Although some Sydney beaches are more than a little over-hyped (we’re not saying names), there are a few coastal numbers that exist within our Emerald City that are absolutely and inarguably stunning. And now, it looks like it’s not just us who think so.
TripAdvisor has just announced the winners of their Traveller’s Choice Best of the Best Beaches Awards for 2023, and Sydney (and Australia, for that matter) has made a notable appearance in both in their list of the ‘25 Best Beaches in the World’ and in their ‘Top 10 Beaches in the South Pacific’ lists for 2023.
This ain’t no drill. TripAdvisor decided the verdict through analysing tens of millions of user reviews gathered through their platform over a 12 month period, with data drawn from Africa, Asia, South America, the Caribbean, Mexico, Europe, the United States and, (of course) Australia.
In their list of the ‘25 Best Beaches in the World’, Sydney’s very own Manly Beach got ranked as number 13 out of the 25 options selected worldwide. While this may be due to the saturation of visitors in Manly versus a secret secluded beach somewhere in Western Australia, we still feel good about it. Manly is one of the few places in Sydney that manages to perfectly balance pristine natural beauty with the calm bustle of a small, creative city, and we’re pretty proud that it’s made the cut. Australia also got a good rep in the ‘25 Best Beaches in the World’, with Cable Beach in Broome getting ranked as the third best beach in the world (according to TripAdvisor, that is).
We had a crack at our own sandy list: check out our ranking of Sydney's 50 best beaches.
In first place for 2023’s best beaches in the world list was Baia do Sancho, a remote beach on an island off the coast of Brazil, with it taking out the top spot for its seclusion, perfect turquoise waters, and abundance of wildlife. Makes sense.
However, if we are bringing it a little closer to home, the travel gods also released a list of the ‘Top 10 Beaches in the South Pacific’, and this time, Australia delivered in full, true blue force with a wild seven places. This time, Manly took out second place as the best beach in the South Pacific, while Cable Beach was ranked number one.
Other Aussie beaches that made the cut were: Emily Bay in Norfolk Island, Mooloolaba Beach in Queensland, Four Mile Beach in Port Douglas, Whitehaven Beach in the Whitsundays, and, (what was once voted second-best beach in the world) Turquoise Bay in Exmouth, WA.
Not bad, Australia. We’ve clearly still got it.
Check out the full ranked list of winners below.
TripAdvisor’s Top 15 Best Beaches in the World 2023:
- Baia do Sancho, Brazil
- Eagle Beach, Aruba
- Cable Beach, Australia
- Reynisfjara Beach, Iceland
- Grace Bay Beach, Turks and Caicos
- Praia da Falésia, Portugal
- Radhanagar Beach, India
- Spiaggia dei Conigli, Italy
- Varadero Beach, Cuba
- Ka'anapali Beach, Hawaii
- Siesta Beach, Florida, USA
- Driftwood Beach, Georgia, USA
- Manly Beach, Sydney, Australia
TripAdvisor’s Top 10 Best Beaches in the South Pacific:
- Cable Beach, Broome, WA, Australia
- Manly Beach, Sydney, NSW, Australia
- Emily Bay, Norfolk Island, Australia
- Mooloolaba Beach, Mooloolaba, Qld, Australia
- Matira Beach, Society Island, Bora Bora, French Polynesia
- Four Mile Beach, Port Douglas, Qld, Australia
- Whitehaven Beach, Whitsunday Island, Qld, Australia
- Tahunanui Beach, Nelson, New Zealand
- Turquoise Bay, Exmouth, WA, Australia
- Natadola Beach, Sigatoka, Fiji
If you’re looking for more travel inspiration, head over and check out the full list of TripAdvisor’s traveller’s choice 25 best beaches for 2023.