Europe best family-friendly beaches, ranked

Yahoo

03-07-2025

Picking a favourite beach is a tricky decision for anyone, but add children to the mix and you have a truly mammoth task on your hands. According to a recent survey, nearly half of us fancy a beach holiday this summer – but one family's dream beach can be another's idea of hell.
It pays to know your tribe. Does your gang hop between rocks, nets aloft, searching for critters? Do you shoot through the waves on bodyboards; splash safely in the shallows; glide serenely on paddleboards; or simply sprawl out on the sand with nothing but a good book? Or, if your family includes a recently potty-trained toddler, is it perhaps best to avoid going full-on Robinson Crusoe this year?
Fortunately, we have taken the hassle out of picking your perfect summer spot, rigorously scoring 10 of the Mediterranean's best beaches, from Blue Flag favourites to top-ranking regulars.
Whether you are after buzzy or serene, a tiny beach shack, or rows of upmarket outlets, dramatic waves or calm shallows, all you need to do is pick your family's must-haves and don't-needs, check the scores – and prepare for your perfect beach break.
Rippled pink sand connects south-west Crete to the island of Elafonisi. Loggerhead turtles come to nest and sea daffodils flower in the dunes.
This is a remote though very popular spot, with daytrippers arriving by tour bus, ferry and hire car. The main section is crammed with sunbeds in high season.
Expect a couple of snack bars, changing areas, showers and toilets but little natural shade.
The translucent lagoon waters on one side of the beach are warm and shallow, with tiny coves that are perfect for little ones to paddle in. Sea swimming is possible on the other side, though it can get windy.
Elafonisi island is a protected area, with some lovely fauna if you are prepared for a walk. Otherwise there is nothing to do but paddle and build sandcastles.
Elafonisi Resort offers doubles from £56 per night. EasyJet flies from London to Heraklion from £212 return.
Some of Greece's most famously beautiful beaches are striking slices of brilliant white set beneath sheer, chalky cliffs. This white-pebble wonder is reached by a regular, return boat service. Much easier than the 350+ steps down to rival beach Egremni, on Lefkos.
It pays to arrive by 11am to snag a sunbed, though the long, narrow strip offers room for everyone and provides a front-row view of the sea.
Unlike better-known Navagio beach in Zakynthos, there is a beach bar on Gidaki, serving snack food and drinks. If you haven't an umbrella, afternoon shade is provided by the cliffs. Keep in mind there are no toilets.
This bay shelves gradually and gets deep enough for a swim through beautiful shades of teal. It is very calm and not prone to the waves common at Myrtos, a similar beach in Kefalonia, though jelly shoes are required to walk on the pretty white pebbles.
Children are left to their own devices, collecting pebbles, building towers, skimming stones and snorkelling. The boat ride here is good fun and children will find the final approach towards the cliffs exciting.
Hotel Omirikon offers doubles from £70 per night. Ryanair flies from London to Kefalonia from £156 return. Daily ferries run from Kefalonia to Ithaca, taking 20 minutes and priced from £5 per person return.
One for nature lovers and one of the more serene beaches on this list, this long spit of soft caramel sand arcs across the mouth of Dalyan's river in view of a mountain ridge. It is protected, due to nesting loggerhead turtles.
With 4.5km-worth of pristine beach, it is always possible to find some peace away from the sunbeds at the river mouth if you walk a little further.
Not much in this remote spot, aside from a simple restaurant and changing block, with toilets and showers.
In the mornings especially, the shallow, limpid water is still as glass and slicing through it for a quiet swim feels like a delicious treat. Even nervous toddlers will enjoy a paddle.
Expect space for beach games but no organised activities. However, the beach is reached via an interesting river boat ride, past reed beds and Lycian tombs carved into the cliffs.
Hilton Dalaman Sarigerme offers doubles from £335 per night. British Airways flies from London to Dalaman from £160 return.
The ice-blue water and coarse sand, which can easily be brushed off, make this one of Naxos's more photogenic beaches. There are views across to Paros.
The 1.5km-long stretch is firmly on the tourist map, with sunbeds outside bars and cafes. There is usually space to set up camp in between them though.
Expect tavernas at both ends of the beach, along with shops and resort facilities in the south. It is best to arrive by bus if not staying nearby. Cafes become bars in time for sunset.
Mostly flat and diamond-clear, the water is enticing and the sand kind to little feet. Shallow initially, there is a drop-off further out, so children might need warning and watching.
There is windsurfing and banana-boating in summer, as well as worthwhile snorkelling at the quieter northern end.
Liana Beach Hotel & Spa offers doubles from £124 per night. EasyJet flies from London Stansted to Athens from £224 return. Olympic Airlines flies Athens to Naxos from £80 return.
On the Costa Dorada, this golden strip has escaped mass tourism and has fine sand, a gently shelving shoreline and Blue-Flag status. The whitewashed houses of medieval Altafulla run behind it, while Tamarit castle sits in the distance.
At around a kilometre long, this spot can get crowded in August.
The beach has a traditional feel and plenty of showers, while the long promenade is ideal for buggies and has a choice of cafes and restaurants. You'll find ample parking in town.
The beach is suitable for jumping gentle waves as well as swimming. There is no sudden drop-off and you can wade out quite a distance. A lifeguard keeps watch during high season.
Kayak and paddleboard tours can be booked, while there is a Roman villa to explore in the east, plus go-karting and a castle in the town.
May Boutique Hotel offers doubles from £98 per night. Vueling flies from London to Barcelona from £90 return.
Green-tufted headlands cradle a broad inlet of fluffy, white sand in a protected area, though this is one of Menorca's more developed coves.
There is more space here than on many of Menorca's virgin coves. Half the deep beach is devoted to sunbeds, leaving the other half free for towels and games.
A handful of beach cafes and snack bars lie behind the beach, where there is also a large car park. Find more restaurants up in the cliffs, a cave cocktail bar and a mini-train to do the hard climb for you in summer.
This long inlet is very sheltered and the Blue Flag beach slopes gently into calm, turquoise water, making it a fun spot for young swimmers. Expect a lifeguard in high season.
Little fish flit beneath the cliffs, so snorkellers will be kept happy. There's a very small playground, with football nets at the back of the beach, and usually kayaks and pedalos to hire.
Hotel Seth Playa Azul offers doubles from £64 per night. Ryanair flies from London to Menorca from £107 return.
Calvi's white-sand crescent has an inspirational backdrop, with magnificent Calvi Citadel to gaze at alongside the town's terracotta rooftops.
Despite being a whopping 6km in length, this is a popular beach, and finding a space can be tricky in high season.
Restaurants line this urban beach, catering for breakfast, lunch and dinner. With parking at either end, it is a short walk to a variety of boutiques and the harbour's chic cocktail bars.
The beach here falls away gradually, so children will have no problems paddling and running in and out of the water. Swimming is also a pleasure in such an elegant, historic spot. There is a lifeguard in summer, too.
Jet ski rides, pedalos, paddleboarding and guided snorkelling will thrill older children, while youngsters can enjoy seeing the old, local train rattle past. Boat tours are available too.
Hotel L'Acquale offers doubles from £223 per night. EasyJet flies from London Gatwick to Bastia, Corsica, from £195 return.
With views across to the green-cloaked Pyrenees mountains, this is one of the Languedoc region's vast and sweeping, coarse-sand beaches, with numerous campsites nearby.
This is a great beach for active children in need of plenty of space. The family-focused resort is 7km long, meaning that it is easy to find space for some impromptu Frisbee-throwing or beach games.
Beyond the tree-lined promenade is everything you might need, including a marina, cafes, shops, parks, playgrounds and parking. Everything bar a good, upmarket restaurant – try the Grand Hotel du Lido, below.
This is another Blue Flag beach, so families can expect clean water and lifeguards, meaning children can paddle and swim with confidence. The sea is generally calm though not particularly shallow, deepening little by little.
On the sand, pre-schoolers can enjoy inflatables, trampolines and a swimming school, while there are also paddleboards and kayaks to hire. Water parks and adventure playgrounds – including a terrifying-looking canyoning park – are set a little further back.
Grand Hôtel Du Lido offers doubles from £124 per night. Ryanair flies from London to Perpignan from £122 return. The beach is a 35-minute drive away.
This Caribbean-like stretch of powdery pale sand is lapped by shallow water. It feels remote, backed only by pine woods and a few, well-hidden, hotels.
There are banks of sunbeds along the 2km beach, but there is still ample space to steal away to a quiet patch of sand.
A few restaurants and a couple of shops are scattered among the swathe of pine trees, which offer natural shade.
The gentlest of waves kiss the beach and the water is see-your-toes clear. It is ideal for younger children as you need to wade out quite a long way for a proper swim.
There can be a bit of wind here, which older children who are into watersports will appreciate. Surfing, windsurfing, kitesurfing, banana boats and canoeing are possible, plus there is good snorkelling on the sea bed. A woodland adventure park is just inland.
Forte Village Bouganville is offering bungalows from £364 per night. British Airways flies from London to Cagliari, Sardinia from £186 return.
One of Mallorca's most loved beaches, this substantial, 10km stretch of fine, golden sand has a Blue Flag and is a winner for its size, facilities and sheltered water.
Some sections hire out sunbeds but many are kept clear, meaning there's plenty of space for families to set up camp on the sand.
This is a full resort, with a palm-lined promenade, showers, changing rooms and a varied mix of restaurants, cafes and shops, especially at the port end. Find parking on the first road back.
The turquoise, bath-like water is made for paddling and splashing about in, though swimming is achievable further out. A lifeguard patrols in summer.
There is a large children's playground by the port, space for beach games, an old town to explore and a wide range of watersports, including parasailing and wakesurfing on offer at various points along the sand.
Zafiro Palace Alcudia offers doubles from £130 per night. British Airways flies from London to Palma from £224 return.
This article was first published in May 2022, and has been revised and updated.
Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.