WHITESANDS: The only Welsh beach named among the world’s 50 best

Whitesands has been named among the 50 best beaches in the world, the only beach in Wales to make the list.

The beach near St Davids sits at number 31 in the annual ranking from travel site Big 7 Travel, now in its eighth year.

The list’s compilers praised the rolling surf foaming onto Whitesands’ golden sands, and the rugged cliffs that make it “a favoured spot for families, hikers, and surfers alike”.

On a clear summer’s day, they said, the sea views can rival any beach in the world.

The site says its ranking draws on media coverage, Blue Flag awards, social media buzz and its own editorial team’s judgement.

Whitesands is in illustrious company. The world top spot went to Anse Source d’Argent in the Seychelles, with beaches in the Philippines, Indonesia, Barbados and the Cook Islands completing the top five.

Three other beaches from Britain and Ireland make the fifty, all ranked higher: Porthcurno in Cornwall at nine, Luskentyre on Scotland’s Isle of Harris at 11, and Keem Beach on Ireland’s Achill Island at 14.

But none of Wales’s other famous names appear. There is no Rhossili, no Three Cliffs, no Barafundle: Whitesands carries the Welsh flag alone.

The region’s beaches are no strangers to world rankings. Three Cliffs Bay has previously featured in the Telegraph’s list of the world’s best beaches, and holds a near-perfect visitor rating on Tripadvisor.

Whitesands is a list regular too. Last summer it was named in the Times and Sunday Times Best Beaches Guide alongside Three Cliffs Bay and Saundersfoot.

The Times called it “a timeless, spiritual location” then, a nod to the beach’s historical links with Saint Patrick’s departure for Ireland.

Whitesands sits at the foot of Carn Llidi on the St Davids peninsula, with seasonal lifeguards, a beach café and the Pembrokeshire Coast Path running behind it, and has long been a favourite with surfers.

For the compilers, the British and Irish entries prove the point made in Whitesands’ own citation: tropical weather is not a requirement for a world-class beach, even if the Welsh entry looks its wildest in winter.

The full fifty runs from volcanic black sand in Iceland to penguin colonies in South Africa, with entries on every continent bar Antarctica.

For Pembrokeshire, it is another line in a long habit of collecting accolades. For anyone within driving distance, the world’s 31st best beach is a day trip.