Australians are aware that we're blessed with the most beautiful beaches in the world, but it's nice when the international community affirms what we knew in our hearts all along. Global travel platform Tripadvisor has given us the official crown, with the Whitsundays' Whitehaven Beach taking out the number one spot for 2021 in its annual list of the best beaches on the planet.
Protected by national park and situated in the heart of the Great Barrier Reef, it's no surprise that the pristine Far-North Queensland shoreline took out the top spot (it did in 2013, too). Turquoise Bay in Exmouth, Western Australia made the list too, coming in at number six. Now that interstate travel is open, it's time they both found a spot on your travel hit-list.
If you're dreaming of further-flung beaches, Cuba's Santa Maria Beach came in second, while Baia do Sancho in Brazil took out the third spot. Grace Bay Beach in Turks and Caicos Islands came in fourth, and Florida's Saint Pete Beach was named the fifth best beach in the world. Eagle Beach in Aruba, Spiaggia dei Conigli in Lampedusa, Italy, Ka'anapali Beach in Hawaii and Baía dos Golfinhos in Brazil rounded out the top ten.
(Oh, and check out our own ranking of the world’s most beautiful beaches right here.)
The list was whittled down to its final form as part of Tripadvisor's Traveller's Choice Awards, which compares user reviews and ratings on the site, as well as how often users bookmark a page to come back to later.