Twelve beaches worth the detour

Every summer starts with the same argument: where are we swimming this year? After a decade of long drives, wrong turns and ferries that left twenty minutes early, we’ve built a list. Not the famous ones — the ones worth the extra hour.

The ones you have to work for

The best water is almost never at the end of the car park. Bingin in Bali means a steep staircase cut into the cliff, and you’ll carry everything down it. Praia da Ursa in Portugal is a scramble. Cala Goloritzé in Sardinia is a ninety-minute walk in and a longer one out. All three reward you with water so clear it looks fake in photos.

If you can drive right up to it, so can everybody else.

The ones for long, lazy days

Some beaches aren’t about the swim at all. Nyang Nyang for the walk, Elafonissi for the pink sand, Anse Source d’Argent for the granite boulders that turn gold about an hour before sunset. Bring more water than you think you need and something to sit on — most of these have no shade after noon.

Pack light, swim more

Our rule for a beach day is one bag, shared. A suit you can wear all day without adjusting, a rash top for the middle hours, one towel each, sunscreen, and enough snacks that nobody suggests leaving early. Everything else is negotiable.

Wherever you end up, take the picture before you swim — after the swim nobody wants to hold the phone.