Rhossili Bay, on the Gower near Swansea in South Wales, is the beach Tripadvisor has twice ranked as Britain's best. The holiday rating site has also named it the third-best beach in Europe and the ninth-best in the world – and it is not in England at all.
Deputy Audience Editor Alex Evans, who is Welsh and has family roots in South Wales, went to experience it for himself and was not expecting what he found. He described the result as breathtaking.
A hidden gem on the Gower Peninsula
Right at the western end of the Gower Peninsula, the bay has soft sand that stretches for miles. Standing on the cliffs above, you can see huge expanses of golden sand and sparkling blue water lapping at the shoreline.
It is a hidden gem in every sense. The beach is little known as a top UK destination and is tucked away along long, winding Swansea country lanes. Driving down high-hedged, single-carriageway B-roads, Evans said it felt like driving to nowhere – until a corner revealed a cliff edge and a massive beach.
What to expect at the top and on the sand
At the summit, there is an ice cream parlour, a pub and public toilets, along with a big set of stairs down to the beach. For those who stay up top, there are views along the Welsh coast and a sunflower farm where you can pay a few pounds to pick your own sunflower and take it home.
The beach itself is what people come for. It has so much space and so few people that it seems to be a place most visitors have not realised exists. When the tide is out, sunbathing spots are easy to find, with almost no crowds and acres of space. Some parts of the sand are a little pebbly or gritty, but there is plenty of good beach overall.
Worm's Head and the tides
Nearby is Worm's Head, a tidal island just off the beach and the most westerly point of the Gower Peninsula. Named for a sea serpent, the headland is only 200 yards wide at its narrowest point.
It is accessible on foot for two and a half hours either side of low tide. Outside those hours, warning signs say reaching it can be fatal, and beach managers stop people trying to cross.
An under-visited, unusual spot
In all, it is a stunning, fascinating and unusual place with plenty to see – and next to nobody there to get in the way. Compared with most tourist-heavy beaches in the UK, the spot is severely under-visited.
