Florida has 8 of the best beaches in the U.S., survey says — but Cuba ranked higher
Florida beaches are among the best in the United States — so says TripAdvisor’s just-released Travelers’ Choice Awards.
As if we didn’t know that already. But it’s still nice to hear.
Florida scored six of the Top 10 beaches with two more making the Top 25 to boast eight winners.
The absolute best, according to the travel site, which based its rankings on quantity and quality of reader reviews on TripAdvisor, was Clearwater Beach. “This is a stunning beach with sugar sand,” the site said.
The Pinellas County beach was no stranger to the accolade as it topped the list in 2016, The Orlando Sentinel reported. Last year’s winner, Siesta Beach near Sarasota, dropped to No. 2.
South Florida beaches were also well represented, with Top 10 placements for South Beach (No. 4), Fort Lauderdale Beach (No. 6) and Hollywood Beach (No. 8).
South Beach’s reviews ranged from “crazy good” because of the ample people watching, the nearby shops and boutique hotels to more of a lure for college kids. “Not really for families.”
Tourists loved SoBe so much, a little thing like Hurricane Irma in September didn’t keep them off Ocean Drive for long.
St. Pete Beach (No. 7), Panama City Beach (No. 11) and Fort Myers Beach (No. 14) were Florida’s other U.S. winners.
When you take a global view, Florida falls out of favor by comparison, with only Clearwater Beach making the world’s Top 25 at No. 7.
TripAdvisor’s pick for the world’s best beaches: Grace Bay in Turks and Caicos was No. 1. “Straight out of a postcard.”
Rounding out the world’s Top 5: Baia Do Sancho in Brazil, Varadero Beach in Cuba (“beautiful blue water…lot of sea animals to see…just watch for the jelly fish”), Eagle Beach in Aruba and Seven Mile Beach in Grand Cayman.
Follow @HowardCohen
This story was originally published February 22, 2018 at 1:48 PM with the headline "Florida has 8 of the best beaches in the U.S., survey says — but Cuba ranked higher."