50 Beaches to Blow Your Mind

Book excerpt: From the people who have been delivering trustworthy guidebooks to every destination in the world for 40 years, Lonely Planet's 50 Beaches To Blow Your Mind helps you discover the planet's most pristine, jaw-dropping, wild and wonderful sandy spots. This pocket-sized book is the perfect gift for any sun-worshipper or beach-lover and is the ultimate guide to the world's best beaches. A beach always feels like the ultimate escape, with the sound of the waves lapping against the shore, which science says has a calming effect on our brain activity. And then there's the guaranteed hit of vitamin D our exposed skin absorbs. Whether you're looking for black-sand beaches, high-octane watersport hotspots, secret bays or the finest palm-fringed tropical paradises, Lonely Planet shows you where and how to find them. So pack your beach towel and hit the sands. Includes: Bliss // Tropical desert island paradises Cabbage Beach // Nassau, Bahamas Crane Beach // Barbados Flamenco Beach // Culebra, Puerto Rico Green Island Beach // Green Island, Antigua & Barbuda Hanalei Beach // Hawaii, USA Nalaguraidhoo Beach // South Ari Atoll, Maldives Drama // Wild & unusual beaches Bowling Ball Beach // Mendocino, California, US Giant's Causeway // County Antrim, Northern Ireland Gulpiyuri Beach // near Llanes, Spain Hidden Beach // Puerta Vallarta, Marieta Islands, Mexico Action // Surfing & diving meccas Bells Beach // Great Ocean Road, Victoria, Australia Biarritz Beach // Biarritz, France Bondi Beach // Sydney, Australia Ehukai Beach // Hawaii, USA Discovery // Beaches for combing & exploring Charmouth Beach // Dorset, UK Conche des Baleines // Ile de Re, France Navagio Beach // Zakynthos, Greece Squeaky Beach // Wilson's Promontory, Australia Parties // Social & nightlife beaches Bacvice Beach // Split, Croatia Copacabana // Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Gulf Shore Beach // Alabama, USA Paradise Beach // Mykonos, Greece Encounters // Wildlife & conservation hotspots Agonda Beach // Goa, India Diani Beach // Mombasa, Kenya Espiguette Beach // Le Grau du Roi, France Manuel Antonio Beach // Puntarenas, Costa Rica Family // Calm, safe all-rounders for all comers Brandinchi Cove // Sardinia, Italy Koh Kood (Koh Kut) // Trat Province, Thailand Porthcurno // Cornwall, UK Praia de Mira // Mira, Portugal Will Rogers State Beach // Malibu, California, USA About Lonely Planet: Lonely Planet is a leading travel media company and the world’s number one travel guidebook brand, providing both inspiring and trustworthy information for every kind of traveler since 1973. Over the past four decades, we’ve printed over 145 million guidebooks and grown a dedicated, passionate global community of travelers. You’ll also find our content online, and in mobile apps, video, 14 languages, nine international magazines, armchair and lifestyle books, ebooks, and more. Important Notice: The digital edition of this book may not contain all of the images found in the physical edition.