Skip the Crowds: Ten Quiet Beaches Worth the Effort This Summer

Summer wants sun, sand, and surf. What it doesn’t need is you sharing a towel-width of space with three hundred strangers and a portable speaker. If what you’re after is quiet water and that small rush you get from finding somewhere most people never bother to reach, read on. I’ve pieced this list together from years of wrong turns, tips off local fishermen, and a few trails that were steeper than the guidebooks let on. Ten beaches, all of them a little hard to get to, all of them worth it. Bring your walking shoes and a decent attitude, and leave the crowds where you found them.

1. Navagio Beach (Shipwreck Beach), Zakynthos, Greece

Yes, Navagio is famous. Everyone’s seen the photo. The trick is when you show up. You can only reach the cove by boat, either from Porto Vromi or Anafonitria, and once you’re there you’ve got a rusting smuggler’s shipwreck sitting on white sand with impossibly turquoise water around it. Come at dawn or in the late afternoon and you’ll have the place close to yourself. Don’t skip the clifftop viewpoint above either — it’s the shot you actually came for. And book a small private boat instead of one of the big cruises. Honestly, it makes all the difference to how quiet it feels.

2. Playa de las Catedrales, Ribadeo, Spain

The name comes from the rock arches, which really do look like cathedral vaults once you’re standing under them. This stretch of Galician coast is a proper geological oddity. At low tide you can wander through natural tunnels and caves the Atlantic has been carving out for who knows how long. Check the tide tables before you go — you can only get in at low tide, and in summer they cap the number of permits to protect the place. Get there early, grab your spot, and you’ll have the formations to yourself before the midday lot turn up.

3. Hidden Beach (Playa del Amor), Marietas Islands, Mexico

This one’s genuinely strange in the best way — a beach sitting inside a crater, reached by a short swim through a water tunnel out at the Marietas Islands. There’s a circular gap in the rock overhead that drops sunlight straight down onto the sand. You have to book a guided tour from Punta de Mita or Puerto Vallarta, and only so many people are let in each day. The snorkelling just offshore is superb, and if you can swing a weekday you’ll be in a much smaller group.

4. El Nido’s Secret Lagoon, Palawan, Philippines

Hidden behind limestone cliffs, and I mean hidden — you get in by paddling through a narrow crevice at low tide. The water inside is emerald green, and the only thing you’ll hear is birdsong. The local guides will tell you to come around 7 AM, before the tour boats show up, and they’re right. Bring a waterproof bag for your camera, because that entrance is a tight squeeze and things get wet.

5. Pasjaca Beach, Dubrovnik, Croatia

You reach Pasjaca either down a steep, rocky path or by kayak, and that’s exactly why it’s almost always empty — most people can’t be bothered. It’s a pebble beach with that clear Adriatic water you keep hearing about. Wear proper shoes for the way down, and carry your own snacks and water, because there’s nothing down there. What you get in return is a private little cove looking out at the Elaphiti Islands. And if you fancy earning it, kayak in from Cavtat.

6. Praia do Sancho, Fernando de Noronha, Brazil

Praia do Sancho turns up on plenty of “world’s best beaches” lists, and it stays quiet because it sits inside a marine national park. Getting down means climbing a ladder bolted into a cliff crevice, or hiking a trail if you’d rather. There’s a park entry fee and a daily cap on visitors, so book your permit weeks ahead if you’re going in summer. And the reason it’s worth the faff: sea turtles and spinner dolphins, often just a little way offshore.

7. Anse Source d’Argent, La Digue, Seychelles

The giant granite boulders are what everyone photographs, and the water is shallow and bath-warm. It’s a well-known beach, yet it still manages to feel tucked away, mostly because you reach it through a coconut plantation on La Digue Island. Rent a bicycle — honestly the best way to get around the island and to the beach along the plantation path. Turn up by 8 AM and you’ll have it to yourself before the day-trippers arrive.

8. Maya Bay, Koh Phi Phi, Thailand

Maya Bay was shut for years to let it recover, and it reopened in 2022 with tight visitor limits. The upside of all that? A quieter, far healthier beach than the one that got loved half to death. You have to book a set time slot through an official operator, and swimming is off-limits to protect the coral. Pair it with snorkelling at nearby Bamboo Island and make a full day of it.

9. Cala Goloritzé, Sardinia, Italy

A pebble beach under a dramatic limestone arch, and it’s a 45-minute walk from the parking area. Nothing brutal, but a proper hike — and at the end of it, clear water that’s made for swimming and hardly anyone around. No motorised boats are allowed here, which is a big part of why it stays so calm. Take sturdy footwear and more water than you think you’ll need; the trail bakes in summer. Get there before 9 AM to claim a patch, because the beach itself is small.

10. Secret Beach, Kauai, Hawaii, USA

Over near Kilauea, this one hides behind a cliff and you get to it down a steep, muddy trail. Golden sand, turquoise water, and, most days, nobody. Check the conditions first — after rain the trail can be a no-go. Park at the end of a dirt road and be ready for a short, slippery scramble down. It’s one of the few spots on Kauai where you can genuinely have the whole beach to yourself.

Your Secluded Summer Checklist

  • Pack light but smart: water, snacks, reef-safe sunscreen, and a waterproof bag are the non-negotiables.
  • Respect local rules: a lot of these beaches are protected, so follow the guidelines and help keep them that way.
  • Go early or late: sunrise and dusk are when you’ll get the place to yourself.
  • Leave no trace: whatever you carry in, carry back out.

These ten beaches give you more than a swim. They’re the kind of places you have to work a little to reach, which is precisely why they stick with you afterwards. Kayaking into a sea cave in Croatia, scrambling down to a cliffside cove in Hawaii — the effort is the point, and the payoff is water and quiet you won’t find on the postcard beaches. So this summer, skip the packed shoreline. Grab the sunscreen, lace up the shoes, and go find yourself a bit of coast that feels like it’s yours alone.