Lonely Planet’s ‘Best Beaches’ suggests the world’s most incredible coastlines to visit… and has me showing off my travel history

You’re on the beach and it’s nearing sunset. An earworm of Chris Rea’s On The Beach has entered your head, the scent of clean sea salt is in the air, and the sound of kids and adults chattering away is only just drowned out by the occasional crashing wave.

Moments on the beach are magical, so it makes sense that Lonely Planet has compiled a book about the world’s best beach destinations.

Picnics, sunsets, games of volleyball, walks with the dog, body-surfing, or just plain but necessary serenity: the beaches offer us all of these options.

Beaches have been a part of our history and culture for millions of years, way longer than when Cook first landed at Botany, or the Norse explorers touched down in North America. Hence this Lonely Planet book acts as somewhat of an atlas and travel guide combined.

Now, I’m a lover of checklists so, looking through the book, I immediately got stuck into seeing which of the 100 selected destinations I’d been to.

Lo and behold, I was able to tick off the first one – Blue Lagoon Beach in Yasawa Islands, Fiji, which I’d visited 27 years ago since Yasawa was an advertising client of Cream magazine. Although I was there mostly on business, the destination made everything feel like a holiday. You’d know the beach and its magical caves, too, from the 80s film The Blue Lagoon. It truly suits kicking off this stunning collection.

Also in the Oceania section, I could tick off Bondi Beach in Sydney, The Pass in Byron Bay, Whitehaven in The Whitsundays, and Bell’s Beach in Victoria. Surprisingly, I’ve not been to Cable Beach in Broome –  yet I’ve called Perth home for some time now, so there’s no excuse, really.

On that note, I’m sad to not see any Perth coastal entries, not even Cottesloe Beach – home to Sculpture by the Sea, a heritage teahouse coveted by Taylor Swift, azure waters, crystal sands and a red sunset horizon to boot. But I’ll chalk that up to envy on behalf of the book’s (primarily) east coast dwelling contributors.

Still, if you want to make a checklist of some of the best beaches to visit in your travels, be sure to first check out this stunning book. It’s also bursting with photography that goes way beyond ‘National Geographic’ stylings and way into high art territory.

An elephant gets its toes wet at Swaraj Dweep in the Andaman Islands, India.

Featured are more of the world’s most breathtaking coastlines. I sense more checklisting about to happen: Camps Bay Beach in Cape Town, South Africa. Check (by the way, being on this beach makes you really feel you’re at the end of the earth, and you don’t even realise there’s a bustling strip of restaurants and bars just behind it).

Highly photogenic Cathedral Cove in New Zealand. Check!

Le Morne Beach, Mauritius. Check (although anywhere on Mauritius’ coastline is glorious). I wish I’d visited colourfully housed Palolem Beach in Goa or the rustic red dunes of Varkala, Kerala while I was in India but a moment alongside the Ganges definitely made up for it. Nusa Penida, Bali. Check. Ko Phi-Phi Leh, Thailand. Check. And yes, I truly have been spoilt, so thank you once again to all the travel experts that pointed me in the right direction towards sunset or sunrise on any given land.

In memory mode again… Oneloa Beach in Maui, Hawaii… Venice Beach, Los Angeles… Miami Beach, Florida. Check. Check. Check. Rhossili Bay. Check. Baia di Ieranto on the Amalfi Coast, Italy. Certo!

In Europe, though, I haven’t ventured to many beaches – since I fell for the myth that most beaches there consist of black sand and pebbles.

A Daliesque coastal landscape in Spain.

Picturesque inclusions in this book defy that myth, such as the glorious-looking Bol in Croatia, and Cala Estreta in Catalonia, Spain – the last one looking like something out of a Salvador Dalí painting.

And one day, one day, I’m going to trek it to Antarctica to see those adorable penguins that blanket most of St Andrews Bay. And to spectacular Haukland Beach in Norway where the Northern Lights reflect off snow-white sands.

Whoever compiled these beaches certainly did their homework, and I’m almost envious over all the spectacular horizons they’ve encountered in the name of research.

Kudos to them for inspiring my next holiday… or three.

Antonino Tati

Inside Lonely Planet’s Best Beaches:

271 pages packed with sensible suggestions of the best beaches to frequent in tens of countries across the globe.

Brief summaries of each beach, highlighting points of difference to marvel over.

Teases of what wildlife you might find at some of your more ‘alive’ destinations.

Hints at landmark rock formations, cliffs and other rugged terrain that hug a lot of world’s coastlines.

Tips of treasured, more secluded spots to contemplate your navel at.

Glorious photography throughout.

Lonely Planet’s Best Beaches is available for RRP$49.99 in hardback through quality bookstores or shop at lonelyplanet.com.