Wales just won the beach beauty contest. In Condé Nast Traveller's 2026 Readers' Choice Awards, Llanddwyn Beach on Anglesey took the number one spot in the UK, with Newborough (6th), Tenby South (4th), Barafundle Bay (11th) and Rhossili Bay (14th) rounding out a five-strong Welsh showing that beat the usual Cornish and Scottish favourites.

The timing makes sense. This summer was Wales' hottest and driest on record, the Irish Sea was warmer than usual, and hotel searches jumped 65 per cent year on year. There's also a unifying perk most countries can't match: the 870-mile Wales Coast Path threads all these beaches together, so walking can be part of the holiday rather than a separate trip.

Llanddwyn, the new number one, sits on Anglesey's southern tip, a big dune-backed sweep of sand leading to the tidal island of Ynys Llanddwyn with its lighthouse and 16th-century ruined chapel tied to St Dwynwen, the Welsh patron saint of lovers. Go at low tide to see grey seals hauled out on the rocks, and stay for sunset. Nearby Newborough Beach stretches three and a half miles along the edge of a national nature reserve, with a waymarked 4.4-mile Saint, Sand and Sea Trail looping from pine forest to the island — keep binoculars handy for red squirrels and wading birds. Fair warning for swimmers: even in summer the water sits around 15°C.

Down in Pembrokeshire, Tenby South is classic seaside — a mile-and-a-half of sand starting by St Catherine's Island and its Napoleonic fortress, with pastel Georgian houses above and views to Caldey Island, still home to a handful of Cistercian monks. Barafundle Bay, a half-hour cliff walk from Stackpole Quay, is the postcard one: creamy sand and turquoise water framed by limestone cliffs. It gets busy in peak summer, so aim midweek or out of season.

On the Gower Peninsula near Swansea, Rhossili Bay runs three miles and rewards low tide with the exposed ribs of the Helvetia, a ship wrecked in 1887, plus rockpools and decent surf at the northern end. Walk out to Worm's Head only within about two and a half hours either side of low tide, and you may spot puffins, razorbills and even porpoises offshore.

Why it matters: for anyone put off by Mediterranean prices or crowded overseas hotspots, these five beaches offer big coastal scenery, proper food (mussel cawl, hand-dived scallops, Welsh lamb) and characterful stays, from forest cabins to a Gothic country house at Penally Abbey — all reachable within a few hours of most UK cities.