UK Travel Blog

During the Summer, millions of Britons flock to the beaches, but if you want a quiet beach without horeds of families, where do you go?

According to the Guardian at least, there are several options and not all of them are in completely remote parts of the UK. Here we’ve listed the top 10 beaches where you should be able to stroll without tripping over sandcastles all the time.

1) Luskentyre Beach on the Isle of Harris has some of the best looking sand anywhere in the country and if the weather were a little warmer, you’d swear you were in the Maldives – minus the palm trees.

Surrounded by windswept dunes and the occasional wild orchid, about the only moving creature you’ll see on the beach at most times of day are a few starfish and maybe the odd pony. The wide beach would put many more popular ones to shame, and contrary to popular belief it does get it’s fair share of sunshine.

2) Great Bay beach on St Martins in the Scilly Isles is not as wide as Luskentyre Beach, but surprisingly for an area which is popular with tourists, the beach is often fairly deserted. One big advantage Great Bay has over most other beaches is the weather which being located well off the Cornish coast enables it to have plenty of sunshine.

3) Oldshoremore in Sutherland, is another northern Scottish beach with loads of room for your beach towel and on a sunny day quite a good place to let the kids run around. The beach gently slopes into the sea and is surrounded by a cove for extra protection from the wind.

Finding the beach could be a little bit of a challenge as it’s up an unclassified road – the B801 – close to Kinlochbervie on the far north west of Scotland, but that’s also what makes it ideal as a very quiet beach.

4) Porthcurno in Cornwall is a small beach enclosed in an alcove of steep rocks and really shouldn’t be that quiet, but possibly because of its size or remoteness the beach doesn’t seem to get too busy.

Very close to the beach is the Minack Theatre which is literally carved out of the rock and offers probably the best backdrop to plays anywhere in the world!

Be careful if you’re digging sandcastles as somewhere under the beach is one of the major fibre-optic cables connecting the UK to Europe. Break that and quite a large chunk of the UK won’t be able to access Facebook.

5) Barafundle Bay in Pembrokeshire, South Wales, is almost a rectangular beach sheltered by high cliffs on each side and pine trees behind. The beach is only accessible after a half mile walk from the car park, which possibly explains why it gets fewer visitors than you would normally expect, but those making the effort will be very well rewarded.

The beach is however not recommended for those with walking difficulties as there are quite a number of steps from the cliff and absolutely no facilities on the beach, but that also means no ice cream vans cluttering the view. As Pembrokeshire has some of the highest sunshine rates in Britain, you should have a very nice day out.

6) Bamburgh Beach in Northumberland is possibly one of the biggest beaches anywhere, with mile upon mile of golden sands. The shear size of the beach combined with the North East of England not yet being a mass haven for tourists means you’ll always have room to run around or put the beach towel down.

As well as the beach, there’s also Bamburgh Beach right on the coastline offering a spectacular backdrop to the sandy dunes.

7) Brancaster Beach in Norfolk is owned by the National Trust and designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It might not be quite as wide as some, but the reeds offer a nice shelter and the beach is very flat and very popular in the early mornings with dog walkers. However any other time of day, it is pretty much deserted.

8) Oxwich Bay on the Gower Peninsula seems to be very popular around August time, but generally not that populated the rest of the year. It is one of those beaches which seems to curve off into the distance whichever direction you look – rather romantic.

Very flat with scrub-lands behind the beach offering shelter and one of the few which has quite a number of tourist type facilities. The beach is so long that you should find some space even during busy periods, especially towards the edges and away from the Oxwich Bay hotel.

9) Lannacombe in South Hams is quite a narrow beach, but if you’re looking for somewhere not too crowded this is a good choice. There is free car parking very close to the beach.

10) Portstewart Strand Beach in Northern Ireland is another owned by the National Trust. It is situated close to Portstewart, Portrush and Coleraine on the north Irish coastline, and ideal for surfing, swimming, horse riding or just wandering down the beach. Recent developments may attract more visitors in the future, but currently the hoards don’t seem to have found this area, yet.

Conclusion: Hopefully we’ve given you inspiration if you’re wanting a romantic stroll or just getting away from the city for a weekend break. Whatever you want, these beaches should give you that relaxing experience without all the kids, sandcastles and windbreakers.

Links related to this article:
Original Guardian quiet beach list (although lacking in any real details)
Hotel and B&Bs around all Britain
British self-catering cottages
Days out around Britain
Campsites and caravan parks in the UK