Whether going to the beach is a once-a-year treat or part of your everyday routine, one thing we can all agree on is that nobody likes jostling for space on the sand. Sure, a bustling beach full of chatter and laughter can be part of the fun — but how can you relax when there’s no room for your deck chair?
Unless you’re lucky enough to have access to your own private beach, everyone has to share a stretch of seaside with other beachgoers at some point. Indeed, being at the beach is the most popular type of vacation for U.S. adults, and it’s a place where 44% of Americans go to boost their mood.
But have you ever wondered which beaches are the busiest of all? To find out, the team here at Florida Panhandle tracked down the world’s most crowded beaches according to visitor reviews.
What We Did
We began our research by building a list of 150 of the most popular beaches in each country and up to 300 of the most popular beaches in the U.S. For each beach, we retrieved the total number of publicly available English-language reviews received on Tripadvisor and the proportion of those reviews that mentioned the word “busy.” We could then rank the beaches in the U.S. by continent and by country that had the highest proportion of reviews mentioning the word “busy.”
Key Findings
- Five of the world’s top 10 busiest beaches are in Spain, with Cala Agulla in Mallorca ranking as the busiest beach overall (23.57% of traveler reviews mention the word “busy”).
- Waikiki Beach in Honolulu, Hawaii, ranks as America’s busiest beach — 13.27% of its reviews mention that it’s busy.
- Five of the top 10 busiest beaches in North America are in Canada; leading them is Boyce-Gyro Beach Park in Kelowna, British Columbia (14.48% of its reviews mention the word “busy”).
- Only Australian and New Zealand beaches make up the top 10 busiest beaches in Oceania, with Browns Bay Beach in Auckland (NZ) taking the top spot (13.33% of its reviews mention how busy it is).
According to Tourists, Spain Is Home to Five of the World’s Top 10 Busiest Beaches
If you’re looking to vacation in a country known for quiet and relaxing beaches, maybe give Spain a miss: five of the top 10 busiest beaches in the world can be found there, with Cala Agulla on the island of Mallorca taking the overall top spot (23.57% of its reviews mention how busy it is).
Here, you’ll find gorgeous white sand and crystal-clear blue water… but visit at the wrong time, and you may find it hard to secure a place to set up camp. “Ridiculously crowded in July,” writes one disgruntled reviewer. “Heavily overcrowded … we couldn’t even find anywhere to put a towel down whilst we cooled down in the sea. Crowds & umbrellas as far as the eye can see.”
According to another write-up, this beach gets busy due to the fact that it’s the only one in the fishing port of Cala Ratjada. “Early morning and late afternoon/evening are the best times to go,” they advise.
Waikiki Beach in Honolulu, Hawaii, Ranks as the Busiest Beach in the United States
Meanwhile, Waikiki Beach in Honolulu, Hawaii,ranks as the busiest beach in the U.S., with 13.27% of its reviews mentioning the word “busy.” Set against a backdrop of towering hotels, this beautiful beach has attracted sunbathers and surfers in their hordes since the late 19th century.
Some visitors love the bustling vibe, as one reviewer writes: “The vibe on Waikiki Beach is always fun and is filled with all kinds of people … the sunset was amazing and we enjoyed it with hundreds of other people…” Other visitors, not so much: “Very very busy place, lots of people … the beach was crowded.”
Manatee Public Beach in Florida comes next (9.02% of reviews), a seven-acre stretch of white-sand seaside in Holmes Beach.“This beach was just too busy for us!” laments a reviewer. “No parking spaces at all by 9:30 a.m. So we left. … Probably won’t return to this area, it’s just too crowded.”
Also making the cut are four Californian beaches, led by Main Beach in Laguna Beach, for which 7.29% of reviews mention how busy it is. One visitor advises: “Get there early as it gets busy by 12 noon. You can take your own food … but it will be difficult to carry items to the beach area as it gets busy … It is better to either eat before you get there or stroll the downtown area to get a bite to eat.”
The Busiest Beach in Every Country, Mapped
Our map below reveals the busiest beach in every country, based on the proportion of its reviews that mention the word “busy.” Some of these beaches are world-famous: take Byron Bay in New South Wales, Australia, for which 11.39% of reviews mention how busy it is. Perhaps visitors might have a better shot at finding a place to set up camp now that tourism numbers are falling?
In the Dominican Republic, which sees some three million U.S. tourists visit each year, the busiest beach is Playa Publica Dominicus in Bayahibe (4.28% of reviews mention the word “busy”). “Always busy with local families, small stalls and shops, mini market, food stalls, just great fun,” writes one reviewer.
A Lakefront Beach in Canada Is One of North America’s Busiest Beaches
Canada boasts the longest coastline in the world, so it’s perhaps no surprise that five of the top 10 busiest beaches in North America can be found there. What may come as a surprise, however, is that the busiest of the country’s beaches is actually found on the edge of a lake.
As well as clear water and clean sand, Boyce-Gyro Beach Park in Kelowna, British Columbia (14.48% of its reviews mention the word “busy”) boasts an inflatable waterpark and watersport rentals. But, as one write-up cautions, it “can get very busy and crowded during the peak sunny days in July and August.”
But a Mexican beach ranks as the busiest beach of all on the continent; Playa La Entrega in La Crucecita, for which 15.11% of its reviews mention the word “busy,” offers calm, clear water that reviewers rate as great for snorkeling and spotting fish. As for how busy it can get, a reviewer writes: “This beach is a busy one as boat tours stop here daily. The weekends are the worst.”
Three Colombian Beaches Are Busier Than Brazil’s Iconic Copacabana Beach
In South America, it’s Colombia’s beaches that seem to be the most packed with people of all, led by Playa Grande in Taganga (10.92% of its reviews mention how busy it is). “Lovely beach,” writes one visitor. “On Sunday afternoon, it was mayhem. Lots of families and people doing watersports and jet skis.”
It’s clearly a popular region for beachgoers looking to relax by the Caribbean Sea. Less than half an hour’s drive from Playa Grande, you’ll find the next busiest beach on the continent: the “very crowded” Playa El Rodadero in Gaira (10% of reviews mention how busy it is).
In fourth place is Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, about which 8.56% of reviews mention the word “busy.” Thousands of people can be found on the shores of this world-famous, 2.5-mile-long beach daily, which visitors are all too aware of. “Certainly one of the busiest and greatest beaches I ever visited!” says one reviewer. “Busy from early in the morning to well after sunset.”
France Is Home to One of the Busiest Beaches in Europe
Outside of Spain — home to the world’s busiest beach of all — some of the busiest beaches in Europe can be found in the Mediterranean countries of France, Italy and Greece. Situated at the head of the Gulf of St Tropez, Port Grimaud Beach in Port Grimaud, France (21.93% of reviews mention the word “busy”) ranks as the third-busiest on the continent, a seaside spot one reviewer warns has “gritty sand so make sure you bring some flip-flops for your feet!”
Also making the cut is the Blue Lagoon on the small island of Comino, Malta, for which 18.50% of reviews mention the word “busy.” A popular stop on local boat trips, one reviewer writes of this bustling seaside: “Unless you have a private boat to go to the lagoon and swim away from the throngs of people on the beach, it’s definitely NOT worth it.”
Altinkum Beach in Turkey Is More Crowded Than Any Other Beach in Asia
Boasting the longest series of coastline of any continent, tourists to Asia are spoiled for choice when it comes to beaches. Altinkum Beach is the busiest of them all (15.21% of reviews mention how busy it is), one of five beaches in Turkey that make the ranking. “Altinkum beach is beautiful,” writes a visitor. “Gets very busy this time of year so we recommend early visits or later on in the day/evening when it’s quieter.”
Outside of Turkey, Kep Beach in Cambodia ranks as the busiest beach in Asia (10.82% of its reviews mention the word “busy”). Only a kilometer long, this beach can get pretty crowded; as one tourist notes: “The place was crawling with people everywhere. Nice vibe with lots going on to see but don’t expect a peaceful lie on the beach!”
Pereybere Beach in Mauritius Is Africa’s Busiest Beach, According to Tourists
In Africa, Pereybere Beach in Grand Baie, Mauritius, ranks as the busiest beach on the continent: 11.49% of its reviews mention how busy it is. One reviewer had a positive experience at this beach, writing of the soft, white sand and coconut trees. “The only problem is,” they add, “there are really many people around. Even during the week, it is packed with a lot of guests … so you cannot call it a quiet place.”
The small island nation of Mauritius — which received over 300,000 tourists in the first few months of 2023 alone — claims two other busy beaches in our ranking: Blue Bay Beach in Pointe d’Esny (8.14% of reviews mention how busy it is) and Plage de Trou aux Biches, Trou aux Biches (6.82% of reviews). South Africa claims three others, the second-most visited country in Africa by international tourists.
Oceania’s Busiest Beaches Split Between Australia and New Zealand
From the white sandy shores of Fiji to the “surf’s up” vibes of Australia, Oceania is a continent strongly associated with the seaside (the clue’s in the name). But which of the continent’s beaches rank among the busiest? Browns Bay Beach in Auckland, New Zealand, comes top (13.33% of reviews mention how busy it is), which one reviewer advises can get “really busy during the holidays and weekends” but offers a handy tip: head to the northern end of the beach for a parking lot that not many visitors know about.
Australia’s offerings include Bondi Beach in Sydney, which just scrapes into the top 10 rankings (9% of reviews mention how busy it is) — surprising, considering that Bondi is the most popular beach in the world according to TikTok views. “I got the feeling that everyone who comes here comes for “been there, done that” experience only,” writes an unimpressed reviewer. “Crowded and overrated.”
Finding Beaches off the Beaten Sand
Soaking up the atmosphere of a noisy, bustling beach can be a fun way to enjoy the seaside, but it’s not everyone’s idea of a good time. If you’d rather visit a quieter beach on your next vacation, it might be better to give the more popular beaches a miss and visit a local hidden gem instead.
Vacationers on the hunt for a Brazilian beach, for example, might prefer to go beyond the world-famous Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro in favor of Prainha Beach, just an hour’s drive away. “Nice beach,” writes a reviewer of Prainha, “beloved by [locals] who prefer Prainha to [the] busy touristy beaches of Copacabana and Ipanema. It is set in a lovely nature reserve so the whole experience is totally different than the urban beaches in Rio.”
Reviews like that are a great way of finding local beaches and scoping out how busy they might be before you pack up the car for a visit. They’re often also full of tips and tricks on where to park, the best times to visit and recommended places nearby to grab a bite to eat and collect souvenirs.
Methodology
We curated a seed list of up to 150 of the most popular beaches in each country and up to 300 of the most popular beaches in the United States — ranked according to popularity on tripadvisor.com.
For each beach, we scraped the number of publicly available English-language reviews and the number of reviews mentioning the word “busy.” To define the busiest beaches, each beach was ranked based on the proportion of English-speaking reviews that mentioned the beach was busy.
We applied a threshold of 100 or more English-speaking reviews for a beach to appear in the final rankings. We then manually sense-checked the reviews of each ranking beach to ensure “busy” was being used within the correct context.
This is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Tripadvisor, Inc. The data for this research is correct as of November 2023.
Additional Sources
Thompson, A. (2023). Half the world’s population faced extreme heat for at least 30 days this summer. scientificamerican.com
Wilson, B. (1988). The Beach Boys – Surfin’ U.S.A. Lyrics. lyrics.com
Nast, C. (n.d.). Platja de Llevant — Beach Review. cntraveler.com
K, J. (2022). Top 10 Fascinating Facts about Ladies’ Beach. discoverwalks.com
Johnson, C. (2023). Browns Bay. aucklandnz.com
Le Roux, M. (2023). 11 of Africa’s Best Beach Destinations. discoverafrica.com
