Many dream of spending a long-awaited vacation away from the hustle and bustle of the city, relaxing on a snow-white beach, swimming in the warm ocean and enjoying exotic nature. We have collected five resorts in Europe, Asia and America, which can boast not only a perfect picture, but also a developed infrastructure for a comfortable vacation.
Tenerife, Spain
It is the most popular resort place in the Canary Islands of Spain. Tenerife is washed by the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, and all year round the air temperature here does not fall below +21 ⁰С. In addition to a favorable tropical climate, the island is famous for its volcanic landscapes, centuries-old forests, picturesque villages with low-rise houses in colonial style and spacious sandy beaches.
There’s no need to be bored on Tenerife, and you can diversify your beach vacation with a trip to the elite wineries or shopping in the chain of Spanish shopping centers El Corte Inglés. The natural riches of the island are not only long beaches. Tenerife is home to Spain’s largest volcano Teide, which can be reached by cable car, numerous gorges and mountain valleys, relic botanical gardens, national parks and black beaches with volcanic sand.
Many of the island’s beaches are blue flagged. The most popular among them are Playa de las Americas, Teresitas, Abama and Camison.
You can take a boat trip to see whales and dolphins, you can surf, dive and snorkel, you can paraglide, rent a yacht or take a submarine ride. The island is home to Europe’s most popular and largest water park, Siam Park, the beautiful Loro Park Zoo and the eagle park Jungle Park amidst the wild tropics.
St. Tropez, France
The list of the most famous resorts in Europe includes Saint-Tropez on the Côte d’Azur of France. This small elite town is located on the Mediterranean coast, and European bohemians love to vacation here. The local harbor is always full of luxury yachts, and on the seafront you can meet celebrities on vacation.
Prestigious beaches of Saint-Tropez are located in bays and surrounded by pine groves, the best among them are Plages de Saint-Tropez, Plage des Graniers and Plage de Pampelonne.
St. Tropez’s main strolling spot is the promenade, home to chic restaurants, trendy clubs and French artists’ exhibitions and sales.
The most visited tourist spots of Saint-Tropez are the old town area with Provencal style architecture, Place des Lices market square, the Italian Baroque church Eglise de Saint-Tropez and the citadel fortress built in the XVII century. After relaxing on the beach, you can visit the local water park and luna park with rides, go to a winery, rock out in a nightclub, learn to play golf, polo or go-karts.
In the Old Town you can spend hours strolling through narrow streets, looking at mansions, visiting national museums and fashion boutiques.
Paphos, Cyprus
The most expensive resort on the island of Cyprus is popular among wealthy tourists. Here are the best five-star hotels, prestigious restaurants and closed beaches. Paphos is more suitable for a measured and secluded vacation – there is no noisy nightlife, but there is an opportunity to engage in water sports: yachting, kitesurfing and diving.
Paphos is one of the oldest cities in Cyprus, where many historical sights have been preserved. For example, in the open-air archaeological park-museum “Kato” you can see excavations of the ancient city of Nea Paphos, ruins of basilica and royal tombs. If you are planning a purely beach vacation, it is better to choose hotels in the areas of Coral Bay and Geroskipou, where there is a gentle entrance to the sea and sandy shore.
The resort’s waterfront is set in a picturesque bay with sapphire-colored water – there are cozy taverns on the pier, and it’s a prime spot for an evening promenade.
If you get bored of antiquities, head to the local water park, zoo, luna park, sea fishing or botanical reserve. Paphos also offers horseback riding in the mountains, trips to wineries and the Duck Pond flea market.
Cayo Coco, Cuba
The list of top Cuban resorts for beach vacation includes a small island Cayo Coco. There are magnificent beaches with white sand, the best places for diving and snorkeling, untouched wildlife and luxury hotels with all inclusive. Two kilometers from the island is one of the largest coral reefs in the Western Hemisphere – there are reef sharks, parrot fish, sea angels and dozens of exotic fish species.
The best beaches on the island are located in the neighborhoods of Los Flamencos, La Jaula and Las Coloradas. The sand on them is soft, snow-white and very fine, resembling flour.
Giant land turtles and pink flamingos can be spotted at the Baga Natural Park or Los Flamencos Beach. Unusual activities include sailing on a transparent-bottomed boat, bungee jumping at the climbing center and visiting La Cueva del Jabali cave, where a nightclub is open.
The island of Cayo Coco falls within the boundaries of a protected nature reserve, and its calling card is its huge population of pink flamingos.
Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic
The city of Puerto Plata on the north coast of the island is called the Bride of the Atlantic. The beautiful Victorian houses drenched in tropical greenery and flowerbeds resemble a dressed-up bride preparing for her wedding.
The popular Dominican resort on the Caribbean Sea attracts lovers of outdoor activities. There are ideal conditions for diving, surfing, rafting and jeep safaris. The resort has a national park on Mount Isabel de Torres, where there are trekking routes and a cable car.
Puerto Plata’s best beach is Sosua. The wide coastline is surrounded by almond trees and coconut palms on one side and coral reefs on the other.
Puerto Plata is home to some of the most famous tourist destinations in the Dominican Republic. For example, Ocean World Adventure Park is surrounded by a zoo where you can swim with dolphins, manatees, sea lions and sharks safe for humans. There is a steep natural extreme park on the outskirts of the resort – 27 waterfalls on the side of a mountain. Here you can raft down the river along the gorges, and along the way you can overcome rapids, rolls and jump off the waterfalls.
More than 150 Victorian-style residences with Art Deco elements are preserved in the city center, with some very eccentric brightly colored buildings.
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
The best resorts in the world are hard to imagine without Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro, the country’s second largest city and the main tourist Mecca of South America. The large, bustling resort is home to Brazil’s best beaches: Copacabana, Leblon and Ipanema.
The city is known for its chic museums, colonial architecture and 38-meter statue of Christ the Redeemer on Corcovado Mountain. It’s also home to the world’s best street carnival. There are cool surf spots and diving centers, nightclubs and sambo schools, the world’s most visited favelas and the fascinating neo-Gothic castle of Ilha Fiscal.
The famous Copacabana beach on the Atlantic coast is considered one of the longest in the world: its length is about four kilometers.
The city is surrounded by mountain ranges with dense tropical vegetation, and in the botanical garden of the Tijuca National Park you can walk under 30-meter palm trees and see three-meter cacti. For amazing restaurants, luxury shopping and Rio’s best nightclubs, head to the Santa Teresa district, where the local bohemians live in luxurious mansions.
The symbol of Rio de Janeiro is Pan di Asucar, or Sugar Loaf Mountain, which offers a magnificent view of the city and Guanabara Bay. There is a cable car that goes here.
Mahe, Seychelles
The largest of the Seychelles islands with the best developed tourist infrastructure. Here is the capital Victoria, the international airport and more than 60 sandy beaches with white sand and tropical vegetation. On Mahe you can find wild spots and landscaped beach areas at luxury hotels.
There is also a beach for party people – Beau Vallon, where the nightlife is boiling. In the smallest capital of the world you can stroll through colorful markets, see cathedrals, look in miniature museums and spend hours looking at exotic plants in the Botanical Garden of Mont Fleury and Orchid Garden.
For colorful snorkeling, head to the popular beaches of Anse Forbans, Anse Royale and Anse Bougainville, which are surrounded by coral reefs.
In addition to excellent snorkeling and diving, the island offers excursions to cinnamon and tea plantations, trekking routes to Mourne Blanc Mountain, glass-bottom boat trips in St. Anne’s National Marine Park and day trips to uninhabited islands. The Seychelles Morne National Park offers superb hiking on volcanic mountains, and from the ridge tops you can see the neighboring resort towns on Praslin and La Digue islands.
Resort hotels on Mahe are often located on top of low cliffs, offering beautiful views of the island and the azure ocean.
North Male Atoll, Maldives
The main tourist center of the country is considered to be the North Male Atoll, where the capital of the state, the international airport and the most luxurious island hotels are located. Rest here is mainly beach, and all entertainment is connected with the ocean or the infrastructure inside the hotel. In the vicinity of the atoll there are famous dive spots of Maldives – Girifushi Tila, Guraidu Kandu and Rasfari, where you can see underwater rocks, colorful coral reefs, shipwrecks and, of course, marine life.
There are so few people on the beaches of the resort hotels on the smaller atolls that it can feel like you’re on a deserted island.
The North Male’ area is home to some of the most expensive islands in the world, each of which often has just one resort hotel. But its territory has everything for comfortable rest: luxurious rooms or bungalows on the water, spa centers and gyms, rental equipment for snorkeling, diving and fishing, restaurants and bars, swimming pools and sports grounds.
Luxury resort hotels offer secluded vacations and accommodations in small villas or entire cottages with a private pool in the middle of the ocean.
Grand Bay, Mauritius
Among the most picturesque resorts of Mauritius is the small town of Grand Bay, located in a bay in the north of the island. In addition to ideal beaches and warm Indian Ocean, tourists will find a lot of entertainment: cool restaurants with dishes from different cuisines of the world, shopping centers and fashion boutiques, markets with seafood and fruits, nightclubs and even casinos.
You can diversify your beach vacation with boat rides, wind or kite surfing, kayaking. On small islands near Grand Bay there is a real paradise for divers, where you can see picturesque underwater caves, shipwrecks and coral reefs.
The beaches of Grand Bay are located in a bay with azure water, and on the shore there is a developed infrastructure for water activities: there are diving schools and equipment rentals for snorkeling.
The Grand Baie area has ancient Buddhist temples and a huge mosque with a beautiful park. In your free time you can visit wineries and taste local drinks, stroll through tropical parks, look at entertainment centers Grand Baie and Mahebourg with attractions and sports fields. And for exotic fruits and national delicacies go to the Grand Baie Bazaar market.
There are many resort hotels in Grand Bay, where you will find everything for a comfortable vacation: own restaurants and bars, swimming pools, spa centers, children’s and sports grounds and beautifully decorated tropical gardens.
Dubai, UAE
It is a major city and the emirate of the same name on the Persian Gulf coast, which attracts ultra-modern architecture, a wide range of leisure activities and clean sandy beaches.
The most popular beach in Dubai is Jumeirah Open Beach. The wide sandy strip is located in the very center of the city, and it has everything for beach recreation: sun beds, umbrellas, cozy cafes and restaurants.
There is plenty of entertainment in Dubai: you can take a desert safari on ATVs or relax in the Wild Wadi Waterpark with a high artificial waterfall and 360-meter river. And in the Ski Dubai entertainment center you can ski and slide down a 60-meter snow slide, go ice skating and even see penguins.
Most of Dubai’s beachfront hotels have their own stretches of beach. And tropical gardens are often found near the shore, where it is pleasant to observe the chic views of the city and admire the Persian Gulf.
Dubai is home to the Dubai Mall, the largest shopping center in the world with an area of 350,000 m². Here you will find more than a thousand stores, several entertainment complexes for adults and children, a huge oceanarium, a movie theater, a skating rink and restaurants. And also in this emirate love to set records, so here you will see the tallest tower in the world Burj Khalifa and the largest show of musical fountains with the height of jets up to 150 meters.
Nusa Dua, Indonesia
The Nusa Dua resort on the island of Bali is ideal for a seaside vacation in Indonesia. It is comfortable to swim here even with small children, because the ocean does not have such strong waves as in other popular Balinese resorts. This is due to the location of a chain of coral reefs near the shore. The central beach offers a wide range of water activities: wakeboarding, snorkeling, parachuting over the ocean, diving, water skiing and banana boat rides.
Luxury hotels with first-class service and landscaped pools with ocean views have been built along the coastline of Nusa Dua.
Nusa Dua is famous not only for the best beaches in Bali, but also for great shopping. You can have it without even leaving your luxury hotel – each has its own boutiques and art galleries. At the resort there is also a huge shopping center Bali Collection, where you can buy clothes from European and American designers who live in Bali.
The resort of Nusa Dua has one sandy beach three kilometers long with sun beds, showers, bars and restaurants.
Nusa Dua is home to luxury golf clubs where you can take a couple of professional lessons. It is also home to the unique Pasifika Museum, founded over 15 years ago by a French collector and businessman. In its space are collected sculptures, paintings and art objects of Southeast Asia.
The Bali Nusa Dua Theatre deserves special attention, where colorful Devdan shows with special effects and acrobatic elements against the background of bright tiered scenery take place.
Samui, Thailand
Thailand’s second largest island is located in the warm Gulf of Thailand in the South China Sea. Here there are almost no strong waves and the rainy season is not as pronounced as in other Thai resorts. Therefore, you can vacation in Samui all year round. On the Island of eternal summer luxury hotels, bungalows and villas are located right on the shore surrounded by virgin nature and white sand.
Samui has about 30 beaches with fine white sand surrounded by coconut palms. The busiest and most popular is Chaweng on the east coast.
Most of the island’s activities are related to the sea and tropical nature. You can kayak, banana boat and jet ski, or head to neighboring islands for diving and snorkeling in search of large sea turtles. Hidden in the heart of Samui’s tropical jungle are picturesque waterfalls, snake farms, butterfly parks and even an insect museum.
Some luxury hotels and villas in Samui are located on hills in dense jungle, offering a beautiful panorama of the island and the Gulf of Thailand.
Adults and children will enjoy spending time at the local safari park, where unusual shows with crocodiles, snakes and monkeys are performed. Or you can go to the aquarium and tiger zoo to see the inhabitants of the underwater world, leopards and tigers.
Langkawi, Malaysia
The island in northwest Malaysia is washed by the waters of the Strait of Malacca. The coastline is wide and uncrowded with sandy beaches all year round, and the clear sea has picturesque areas for snorkeling and diving. Langkawi is a duty-free zone, so shopping or buying alcohol is cheaper than in many other countries in Southeast Asia.
The beaches of the island offer the whole set of marine entertainment: parachute flights over the water, water skiing and “bananas”, boat and jet ski rentals.
The island offers a marine reserve, a bird park and mangrove forests, as well as huge fruit plantations and rice paddies. Langkawi has an oceanarium Underwater World Langkawi with a 15-meter tunnel, behind the glass of which stingrays and sharks swim leisurely, and in the subantarctic zone walk penguins. Hikers can climb Gunung Raya Mountain, which has 4,278 steps to the top, or hike up the steep rocky slope to Temurun Falls for a swim in the cool, fresh water.
The most impressive attraction on Langkawi Island is a 125-meter curved footbridge over a gorge 660 meters above sea level. It provides gorgeous views and the feeling of walking in the clouds.
Boracay, Philippines
A small island located in the central Philippines, it is washed by the warm waters of the Pacific Ocean. It is only seven kilometers long, and the distance from the northern shore to the southern shore is sometimes less than one kilometer.
The epicenter of tourist life with a lively waterfront, entertainment venues and marine activities is located around White Beach and Boracay Highway Central. For a secluded vacation surrounded by wildlife and the ocean, go to quieter places such as Punta Bunga, Ilig Iligan or Puka Shell beaches.
Boracay has luxury hotels right on the oceanfront with their own stretches of beach and tropical gardens. All conditions for comfortable rest are created here: spacious rooms and separate bungalows, restaurants, bars, outdoor pools and spa centers.
All major beaches on the island offer diving, snorkeling, kite and windsurfing. The sights of the resorts can be explored independently by renting a bicycle for a couple of days. There is a beautiful mosque, a Catholic cathedral and church, a theme park with Happy Dreamland rides, observation decks on Mount Luho with panoramic views of the island, as well as caves where bats live. Boracay has many restaurants that specialize in European cuisine, which is rare in Asia-Pacific islands.
White Beach is the longest and busiest beach on Boracay Island. It is lined with hotels for every budget, nightclubs, bars, restaurants, shopping centers and travel agencies.
Phu Quoc, Vietnam
The most expensive place for a beach vacation in Vietnam is Phu Quoc Island in the south of the country. It is located in the Gulf of Thailand in the South China Sea, here there are no waves almost all year round, and the water always remains clear and clean. On Phu Quoc there are the most beautiful and convenient beaches of Vietnam.
The most popular are Long Beach and Bai Sao. The island still retains an atmosphere of seclusion outside the tourist zone: here you can find both wild jungles and deserted beaches. In addition to hotels, the resort areas have everything for a busy vacation: amusement parks, dive centers and hundreds of restaurants.
In Fukuoka, there is hardly any question about which beach to choose, as the coastline on the island is considered a major natural attraction. There are clean sandy beaches, gentle approach and clear water. On Fukuoka there are many interesting places that will help to diversify the beach leisure. You can go on an excursion to colorful floating villages, local temples and pagodas or visit the wildlife park Winperl-Safari and ride the cable car to the island of Thome. Fukuoka is easy to navigate by bike, with good and free roads. Along the way you can stop at local waterfalls, wild beaches and pearl farms, or stay in atmospheric fishing villages.
Travel Tips
1. The best foreign resorts attract tourists from all over the world, so in the high season the prices for vacations increase greatly. If you want to save money, go on vacation in the low season. As a rule, heavy rains in tropical climates occur at night, and only brief showers occur during the day.
2. You can also save money on flights, for example, by selecting the most cost-effective connecting flights in advance.
3. When going to beach resorts abroad, do not forget to take out travel insurance. It will protect you from unexpected medical expenses in case of poisoning, sunburn or injuries during an active vacation.
