TOP10 | Europe’s best beaches
1 | Ses Illetes (Spain)
Clubbed out? Formentera’s
beaches are quieter and wilder than on
neighbouring Ibiza.
2 | Mogren (Montenegro)
Part of the so-called
“Budva Riviera” that stretches either side of
Montenegro’s party town par excellence.
3 | Butterfly Valley (Turkey)
Imagine a Turkish
version of The Beach, minus the bloodshed, with
added butterflies – take a boat here and soak up
the trippy hippie vibe .
4 | Klitmøller (Denmark)
The windswept beaches
of “Cold Hawaii” are off the wall for all
varieties of surfing.
5 | Ilha de Tavira (Portugal)
Backed by tufted
dunes just off the coast near the pretty town
of Tavira , this is one of the Algarve’s
finest stretches.
6 | Sopot (Poland)
A heady mix of pristine sand
and party culture, Sopot also boasts
Europe’s longest wooden pier – ideal for a
hangover-busting stroll.
7 | Áyios Prokópios (Greece)
Following the
herd down to Greece? Hit this lagoon-backed
beauty armed with a bottle of kίtron, the
local liqueur.
8 | Erraid (Great Britain)
Enjoy these perfect slivers
of sand – inspiration for Robert Louis Stevenson’s
Kidnapped – on the Isle of Mull .
9 | Plage de la Rondinala (France)
Shaped like a
scallop shell, this vies with the turquoise waters of
Santa Giulia and Palombaggia for title of “best
Corsican beach” .
10 | Chia (Italy)
A sequence of shapely little bays
lying just southwest of a quiet Sardinian village – nearby lagoons are specked with
flamingos, who come here to breed.