This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Bethany Stevens . It has been edited for length and clarity.
05.02.2025 - 15:21 / lonelyplanet.com
Feb 5, 2025 • 8 min read
The playa (beach) has near-holy status in Spain, a country hemmed by some 8000km (5000 miles) of coastline that canters from tiny pine-clasped rocky cove to dune-rippled beach, glitzy Mediterranean harbor and surf-smashed Atlantic bay without breaking a sweat. Toss in crazily pretty cliff-top villages so white they make you blink, chiringuitos (beach bars) where mojitos are paired with sunsets that pop, and tiny tapas bars grilling up freshly caught seafood, and you are looking at a country that doesn’t just go to the beach, but lives and breathes it.
We’ve toured the country from the rugged north to the sultry south to bring you our Spanish beach faves. But venture even slightly off-piste and you’re bound to find your own, too.
Best for barefoot bliss
A long arc of sugar-white sand fizzing into a startlingly turquoise sea, Platja Illetes is pinch-yourself beautiful. Caribbean-like? You bet. But there’s no need for the long-haul flight – you can reach Formentera on a half-hour ferry crossing from neighboring Ibiza. The beach makes up the western section of the Trucador Peninsula. Just offshore, you’ll spy two illetes (islets), Pouet and Rodona, which give the beach its name.
Local tip: Dodge peak summer season when Ibiza daytrippers hog the sand space. Visit in late spring or early autumn instead.
Best beach for wild beauty
Arcing east of Almería province on the sun-scorched southeastern coast of Andalucía, the Parque Natural de Cabo de Gata-Níjar hides some of Spain’s most wildly beautiful and uncrowded beaches. Coves make deep thumbprints between towering cliffs, and ravines plunge down to pristine sands, eroded lava rocks and dune-wisped bays. One of the loveliest of the lot is Playa San Pedro, a swoon-worthy stretch of sand backed by verdant scrubland and the crumbling ruins of a 16th-century castle. Reach it on foot or by boat from Las Negras.
Best family beach
A tiny notch on the map on Menorca’s southwest coast, Cala Macarella makes first-time beachgoers gasp out loud. Wedged in among cliffs brushed with fragrant pines and holm oaks, this perfect-looking half-moon of fine white sand slides into azure water as crystal-clear as a goldfish bowl. The secret about this playa is out, however, and it gets rammed in summer. Come bright and early or in the rosy glow of sunset for a quieter vibe. You can reach the cove by boat, or walk about 1.5km/0.8 miles (25 minutes) from the nearest car park.
Detour: If you think Cala Macarella is gorgeous, just wait until you clap eyes on Cala Macarelleta, reached by heading up and over the cliffs and through the pines.
Best beach for rocky drama
If you fancy worshipping at the altar of the beach gods, Praia as Catedrais in Galicia is
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Bethany Stevens . It has been edited for length and clarity.
Feb 6, 2025 • 11 min read
Feb 6, 2025 • 12 min read
Feb 5, 2025 • 11 min read
First came the coronavirus pandemic. Then came so-called "revenge travel." Now, it seems like the mad dash to Europe is an annual phenomenon that's here to stay.
IHG is planting new roots in Peru with the reflagging of Iberostar Selection Miraflores as the soon-to-reopen Souma Hotel Lima. The property will stand as part of IHG's Vignette Collection, made up of "one-of-a-kind hotels" that "each has its own story and outlook to share."
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"New Orleans is a city of mood,” chef Serigne Mbaye tells me one Wednesday morning in September. We've been discussing the merits of Parkway's po'boys and the old-school kitchen at Commander's Palace. While growing up in Senegal and New York City, Mbaye cooked with his mother, and his Uptown restaurant, Dakar NOLA, braids his memories of this time with his haute restaurant experiences and the deep-rooted African heritage of New Orleans.
Feb 4, 2025 • 5 min read
Feb 4, 2025 • 8 min read
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Stephen and Joanna Vargha, a married couple who moved from North Carolina to Cuenca, Ecuador, in 2020 after retiring early. Cuenca is located in the Andes mountains and has a population of about 600,000 people. Their interview has been edited for length and clarity.