Calm water is ideal for popular beach activities like snorkelling or collecting sand-caked seashells, and it’s also much safer for children to explore.

Hawaiianislands.com has analysed millions of publicly available reviews on Tripadvisor for the top 500 beaches in America and the top 100 beaches in each country around the world. Additionally, they calculated the proportion of reviews from English-speaking travellers that included the words “calm water/s” in order to uncover the beaches with the calmest waters.

In Europe, six out of 10 of the continent’s beaches with the calmest water are in Greece, with Marathi Beach in Crete taking the lead with 16.17 percent of reviews mentioning its calm water.

Outside of Greece, Portuguese and Spanish Beaches make the cut. Portugal’s top beach for calm water is Foz de Arelho Beach (Lagoon) in Foz do Arelho, Leria District (9.60 percent of reviews), situated on the side of a calm lagoon that’s fed by the Atlantic Ocean.

The Top 10 European Beaches with the Calmest Waters:

  1. Marathi Beach, Crete, Greece
  2. Foz do Arelho Beach (Lagoon), Foz do Arelho, Leiria District, Portugal
  3. Lefkos Beach, Lefkos, Greece
  4. Praia Grande, Ferragudo, Algarve, Portugal
  5. Damnoni Beach, Plakias, Crete, Greece
  6. Mikri Vigla Beach, Naxos, Greece
  7. Glystra Beach, Rhodes, Greece
  8. Playa Flamingo, Playa Blanca, Lanzarote, Spain
  9. Playa de las Teresitas, Santa Cruz, Tenerife, Spain
  10. Kolymbithres Beach, Paros, Cyclades, Greece

Portuguese beaches are some of the most beautiful on the planet. Bordered by the Atlantic Ocean, Portugal’s beaches are electric and change conditions throughout the year, however, the beaches with the calmest waters, according to tourists are Foz do Arelho Beach (Lagoon), Foz do Arelho, in the Leiria District and Praia Grande, Ferragudo, in the Algarve.

Author

A journalist that’s always eager to learn about new things. With a passion for travel, adventure and writing about this diverse world of ours.

“Wisdom begins in wonder” -  Socrates

Kate Sreenarong