Beaches in the Americas

Frigate Bay is actually an isthmus with the rough Atlantic Ocean to the north and the calmer Caribbean Sea to the south. It's here at South Frigate Bay you find the most popular beach on St Kitts. It’s a narrow slice of grey sand backed by bars and food shacks, known as The Strip. During daytime the beach is crowded with sun lovers, but at night time The Strip turns into St Kitts’ rowdiest party scene - which, to be honest, isn’t that crazy. But the happy drinking scene is drawing in tourists and locals in equal numbers.

Beach Chastanet lies in a sheltered bay enclosed by high cliffs on three sides. The short drive from Soufriere is rough, but fun if you don't mind potholes, hairpin turns, and steep hills. Like Sugar Beach, Chastanet Beach stretch out right in front of a hotel and are used as the hotel's private beach, but just remember all beaches in St. Lucia are public, so anyone is welcome to use it.

Sandy beach is more for wind- and kitesurfer, than honeymooning beach strollers. Long, windy, and rough with choppy waters without any facilities.

Probably the most pretty beach on St. Lucia is Sugar Beach, set right between the two pitons. The beach is right infront of the luxurious hotel Sugar Beach (Jalouise Plantation), but since all beaches on St. Lucia are public, anyone can enjoy it. The sand is sugar-white and apparently imported from Guyana. The water is equally perfect, crystal clear and calm.

The island of Bequia (pronounced 'beck-way') is very much the ideal picture of the Caribbean. A small green and rugged island with a beautiful turquoise bay studded with yachts anchored and an even larger cruise ship further out. The coast is dotted with sandy beaches lined with shady trees with a few restaurants here end there. Port Elizabeth, the only town on Bequia, is sleepy with a cluster of cafes, fruit shacks, and the occasional souvenir stands for the cruise tourists. A wonderful narrow boardwalk follows the shore and connects Port Elizabeth to the string of beaches to the south, so you don't have to take the hilly back road. Several ferries makes the one hour journey between Bequia and Kingstown every day, making Bequia a perfect daytrip from St. Vincent.

Suriname doesn’t have many beaches and the few they have are not necessarily pretty. A few kilometers outside Nieuw Nickerie lies Corantijnstrand Beach, which is a serious candidate as the most unattractive beach ever. It’s no more than tiny patch of dark sand with some breakwater boulders and murky choppy water. Anywhere else in the world this would not qualify as a beach.

The northwestern side of Tobago is studded with beautiful bays with long sandy beaches. Some beaches are developed and have facilities – as they call it here – i.e. snack bars and toilets, while others are pretty close to deserted. Rent a car or scooter and take a trip along the coast and just pick the beach you like most.

The photo gallery will show you all the beaches: Pigeon Point Beach, Buccoo Bay Beach, Grange Beach, Stonehaven Bay Beach, Turtle Beach, Englishman's Bay Beach, Parlatuvier Bay Beach, Bloody Bay Beach.

By being only 45 minutes drive away from the capital, Maracas Bay is where people from Port of Spain go if they want to the beach. The long and sandy beach lies beautiful on a backdrop of green mountains. It's lined with palms and almost as many snack huts, who serve up the famous shark and bake sandwish. There are sweeping views over the bay when comning in from Port of Spain.

Trinidad is not Tobago when it comes to beaches. Tobago is blessed with bounty beaches with white sand and aquamarine waters. On Trinidad you can expect beaches with brown sand, murky choppy waters, and trash as they are mostly used by fishermen. And the long wide beach at Mayaro is no different. There are a couple of resorts on the south side of Mayaro town, but none will impress architecturally.

At the Western end of Tobago, only a few kilometres from the airport, lies Tobago's most famous beach, Pigeon Point. This private beach (you have to pay an entrance fee to get in) is crowded and has a package-holiday feel to it. There are bars and restaurants and it is the place from where many boat trips leave. Also part of this beach is the water sports centre of the island with loads of wind and kite surfers. If you don’t like the crowds, it just takes a stroll of a few 100 metres to get away from it all or you can just walk to Pigeon Point by the beaches leading up to it. Here are also beautiful stretches of small palm-tree filled beaches where you will be pretty much alone.