it’s given you some inspiration and ideas for your next sea side visit.

If you have any favourites you’d recommend I’d love to know about them.