| What was your favourite summer holiday ever? Bet it | | | | top-hat-esque backdrop of the Lofoten Islands. |
| involved a beach, right? Lots of people have a best | | | | Kallis Beach on the Swedish island of Gotland gets |
| beach which they either want to shout about from the | | | | long hours of sunlight, on long, long stretches of sandy |
| rooftops or never share with a soul, and BEST | | | | beach. Pitch your tent wherever you like and soak up |
| BEACH is one of the most hotly contested titles in the | | | | the cool independence of sleeping under warm |
| world, so to stop a riot, here's the list of Best Beaches | | | | summer stars for one of Europe's best beach |
| Europe - in alphabetical order. | | | | camping experiences. |
| The Silver Sands beach in Edinburgh offer spectacular | | | | La Pointe Beach, Cap Ferret, is a long, thin, sandy |
| views to the Islands of Inchmickery and Inchcolm with | | | | stretch of Atlantic Coast, dotted with pines and small |
| its famous abbey. It is also ideal for birdwatchers who | | | | oyster harvesting villages. Beyond which there's just |
| can regularly see red breasted mergansers, | | | | wild coast and sand dunes. |
| cormorants, oystercatchers and curlews, which are | | | | Little Banana is curved and yellow, has natural shade |
| often seen feeding on the large grassy area behind | | | | and is one of the oldest naturist beaches in Europe. |
| the beach at high tide. | | | | Nissi Beach's soft shelving sands and warm turquoise |
| The private turquoise shallows and soft pink sand of | | | | waters make it one of the best beaches on Cyprus, |
| Sandwood Bay are four miles from the nearest paved | | | | despite what some guides say about it being a secret |
| road, and a challenge to get to; leave your car at | | | | or hidden gem - it doesn't take long for that kind of |
| Baltimore and begin your journey on foot, armed with | | | | secret to come out, but it must have been a very old |
| a map. When you get there you realise it was worth | | | | secret, the BBC broadcasts live from the beach during |
| the long journey - it has a dramatic and unspoiled | | | | the height of the summer clubbing season when the |
| beauty coupled with a mystical feel. | | | | days are made for watersports. |
| Barleycove Beach is a sandy delight amongst the UK's | | | | Pampelonne Beach is supposedly the best beach in |
| many pebbly beaches and one of the best beaches in | | | | Europe for stars spotting - the place where the |
| Europe. A sandy apron sliding down to the water | | | | expensive bodies come to be seen, dropping in for a |
| backed by rounded dunes to hide amongst. | | | | meal from an expensive yacht parked just off shore. |
| Baska Voda is a blue flag on Croatia's shingle | | | | Papagayo isn't a single beach but a wiggly line of |
| Dalmatian coast with easy access to Hvar, Brac and | | | | Lanzarote coast with lots of lovely little beachy bays |
| the Krka National Park. | | | | along it, lined with fine, white sand and clear water. |
| Cala d'en Serra is a quiet, white, sandy, perfect | | | | Ramla Bay translates to 'red and sandy' which is what |
| horseshoe of a cove far from the buzzing haunts of | | | | this beach is - proving that the Maltese would rather |
| the beautiful people and club bunnies - as far as Ibiza's | | | | relax on a pretty, remote beach, in the dip of a lush |
| locals are concerted this is one of the Europe's best | | | | valley lined with orchards, than worry about pretty |
| beaches and where they take their sun bathing and | | | | names. |
| swimming pleasures. | | | | San Vito Lo Capo is one of Sicily's best beaches: |
| The Curonian Spit is a peninsular of shifting sand dunes | | | | white sand and high cliffs between a rocky cape and |
| and pine forests and one of the best beaches on the | | | | a nature reserve; and the town specialises in locally |
| Baltic Sea. A dozen buried villages and few (as yet) | | | | grown olives served in family trattorias. |
| Western visitors make this one of the great | | | | Three Cliffs Bay on the Gower Peninsular suffers |
| undiscovered best beaches, Europe. | | | | each turn of the tide, when great swathes of the |
| Gerakas Beach is one of Europe's best beaches for | | | | beach are submerged and separated by high cliffs. |
| both kids and sea turtles, with warm clean waters that | | | | Rock climbers love the cliffs and the BBC and Good |
| lap at the gently shelving shore backed by shallow | | | | Beach Guide like the views and water clarity |
| rolling dunes. | | | | respectively. |
| Haukland Sands is the multiple time winner of the | | | | Warnemünde Beach on the bracing Baltic coast |
| award for Norway's best beach for its scimitar shape | | | | has fine, white sand not at all spoiled by the 19th |
| in silver, glinting in the sunlight that never quite dies | | | | Century lighthouse at one end, fish and chip shops in |
| beneath the horizon, backed by the green | | | | the middle and the people camping at the other. |