TripAdvisor Users Rate the Best U.S. and World Beaches

By Kitty Yancey

Which state boasts the best beaches?

Hawaii has the No. 1, but the answer is Florida, according to the top 25 in TripAdvisor's 2013 Travelers' Choice Beaches Awards, announced today.

The Sunshine State had three beaches in the top 10: Siesta Key Public Beach, Sarasota, ranks second; Gulf Islands National Seashore, Pensacola, is third; Fort De Soto Park, Tierra Verde, near St. Petersburg and Clearwater, is fourth. Six more made the top 25: St. Andrews State Park, Panama City, 11; Caladesi Island State Park, near Dunedin, 12; Pass-A-Grille, St. Pete Beach, 15; Clearwater Beach (just voted No. 1 beach town in Florida by USA TODAY readers), 18; Pensacola Beach, 22; Canaveral National Seashore, Titusville, 23.

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Hawaii is second in the top 25 and had the most popular stretch of sand: Ka'anapali Beach, Lahaina, Maui. Other Hawaii beaches in the top 10: Lanikai Beach, Kailua, on Oahu, fifth; Wailea Beach, Wailea, No. 6; Hanauma Bay Nature Preserve near Honolulu on Oahu,10th. Four more made the top 25: Poipu Park Beach, Kauai, 13; Manini'owali Beach, Kailua, Big Island, 16; Wai'anapanapa State Park, Hana, Maui, 17; Hanalei Beach, Kauai, 21.

California has two beaches in the top 25: La Jolla Cove, in La Jolla near San Diego, is eighth and Laguna Beach, south of L.A., is ninth.

Rounding out the top 10, Virginia's Assateague National Seashore on Assateague Island, where wild ponies roam, is the seventh most popular.

Based on feedback from TripAdvisor travelers, 276 winning beaches were named around the globe. Top 10 Beaches in the World (the USA's best showing was No. 15 on this list, with Ka'anapali, says TripAdvisor spokesman Brooke Ferencsik):

  1. Rabbit Beach, Lampedusa, Italy
  2. Grace Bay, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos
  3. Whitehaven Beach, Airlie Beach, Australia
  4. Baia do Sancho, Fernando de Noronha, Brazil
  5. Flamenco Beach, Culebra, Puerto Rico
  6. Playa de las Catedrales, Ribadeo, Spain
  7. Lopes Mendes Beach, Ilha Grande, Brazil
  8. Horseshoe Bay Beach, Southampton Parish, Bermuda
  9. Eagle Beach, Aruba
  10. Rhossili Bay, Swansea, Wales

Check out the lists on TripAdvisor's site. What do you think, readers? What's your favorite beach?

Which state boasts the best beaches? Hawaii has the No. 1, but the answer is Florida, according to the top 25 in TripAdvisor's 2013 Travelers' Choice Beaches Awards, announced today.

Source: USA Today, includes a photo gallery of American Beaches

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