Hit the Beach
Breathtaking Beaches - Forbes.com
For most beach-goers, assessing a beach is simple. Is the sand good for castle construction? Is ice cream readily available? Is the water warm and relatively jellyfish-free? If not, no problem–there are plenty of other beaches in the sea.
But what about a truly special beach? One with unique physical features–such as sand comprised of tiny, star-shaped shells or a stunning mountain backdrop–where the water is superclean and the sand isn’t in danger of vanishing because solid environmental management policies are in place? And let’s not forget the opportunity to swim with dolphins, snorkel over barrier reefs and spot birds and other local wildlife.
Such havens do indeed exist. To pinpoint some of them for our annual list of the great beaches around the world, we turned to the Clean Beaches Council, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit organization that runs the Blue Wave beach program in the U.S.