10 Best Beaches in Barbados

Pebbles Beach is a welcoming beach with soft sands and gentle waves that make it a perfect destination for swimmers and families, and it offers opportunities for diving. Most people visit this beach to relax with a lovely stroll or spend some time in the calm waters.

If you're looking for a bit of adventure, you can travel out into Carlisle Bay, which is home to 6 different shipwrecks. If you're not up for diving, a bit of snorkelling can offer valuable insight into the underwater world as well. You'll find this beach just south of Bridgetown.

Bathsheba Beach is known primarily for the Soup Bowl, which is an area with premier surfing waves, but you'll also find breathtaking rock formations here. The Soup Bowl is popular enough that it draws in surfers from all over the world to surf its foamy waters.

If you're a photographer or just want to spruce up your Instagram feed, this beach offers plenty of photo opportunities with striking geological formations. In fact, some of the rocks have small buildings constructed right on top. You can see it all for yourself on the east side of the island in Saint Joseph.

Dover Beach is home to an array of watersports you can enjoy, thanks to its sheer size, friendly waters, and plentiful equipment available nearby. Sailboats and water scooters are quite common here, and you'll find charters and rentals that make it all more accessible than ever before.

While this beach doesn't exactly have strong currents, it's still relatively active, so they've put lifeguards in the area to ensure everyone's safety. Of course, when you're not boogie boarding or windsurfing, you can just relax on the soft sands. You'll find this beach in St. Lawrence Gap along the southern coast.

Crane Beach is one of the most popular beaches on the island, sporting iconic pink sand and plenty of opportunities for relaxing, boogie boarding, and cliff jumping. The pink hue that makes this beach stand out comes from the thousands of tiny coral and shell bits that are spread throughout the sand.

At the beach, you'll find some pretty intense waves perfect for boogie boarding, but not quite at the level you need for surfing. You can also jump off the nearby cliffs into the water for a satisfying adrenaline rush. Just make sure you have the strength and skill to swim back. You'll find this beach on the southeast side of the island.

Bottom Bay Beach is a relatively hidden and unknown beach that sees low traffic and offers plenty of space, relaxing solitude, and photo opportunities. Hidden amongst cliffs, the golden-white sand of this beach is perfect if you're looking for a beach to take it easy without noise or distractions.

Keep in mind that some surfers come to this beach during high waves, and it's generally not a good idea to swim here due to the difficult conditions. No lifeguards are on duty, either. If you just want to stay on shore, however, it's one of the best destinations on the island. This beach is located on the island's southeastern shore.

Browne’s Beach is one of the largest and most popular beaches on the entire island, and you'll find plenty of fun here, like swimming, diving, and relaxing. The waters are relatively calm and are patrolled by lifeguards, so you and your little ones can go for a swim with peace of mind.

A variety of activities can be found at this beach, with diving being especially popular. Several shipwrecks are settled at the floor of the bay, and you'll also find starfish, seahorses, and an array of tropical fish when venturing underwater. This beach is located just south of Bridgetown at the island's southwestern corner.

Silver Sands Beach is a lovely destination with waves perfect for watersports and plenty of soft sand and natural spaces good for picnics and relaxation. Kitesurfing and windsurfing are especially common here, and this beach is globally recognised as a top location for these sports.

If you're looking to relax, you'll find plenty of benches and shade at the beach. The small play park here also has a playground for little ones to run around on, and the gazebo has WiFi, so you can stay connected. You can visit this beach on the southern shore of the island.

Miami Beach has a bit of everything you'd want from a traditional beach experience, including room to swim or ride a board and great spots for a bite to eat. On the beach's west side, you'll find calm waters perfect for swimming for children and adults alike. Meanwhile, the east side gets some stronger waves suitable for boogie boarding.

If you get hungry, be sure to check out the local food vendors. Mobile snack bars offering fish cakes and hot dogs are around virtually all the time. You can even sit at on-site picnic benches in the shade. This beach is located in between Oistins and Freights Bay on the southern coast.

Brandons Beach is a quiet and relaxing beach on the outskirts of Barbados's capital city where you'll find opportunities to swim and relax. It takes a bit of a walk from the city to reach this beach, but the walk offers scenic views of the coast and is easily traversable by the whole family.

At the beach itself, the calm waters make it a popular spot for swimming, but the distance between it and Bridgetown compared to other local beaches ensures that it's never too crowded. Plus, you'll find picnic tables with shade here, so you can enjoy a snack. You'll find this beach northwest of city centre Bridgetown.

Mullins Beach is one of the most popular spots on the West Coast with its soft sands, swimming areas, and opportunities for high-speed boating. The beach has a roped-off area where you can go for a swim in waters that are safe enough for kids.

If you're looking for a bit more adventure, you can rent a water scooter and take to the waters just outside this beach. Alternatively, kayaking and boating of virtually any kind are common here. You can experience it all for yourself on the island's western coast in southwestern Saint Peter.