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Look, Australia, it’s no state secret that our island home has some bloody delectable beaches on offer. About 12,000 of them actually, to be exact. But out of that 12,000 (fun fact: it would take you 32 years to splash around in them all), a singular beach has been crowned by Big Seven Travel as the nation's best beach, and it also ranks second in the whole entire world.
Turquoise Bay in Exmouth, Western Australia has taken the sandy cake as the world’s (almost) best beach, with its brilliant azure waters, pure white sand and proximity to the wild beauty of Ningaloo Reef making it a worthy pick for international beachy recognition.
Also, it should be noted that Australia hasn't always been second best. Last year, Whitehaven Beach in the Whitsundays won the coveted global top spot, while this year it’s been ranked eleventh. NSW also scored a pretty epic mention on this year’s best beaches list, with Hyams Beach in Jervis Bay coming in hot at a very honourable number 18.
Before you ask how exactly something this subjective gets decided, Big Seven has an answer. Its incredibly diverse list (that includes a legitimately pink beach in the Greek Islands and a sea turtle paradise in Mozambique) is the product of aggregated scores from previous results, official Blue Flag locations, social media and contributions from their own varied travel team.
That being said, the absolute best beach in the world in 2022 (according to them) is Playa Conchal in Costa Rica – a pristine tropical cove covered in tiny crushed seashells, whose clear turquoise water, eco-friendly ethos and staggering biodiversity have all meant that this year, they deserve to take the prize.