The Times and Sunday Times Best UK Beaches 2023: 50 best beaches in the UK - is your area on the list?

The top 50 beaches in the UK has been revealed - see if your area makes the list
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

The 50 best beaches in the UK have been revealed by The Times and Sunday Times. It’s the 15th edition of the prestigious list but is the first reader-nominated edition where readers sent in their favourite sandy spots.

It took around a month to curate the list with every beach critiqued on a list of 11 points including cleanliness, accessibility, car parking facilities, lifeguards, hygiene levels at loos and showers and whether the beaches are dog-friendly.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

This comes as the Cerberus heatwave threatens new record temperatures for Europe. The scorching heat has seen weather alerts put in place across Spain’s Canary Islands, Italy, Cyprus and Greece.

The best 50 beaches in the UK 2023

Weymouth, Dorset

Woolacombe, Devon

Studland, Dorset

Exmouth, Devon

Porthcurno, Cornwall

Porthminster, Cornwall

Constantine Bay, Cornwall

Grebe, Cornwall

Beer, Devon

Rhossili Bay, Gower, Swansea

Barmouth, Gwynedd

Broad Haven South, Pembrokeshire

Caswell Bay, Swansea

Llanbedrog, Gwynedd

Marloes Sands, Pembrokeshire

Three Cliffs Bay, Gower, Swansea

Traeth Penllech, Gwynedd

Bamburgh, Northumberland

Dunstanburgh, Northumberland

Cresswell, Northumberland

Tynemouth Longsands , Northumberland

Formby, Merseyside

Whitby Sandsend, North Yorkshire

Filey, North Yorkshire

Ballycastle, Co Antrim

Benone, Co Londonderry

White Park Bay, Co Antrim

Portrush East Strand, Co Antrim

Portstewart, Co Londonderry

Salmon Rock Beach, Co Antrim

Murlough Beach, Co Down

Findhorn, Moray

Coldingham, Scottish Borders

Wester Ross, Highland

Rhu Point, Highland

West Sands, St Andrews, Fife

Sanna Bay, Highland

Kilbride Bay, Argyll and Bute

Holkham, Norfolk

Brancaster, Norfolk

Cromer, Norfolk

Skegness, Lincolnshire

Dunwich, Suffolk

Felixstowe, Suffolk

Walton-on-the-Naze, Essex

West Wittering, West Sussex

Stone Bay, Kent

St Margaret’s, Kent

Winchelsea, East Sussex

Lepe, Hampshire

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.