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Telegraph
25-05-2025
- Telegraph
Europe's 40 greatest beaches
No two beaches are the same. There are dreamy stretches clad in golden sand. There are their dramatic rocky opposites, all wave-shaped boulders and surges of spray. There are long curves of beach where the tide seems barely to move – and tiny coves where you have to grab your moment as the water rushes in. There are beaches laden with tourists where you have to fight for an inch of room. And there are beaches where, on the right day, there is nobody there except you. You can travel the world to find beaches such as these. But you can also find them all across Europe. Here, a range of Telegraph Travel 's destination experts pick the brightest and best – whether they are on the fabulous southern flanks of France and Spain, pinned to the Greek Aegean, or tucked away in places far less known… Spain Bolonia, Andalusia Marked by a vast sand dune at one end, gentle, windswept Bolonia is popular with nature lovers, surfers and anyone interested in Roman remains, thanks to the fascinating archaeological complex of Baelo Claudia. Insider tip Walk up the dune at sunset; on a clear day you can see Morocco. How to get there Drive west from Tarifa for 25 minutes. Parking is free, but chaotic in August. Where to stay Hurricane Hotel (00 34 956 684 919) has doubles from £110, including breakfast. Plan your trip with our guide to Andalucia. Praia de Rodas, Illas Cíes, Galicia Only 2,200 people a day are allowed on the Cíes Islands, and for good reason. Praia de Rodas is a gentle arc of white sand with pine forest behind and the Atlantic cold in front. It's quiet, clean and beautiful – if you can cope with the water temperature. Insider tip In high season you'll need authorisation before you buy boat tickets. How to get there Ferries run in summer from Vigo, Cangas or Baiona. Book well ahead. No day trips outside peak season. Where to stay Parador de Baiona (00 34 986 355 000) has doubles from £128, including breakfast. La Concha, San Sebastián Probably the most elegant city beach in the world, with a long, curving promenade and locals who actually use it. The strip of sand is wide and clean, the water is calm and the backdrop is straight out of a 1930s travel poster. Insider tip Swim to Santa Clara Island if you're feeling strong. How to get there Easy walk from anywhere in central San Sebastián. Plenty of buses and underground parking nearby. Where to stay Hotel de Londres y de Inglaterra (00 34 943 440 770) has doubles from £138. Plan your trip with our guide to San Sebastián. Playa de Poo, Asturias Your children will love you – not only for the name, but for the minimal supervision. Sitting on the flank of a sheltered inlet, the beach is effectively inland, with shallow, warm and safe water, and is set against a hinterland of meadows and woodland. Insider tip The small car park fills up fast – better to take the train (from Llanes and further afield). How to get there Train to Poo, then 10-minute walk. Where to stay Hotel La Posada del Rey (00 34 985 400 457) in Llanes has doubles from £72, including breakfast. Praia As Catedrais, Galicia The spectacular 'cathedrals' in question are a series of rock arches and buttresses that vanish at high tide and reappear at low, as if hauled up by cables. The sand is fine, but this is a beach for visiting more than lounging. Entry is regulated in summer – reserve a ticket online. Insider tip Go at full low tide, not just any low tide. There's a difference. How to get there 15-minute drive from Ribadeo or train to Reinante. Where to stay Hotel Mi Norte (00 34 982 123 034) has doubles from £84, including breakfast. Platja de Treumal, Catalonia This small, pine-backed cove comes as a delightful surprise, sandwiched as it is between the unlovely resorts of Blanes and Lloret de Mar. With coarse sand, but unusually clear water, it's no secret but can be quite quiet in the late afternoon. Insider tip There's a good area for snorkelling by the rocks on the northern edge. How to get there Walk 15 minutes from central Blanes or park at Pinya de Rosa gardens (paid). Where to stay Hostal Sa Malica (00 34 972 355 093) has doubles from £110, including breakfast. Platja de Formentor, Mallorca The fabulously chic hotel (now a Four Seasons) that has stood here since the 1920s owns most of the land hereabouts, and, consequently, car access is limited. This has made for a de facto nature reserve and some gloriously unspoilt beaches, framed by pines. The water is turquoise and impossibly clear. Insider tip Take a kayak out – the best views are from the water. How to get there Drive or bus from Port de Pollença. Where to stay Mallorca at Formentor (00 34 971 899 000) has doubles from £567. Plan your trip with our guide to Mallorca. Sally Davies Portugal Porto Santo Madeira's sister island of Porto Santo is famous for its golden sandy beach stretching almost six miles. Crystal clear waters (with an average of 22°C from June to November) and gentle cliffs frame this paradisiacal site. The sand is said to have medicinal properties, with minerals like magnesium, phosphorus and calcium reported to help with joint and muscle pain — you can bury yourself in it in warm sand baths offered across the island's wellness centres. Insider tip Join a kayak tour to explore the island's hidden beaches like Zimbralinho and Calheta, with Porto Santo Destination Tours. How to get there Take the Lobo Marinho, a 2½-hour boat ride from Funchal's port running twice a day. There are also direct flights from Madeira and mainland Portugal. Where to stay Pestana Porto Santo (00351 291 144 000) has double rooms from £170, all-inclusive. Praia da Adraga, Sintra Sintra may be famous for its palaces and mountain views, but head west and you'll encounter a string of beaches hugging its coastline. At Praia da Adraga a limestone arch frames the Atlantic waves and the smell of fresh grilled fish lingers from the on-site restaurant. Sunsets here are especially magical – capture wonderful shots both from the ground and up on the cliffs. Insider tip A hiking trail links the beach to Cabo da Roca, Europe's most western point. How to get there From Sintra, head west on the N247 towards the village of Almoçageme, then follow a narrow road until you reach a small car park. Where to stay Arribas Sintra Hotel has double rooms from £190, including breakfast. Praia Fluvial de Monsaraz, Alentejo The sea in Portugal can often be bitterly cold, instead consider river beaches like Praia Fluvial de Monsaraz. Monsaraz was the first beach created around the Alqueva, Europe's largest artificial lake – and the temperature here usually stays in the 20C range. Choose to lie in the sand or in the grassy patches, and when you get tired of swimming, rent a pedalo or kayak to explore the rest of the lake. Insider tip The Alqueva is a world-recognised spot for stargazing – it's worth sticking around in the evening or booking a stargazing session at nearby Observatório Astronómico do Lago Alqueva. How to get there The beach is a six-minute ride from the nearest village of Monsaraz, with plenty of parking on-site. Where to stay Estalagem de Monsaraz (00351 266 557 019) has double rooms from £80, including breakfast. Praia do Barril, Algarve In the small village of Tavira on the Algarve an old-style locomotive still whisks visitors to Praia do Barril – and is particularly popular with families. Part of the Ria Formosa Natural Park, the beach is a prime spot for birdwatching and hiking, with paths winding through dunes, salt pans and a collection of anchors buried in the sand. Insider tip If you're looking for a treat for lunch, try the restaurants in the nearby Santa Luzia village, famous for its octopus. How to get there Drive to the holiday resort Pedras d'el Rei, about 10km west of Tavira, then park your car and take the pedestrian bridge or the train. Where to stay Quinta dos Perfumes (00351 961 279 338; has double rooms from £169, including breakfast. Plan your trip with our guide to the Algarve. Praia do Cabedelo, Viana do Castelo Most people stick to the south coast, but Portugal's northern coast is full of beaches too and often less crowded. Set amidst dunes and a pine forest is the Praia do Cabedelo. The waves here are ripe for surfing, and while the waves aren't as big as Nazaré, they are perfectly suitable for beginners and intermediate surfers. Insider tip Water sports providers along the beach offer surf lessons, as well as windsurf, kitesurf, bodyboard, SUP and wing foil. How to get there The beach is a short 12-minute drive from Viana do Castelo or a five-minute ferry ride. Where to stay Flag Design Hotel (00351 258 247 887) has double rooms from £80, including breakfast. Joana Taborda France Plage du Coz-Pors, Brittany The inclement, changeable Breton weather only makes the region's beaches shine brighter, and Plage du Coz-Pors is rarely crowded. Rocks are scattered across the sea and beach with wild abundance and there are a couple of restaurants, plus kayak and paddle board rentals. Insider tip Follow the cliff path around the peninsula; it's one of the prettiest parts of the GR34. How to get there It's just over an hour's drive from Roscoff; there's a free car park by the aquarium. Where to stay Hôtel Castel Beau (0033 29691 4087) has doubles from £156. Calanque de Figuerolles, Côte d'Azur The calanques between Marseille and Cassis are the most famous, but east of Cassis is a different kind of rocky inlet. Calanque de Figuerolles is framed by curious, conical, rust-coloured cliffs, making a striking scene which drew painters long before influencer culture; namely Georges Braque who painted the calanque in the early 20th century. Insider tip Visit out of season if you can, when the beach is much quieter. How to get there It's a 15-minute walk from La Ciotat. Where to stay Hôtel au Tapis de Sable (0033 49426 2634) has doubles from £87. Plage de Wissant, Hauts-de-France Size matters when it comes to beaches, and Plage de Wissant is more than seven miles long. The weather can be rather British (grey and blustery), so embrace the wind rather than hiding from it. Kitesurfing, foil surfing and char à voile (land sailing) are just some of the activities on offer. Insider tip Go on a clear day and you can see Dover's white cliffs across the Channel. How to get there There are numerous car parks in Wissant. Where to stay Hôtel de la Baie (0033 32100 0064) has doubles from £104. Plage de Gatseau, Île d'Oléron, Nouvelle-Aquitaine Oléron may be the second largest island in metropolitan France (after Corsica), but you're never far from the beach. On the southernmost tip of the island, Plage de Gatseau is framed by pine trees and dunes little higher than molehills. There's a watersports club and washroom facilities, but you'll need to bring your own picnic. Insider tip Swap the car for a bike as soon as you arrive on Oléron. How to get there There's a free car park. Where to stay Hôtel le Vert Bois (0033 54636 8766) has doubles from £77. Plage de Roccapina, Corsica A little effort is required to reach Roccapina. Those who make the 40-minute hike are rewarded with soft sand, and gorgeous views of the Genoese tower and rocky outcrop shaped like a lion on the headland. Insider tip Set off early enough in the morning and you'll have the beach to yourself. How to get there From Figari Airport it's a 20-minute drive to the car park at l'Auberge Coralli. Where to stay Ferme de Roccapina (0033 68226 7832) has doubles from £90. Dune du Pilat, Nouvelle-Aquitaine Like a golden mountain on the edge of the Atlantic, Dune du Pilat is Europe's tallest sand dune. It's a workout to reach the top, but you're rewarded with vast views: the ocean on one side and pine forests on the other. Insider tip Time your visit for sunset and you can see the moment the sun disappears into the water. How to get there There's a chargeable car park right behind the dune. Where to stay Hôtel La Co(o)rniche (0033 55622 7211) has doubles from £440. Plage des Fosses, Côte d'Azur Although Plage des Fosses is in the back garden of the super rich (Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat has some of the most expensive real estate in France) it feels surprisingly laid back. The narrow crescent of sand is backed by the pines and palms of the peninsula, and unlike most of its neighbours, there's no beach club. Insider tip Visit the gardens of Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild nearby. How to get there There's parking at Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat's port (a 5-minute walk). Where to stay Hôtel Brise Marine (0033 49376 0436) has doubles from £153. Anna Richards Turkey Phaselis Saved from development by the evocative ruins of ancient Phaselis, the three beaches here each have their own character. The northern beach, backed by pines, is littered with wave-worn sarcophagi. The south is gently shelving fine sand, usually with myriad wooden gulets (traditional yachts) anchored offshore. Best is the small central cove, partially formed by a Roman breakwater, making a superb natural swimming pool. Bring your own towel and mat as there's nothing for hire here. Insider tip Entry to the ancient site (£8.60) includes parking. How to get there Phaselis is a 35-mile, 1 hour drive from Antalya city centre. Where to stay Alp Paşa 0090 242247 5676) in Antalya's atmospheric old town has doubles from £70. Terry Richardson Croatia and Montenegro Zlatni Rat, Bol, Brac Dramatically beautiful, this fine pebble spit is an extraordinary geological phenomenon, which changes shape with the wind and tide. Ideal for an active family holiday, it offers sun-beds, umbrellas, pedalos, banana-boat rides and parasailing. Behind it rises Vidova Gora, the highest peak on the Croatian islands – hike to the top for gorgeous panoramic views over the Adriatic. Insider tip Bol is Croatia's top windsurfing destination – visit Big Blue for instruction and equipment hire. How to get there Catch the Krilo catamaran from Split to Bol, then walk 20 minutes along the promenade. Where to stay Villa Giardino (00385 21635 900) has double rooms from £154, including breakfast. Punta Rata, Brela, Croatia You'll find some of Croatia's loveliest beaches on the mainland coast in Brela. Here, towering Aleppo pines cast natural shade over fine pebble coves, giving onto limpid turquoise waters. A dreamy seven-km promenade meanders along the coast to neighbouring villages, while the rugged limestone heights of Mount Biokovo create a dramatic backdrop. Insider tip Explore Brela's underwater world on a scuba diving trip with Bikini Dive. How to get there Catch a bus from Split to Makarska, disembarking at Brela, then follow a steep, winding road down to the beaches. Where to stay BlueSun Soline (00385 13844 288) has double rooms from £130, including breakfast. Sahara Beach, Rab, Croatia A sweeping expanse of deep silky copper-coloured sand, giving onto warm shallow water, backed by maquis shrubland, heather and black pine forest, Sahara is one of a succession of sandy coves that rim Lopar peninsula on Rab's northern coast. Not for the prudish, this is a clothing-optional beach. Insider tip There are no facilities on Sahara – bring water, a snack, beach towel and your own parasol. How to get there Catch the Jadrolinja catamaran from Rijeka to Rab, take the bus from Rab Town to Lopar, then walk 30 minutes. Where to stay Valamar Imperial (00385 52465 000) has double rooms from £132, including breakfast. Kraljicina Plaza (Queen's beach), Sveti Stefan, Montenegro Rimmed by fragrant pines, this picture-perfect pink sand beach lies in a horseshoe-shaped cove, near the former 1930s summer villa of Marija Karadjordjevic, Queen of Yugoslavia. As part of Aman Sveti Stefan hotel, the beach was fenced off and locked, and only hotel guests were permitted to swim here. Locals protested – by Montenegrin law, beaches are public property – and consequently, Aman Sveti Stefan has not reopened since 2021. For now anyone can enjoy this charming beach. Insider tip Check the Aman website for the possible reopening of Aman Sveti Stefan, which could affect access. How to get there From Budva, catch the local bus down the coast to Sveti Sefan. Where to stay Jet2holidays (0333 014 0236) offers seven nights from £474pp, B&B, in Budva, including flights. Jane Foster Germany Binz, Germany Germany's bracing Baltic coast boasts hundreds of miles of sandy beach, and its most stylish resort is Binz, on the nation's biggest island, Rügen. Shut off behind the Iron Curtain during the Cold War, it's been spruced up since reunification, and it now attracts Germans of all ages, plus a smattering of Scandinavians, seduced by its antique architecture and rugged scenery. Insider tip The pristine beach is flanked by thick pine forest, ideal for hiking and cycling. How to get there From Berlin, travel by train to Ostseebad Binz with Deutsche Bahn, from €49 each way. Where to stay The historic, handsome Kurhaus Binz (0049 403003 22366) has doubles from £223, including breakfast. William Cook The Nordics Haukland Beach, Lofoten, Norway Regularly voted Norway's finest and as one of Scandinavia's most picture-perfect beaches, Haukland is hardly a secret. Set within the striking Lofoten archipelago, it offers an almost impossibly scenic mix of brilliant white sand, emerald waters and dramatic mountains. Although it's mostly just a fabulous spot to appreciate nature, there is a beach cafe, toilets, and a soon-to-open visitor centre. Climb up to the iconic Mannen peak to view the beach and surrounding scenery in all its glory. Insider tip The Haukland Café has a good range of sandwiches, hot meals and drinks – and, of course, striking views. The visitor centre also rents kayaks. How to get there The beach is a 10-15 minute drive from the town of Leknes, which has a regional airport. Parking is available for a small fee, but note no camper vans or long-term camping is allowed Where to stay Lofoten Basecamp (0047 4040 1483) has double rooms in modern fisherman's cabins from £180, including breakfast. Blokhus Beach, Denmark Blokhus, set photogenically into the bay of the Jammerbugt Municipality on Denmark's west coast, has it all: a 100-metre-wide stretch of sand that extends from Rødhus beach in the south to Saltum beach in the north, photogenic dunes, and oodles of space for lounging and games. There are also options for wind- and kite-surfing, ice-cream shops, a mini-golf course, a sculpture park, and British-style shops selling all the sun cream, buckets and spades and water pistols you could want. Insider tip Water babies can also spend time at the sprawling Fårup Sommerland waterpark close by, or escape into nature at Vildmosen, aka The Great Moor, the dune plantations, or Kettrip Hills, all nearby. How to get there It's about a 40-minute drive from Aalborg; there are car parks nearby. Where to stay Strandhotellet (0047 7026 0015) has double rooms from £180, including breakfast. Sandhammaren, Sweden The beach at Sandhammaren, a nature reserve in Österlen on the southeastern tip of Skåne province, is regularly voted as Sweden's best. It boasts fine, powdery white sand, highly photogenic dunes, and clear waters that are warm enough to swim in during summer, although dippers should be aware of strong currents. The nature reserve behind the beach is home to wild elks, deer, rabbits and a wide range of birdlife, and is coterminous with another one (Hagestad) that flow together along the coast. Insider tip The beach is wonderfully unspoiled, but the nineteenth-century lighthouse, open for tours, has a kiosk for drinks and snacks, and there's a small café near the main car park. How to get there From Malmö, head east on Route 9 for around an hour. Where to stay Löderups Strandbad (0046 41152 6260) sits on the neighbouring beach and has doubles from £130, including breakfast. Paul Sullivan Italy Baia del Silenzio, Sestri Levante, Liguria This crescent of grey sand is backed by the jaunty ochre houses of Sestri Levante. The water is crystalline, and there's no need to pay for a sun lounger and ombrellone: just lay out your towel and go for a swim in the gently shelving bay, which is bookmarked by the pretty Convento dell'Anunziata, a former monastery. Insider tip If you didn't bring your own parasol, head for the western end of the beach, where the local fishing boats pulled up on the sand offer some shade. How to get there Sestri Levante is on the main Genoa to Pisa coastal train line. The beach is a 15-minute walk from the station. Where to stay Hotel Helvetia (0039 0185 41175) has double rooms from £320, including breakfast. Collelungo, Alberese, Tuscany The swathe of wild Tuscan coast south of Grosseto has changed little since the 19th century, and fifteen miles (24km) of pristine coastline is now included in the Parco Maremma nature reserve. This includes one of central Italy's longest beaches, the three-mile Spiaggia di Collelungo – only accessible on foot from the reserve car park at its northern end. The further you walk south, the more deserted it gets. Insider tip If you're planning to drive on a summer weekend, get there early. Once the car park fills up, it's one in, one out. How to get there By car from Rome (two hours) or by train to Grosseto, then local G15 bus (Mon-Fri only) to Alberese Where to stay Al Vermigliano (0039 0564 407 106) has double rooms from £60, including breakfast. Plan your trip with our guide to Tuscany. Calamosche, Vendicari, Sicily Sicily's most important coastal wetland area, the Vendicari nature reserve, south of Siracusa, is home not only to stone curlews and flamingoes, but also to some of Sicily's most unspoilt beaches. Star of the show is Calamosche, a wide golden-sand cove protected by two low rocky headlands. Insider tip Kiosk bar Oasi della Frutta (0039 348 424 8040) offers fruit juices and fruit salads straight from the adjacent farm. How to get there Driving is the only realistic option. From Noto, take the Pachino road south. From the reserve car park, it's a three-quarter mile walk. Where to stay Terre di Vendicari (0039 346359 3845) has double rooms from £150, including breakfast. Plan your trip with our guide to Sicily. Porto Selvaggio, Nardò, Puglia The Salento peninsula – the heel of the Italian boot – has some of mainland Italy's most translucent sea and most spectacular beaches. The natural reserve of Porto Selvaggio is one of the standouts. A wide, deep blue bay backed by a fragrant macchia of juniper, lentisk and Aleppo pines, this is one for real wild beach aficionados: it's pebbly rather than sandy and there are no facilities apart from a summer-only kiosk bar, but the place is desert-island delightful. Insider tip The seasonal kiosk bar on the beach offers decent panini, pasta dishes and salads at reasonable prices – but it's cash-only. How to get there It's possible to walk along coastal tracks from the town of Santa Caterina di Nardò in around 40 minutes; alternatively, drive to the Villa Tafuri car park (£4/€5) and walk (10 minutes). Where to stay Cala d'Aspide (0039 0833 574600) has double rooms from £80, including breakfast. Plan your trip with our guide to Puglia. Alberoni, Venice, Veneto When Venetians fancy a quick dip, this is where they head – to the southernmost end of the Lido island, where families unfurl their rolled-up beach towels amid waving grasses on the dunes of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) reserve. There are no buzzy beach bars and few rows of deck chairs and umbrellas – just lashings of atmospheric nature. Director Luchino Visconti filmed his 1971 classic Death in Venice here. Insider tip Through the warmer months the WWF organises a programme of tours and events, from bird-watching and tree-identifying, to star gazing during the August shooting star season. How to get there Stefano and Anna at Bici Gardin (piazzale SM Elisabetta 2A), right by the Lido's main waterbus dock, provide bike hire for the 30-minute pedal south to the beach. One hour costs €5, or €10 for the whole day. Where to stay The Residenza d'Epoca Quattro Fontane (0039 041 526 0227) has double rooms from £180, including breakfast. Plan your trip with our guide to Venice. Lee Marshall Malta Ramla Beach, Gozo A gorgeous swathe of red sandy beach lapped by azure waters and flanked by cliffs and low vegetation, this is said to be where Ulysses spent seven years entranced by the sea nymph Calypso – or perhaps by the bay itself. The only substantial sandy beach in Malta unblemished by modern development, Ramla nonetheless has sunbeds, lifeguards in summer and cafes tucked out of sight. Insider tip A popular spot even in Roman times, the Knights of Malta built an underwater wall across the bay to keep out invading Turks. Snorkel out to see it. Getting there There is free parking on the road, but you need to get here early (or late). Public buses stop nearby. Where to stay il-Logga (00356 2156 4323) in Xaghra has doubles from £54 B&B. Plan your trip with our guide to Malta. Juliet Rix Cyprus Lara Beach There can be a tendency to assume that every beach on Cyprus is a busy fleshpot. But while that may be true of the sands around Ayia Napa, the west coast of the island is a different beast. Particularly Lara Beach, some 15 miles north of Paphos – a sliver so secluded that it is protected as a turtle sanctuary. Hatchlings appear from May to August. Insider tip Bring water. Other than a parking area, the beach has no facilities. How to get there Drive from Paphos (one hour). Where to stay At the Coral Beach Hotel in Paphos. Olympic Holidays (020 8492 6868) offers a week at Coral Beach Hotel from £939 per person, including flights. Plan your trip with our guide to Cyprus. Chris Leadbeater Greece Xerocambos, Crete Elafonisi might be Crete's poster child when it comes to beautiful beaches, but if you're willing to make the seven-hour drive along winding roads to the island's south-eastern tip, Xerocambos' dazzling golden sands riffled by mirror-clear waters are just as striking, only with (far) fewer crowds. Insider tip Fill your petrol tank – apart from a few tavernas, facilities are scarce. How to get there The zigzag route through Lamnoni gorge is stunning (but not for the faint of heart). Where to stay Cavali Apartments (0030 697761 9370) has double rooms from £53. Plan your trip with our guide to Crete. Saria, Karpathos For desert-island vibes, you can't beat Saria, a tiny uninhabited atoll near Karpathos dotted with the barrel-roofed ruins of houses where pirates lived in medieval times. A paradise for snorkellers, the main butternut sand beach descends to waters so clear you can see starfish ambling on the bottom. Insider tip Stock up on local pies at Pigadia's old-fashioned bakery. How to get there During the summer season, boats leave from Karpathos' capital Pigadia. Where to stay Aeolia Suites (0030 697 303 7927) has self-catering apartments from £74. Seychelles, Ikaria Naming a Greek beach after a tropical paradise might seem risky. Luckily, this bleach-blond strand washed by waters as blue as any you'll find in the Indian Ocean lives up to its grandiose name. Insider tip After a day of tropical bliss, indulge in a seafood feast at taverna Feroi in Maganites, where fish are served fresh from the nets. How to get there A steep track near Maganites' fishing port leads down to the beach. Where to stay Marina hotel (0030 2275 022188) has double rooms from £49, including breakfast. Voidokilia, Messinia With its honey-coloured sands lining a circular bay so perfect it could have been drawn by Giotto, Voidokilia is one of the Greek mainland's most striking beaches. Backed by a handful of budget-friendly tavernas, this sumptuous strand is also a magnet for nature lovers who come to spot migratory birds in the neighbouring Gialova lagoon. Insider tip The beach is part of a nature reserve – don't expect sunbeds. How to get there It's 15-minutes drive from Pylos town's cobbled shopping streets. Where to stay W Costa Navarino (0030 2723 098000) has double rooms from £270, including breakfast. Fteri, Kefalonia Captain Corelli's island has plenty of swoonworthy beaches, but few can compete with Fteri's looping line of sandy coves backed by pine-furred, chalk white cliffs, and lapped by peacock blue waters. And forget mandolins – the only sounds here are mewing gulls and tinkling goat bells. Insider tip Rent your own boat in high season and go early to escape the day-tripping crowds. How to get there Catch a water taxi from Zola's port. Where to stay Eliamos Villa and Spa (0030 2671 171100) has double rooms from £422, including breakfast. Heidi Fuller-Love
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Sirât' Review: Oliver Laxe's Spectacular Film Could Be Cinema's First Rave Tragedy
Filmmaker Oliver Laxe brings a kind of humbling brilliance to 'Sirât,' his inaugural Cannes competition entry, after catching attention in sidebars for his previous films. It's the kind of film that Cannes attendees from far and wide come to the festival for: sui generis and evading any classification, emanating from a wholly personal vision of cinema while not resisting galvanizing, and sometimes crowd-pleasing, pleasures. Born in France to Galician parents, and shooting the majority of his work to date in Morocco, Laxe's work operates in the interstices of borders and cultures, but wholly bypasses appropriation. It's always visually transportive and grimly sublime, focusing on simple plots and conflicts that provide ample space for philosophical and existential contemplation. And 'Sirât' is undoubtedly his most fully realized work in his regard, notable too for folding in the visceral pleasures of contemporary genre and even blockbuster cinema. More from IndieWire 'The Phoenician Scheme' Review: Wes Anderson's Plans Go Awry in a Spirited but Shallow Caper Cannes 2025 Films Sold So Far: Lynne Ramsay's 'Die, My Love' Sells to MUBI in Major Deal The world Laxe creates is finely rendered in both the fore- and background, revealing much greater scope than its initial set-up lets on. Luis (Sergi López, in another powerful performance) is another variety of a recurrent character in cinema and television now: the stricken father, forced to bring his emotions further to the surface than he's typically comfortable with, and responding in disbelief to his offspring's opposing values. His teenage daughter Mar left five months ago for the Moroccan Sahara's illegal rave parties — and never returned. With no online communication, and little sense of her ultimate whereabouts or intentions, Luis and his young son Esteban (Brúno Nuñez) travel there themselves. Laxe soon gets in his first of many effective, incongruous fissures, as these remnants of a domestic family amble around a score of pilled and tatted-up partiers, the sub-bass and steady 4/4 house music kick pushing tension into the red. Pragmatically enough, after showing photos of Mar to a raver couple called Jade and Bigui (Jade Oukid and Richard Bellamy, playing version of themselves, like the majority of the cast beyond López), they mention she could be at a future party located south of where they are. They decide to join forces and navigate there together, and we allow Laxe another common modern auteur strategy: finally dropping the title card once the first act is well underway. But what quashes that opening rave introduces one of the film's most fascinating elements. A large convoy of military vehicles drive into the vicinity, and while there's little threat of violence or confrontation between the two parties, something catches our attention when a soldier wants to take the 'EU citizens' present into custody. As the drive begins, the radio mentions civilians massed at national borders, and statements from the NATO Secretary General. It's an alternate present or near-future, and the world is collapsing; suddenly, we understand the rationale of why Mar, and later her family, can disperse from where they permanently lived. Morocco emerges as an 'interzone,' like William S. Burroughs famously characterized it in 'Naked Lunch,' where European, African, Middle Eastern nationalities, as well as Islamic (the film's title derives from the religion's name for the bridge between hell and paradise), Christian and New Age (to cite the ravers) customs can commingle. Upon his film's very tactile and material basis, we can project any intelligent guess for backstory, yet it's one of the best examples of the 'anti-psychological' approach that experimental filmmakers such as Laxe (alongside Albert Serra and Yuri Ancarani) have been chasing over the past decade, with reference to their portrayal of bodies and landscapes. With another band of travelers — Stef, Josh and Tonin, the latter of whom has lost part of his right arm — in tow, the screenplay by Laxe and Santiago Fillol seems to lay out a plausible Point B to its a Point A: the potential reuniting of the family at the final rave in a sentimental, but satisfying catharsis. The ensuing first hour almost seems like a problem-solving 'adventure' film, with petrol to be bartered for and solutions found to traversing unsteady rocks and bodies of water. Laxe, I'm sure, would be flattered by comparisons to 'The Searchers' and the Mad Max series. Yet a shattering tragedy at around the film's mid-point upsets that trajectory entirely, as their convoy of cars become stationary, and confrontations with mortality must be sought. To expand on the very 'material' nature of this film, it never concedes to any scenes of now-routine psychedelic disorientation; Laxe and his ace cinematographer Mauro Herce are confident their mere photography of the space will burrow us into the characters' emotions and appreciation for the area's splendor, and also promise transcendence. Even if it shows civilization as we once knew it to be now perishing, the film pays tribute to contemporary leftist currents in imagining what a utopia after capitalism might look like. Collectivity could be our ultimate destiny: the community ritual of bodies attached to sublime music (and electronic dance music is more beautiful than many skeptics realize), the dispensability of the nuclear family in a world of greater co-operative labor and nurturing. Such hopes can seem strident or naive in the world where the majority of us live, but Laxe's true achievement in this film is magicking a scenario where their realization isn't just possible, but necessary. 'Sirât' premiered at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival. It is currently seeking U.S. distribution. Want to stay up to date on IndieWire's film and critical thoughts? to our newly launched newsletter, In Review by David Ehrlich, in which our Chief Film Critic and Head Reviews Editor rounds up the best new reviews and streaming picks along with some exclusive musings — all only available to subscribers. Best of IndieWire The 25 Best Alfred Hitchcock Movies, Ranked Every IndieWire TV Review from 2020, Ranked by Grade from Best to Worst
The Guardian
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Romería review – Carla Simón's gripping pilgrimage tackles Aids, parents and the legacy of secrets
Is biology destiny? Spanish film-maker Carla Simón brings to Cannes her very personal and in fact auto-fictional project Romería (meaning 'pilgrimage') – about an 18-year-old girl, arriving in Vigo in Galicia on Spain's bracing Atlantic coast. She is on a mission to find out more about her biological father who died here of Aids after he split from her mum, who has since died, too, and about her dad's extended – and very wealthy – family. Romería returns Simón (and her audiences) to the complex and painful subject of her mother and father, which she first approached in her wonderful autobiographical debut Summer 1993 although for me the more conventionally enclosed fictional transformation of the material there might have given that film a sharper arrowhead of storytelling power. Yet Simón still shows her usual richness, warmth and her candid, almost docu-realist film-making language, complicated here by a stylised hallucinatory sequence and a Super-8-type flashback section. Simón has an instinctive and almost miraculous way of just immersing herself within extended freewheeling family scenes – her camera moving unobtrusively in the group, like another teenager at the party, quietly noticing everything. Yet I wondered if in the end the film fully absorbed and reconciled two opposing needs: the angry need to reproach her extended family's cruel, uncaring treatment of her father and the need to find resolution and closure, to reclaim family membership and to be grounded in that identity. With unaffected grace and charm, Llúcia Garcia plays Marina, an easy-going, good-natured teen who shows up in Vigo in 2004 with her digital video camera, keen to meet her dad's folks – whom she hasn't seen in years. (These opening scenes are interspersed with quotations from her late mother's diary about coming to live in Vigo with Alfonso, or Fon, Marina's dad.) Her uncles and aunts, affectionate and enthusiastic and welcoming in their various ways about Marina, all have the same initial reaction, whose significance Simón cleverly reveals: they are stunned at her resemblance to her mother. It is as if Fon's wife has come back from the grave to stir up very mixed feelings. Almost immediately, Marina finds discrepancies between what she has always been told about her dad's life there with her mum, and what these people are now telling her. Part of her reason for being there is to locate official paperwork confirming Fon's paternity in order to get a grant to study cinema, and she is stunned to discover the family still do not acknowledge her as one of their own. Her existence is missing from Fon's death certificate. Now she has to persuade her cantankerous and difficult grandparents to swear an official deposition. And they clearly are wary of her – the tetchy grandma even claims that she does not look like her mother. Her grandpa just gives her a grotesquely huge amount of cash for her cinema studies – transparently a crude payoff to get her to go away. Because the awful truth is that they were angry and ashamed of Fon for suffering from Aids, due to needle use – Marina's mum used drugs, too, and it looks very much as if his parents created the myth that this wild-child woman got their son into bad ways and helped kill him. Now she is back – or rather her daughter is, a blood relation, and they have a learned neurosis about blood. Marina, at first nice and polite, starts to show her mother's fire. Part of this movie is about the perennial question which will fascinate and defeat all of us: what were our parents like before we were born? What was it like for them to be people just like us? It is at the centre of this distinctive, intelligent, sympathetic drama. Romería has premiered at the Cannes film festival
BBC News
18-05-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Celta Vigo v Rayo Vallecano
Post Attempt blocked. Williot Swedberg (Celta Vigo) header from the left side of the six yard box is blocked. Assisted by Mihailo Ristic with a cross.
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Carla Simón Uncovers a Galician Family's Skeletons in the Semi-Autobiographical ‘Romería'
After winning prizes at Berlin with 'Summer 1993' and 'Alcarrás,' Spanish director Carla Simón is now in the main competition at Cannes with 'Romería,' a deeply personal story about family and memory set in Galicia. The film tells the story of 18-year-old Marina, who travels to the northwest of Spain to meet her biological father's family. The girl's journey is one of discovery, as she has never met her father, who died of AIDS when she was young. More from Variety Kinky Sex, BDSM Alexander Skarsgard and Gimp Masks: 'Pillion' Seduces Cannes With 7-Minute Standing Ovation 'Pillion' Review: Edgy Queer Romance Stars Alexander Skarsgård as a Sexy Biker and Harry Melling as His Budding Submissive Richard Linklater on Trump's Film Tariff Threat: 'That's Not Going to Happen, Right? That Guy Changes His Mind Like 50 Times in One Day' Variety sat down with Simón to discuss the evolving Spanish film landscape, her latest creative choices and the emotional roots of her storytelling. Variety: Spanish films have gained recognition abroad in recent years, especially from new voices. What do you think is fueling this movement? Simón: I believe it's partly generational. A lot of filmmakers are experimenting, taking risks and embracing different directions. There's also a notable rise in female voices and a broader diversity of class backgrounds. People like me, from small villages or middle-class families, have found ways to study film and create work, even outside of formal cinema schools. Producers are trusting this new generation, and that momentum is creating something really special. One particularly striking trend is the number of successful female filmmakers from Catalonia. But in your latest film, you shift from Catalonia to Galicia. Why the change in setting? It's a personal one. My biological father was from Galicia, and my parents' love story began there. The film is about memory and identity, so it made sense to revisit those places. Galicia is a place I've visited many times, always in a kind of research mode. It's spiritually and visually unique, very different from inland Catalonia, and that contrast really helped shape the film. Galicia has a very distinct look and feel. How did that influence your approach to the film's aesthetics? The landscape changed everything. Galicia is green and coastal, whereas the Catalan countryside is more arid and brown. We shot in Vigo, an industrial city near the sea but not facing it directly. That disconnection was fascinating. We also switched from mostly handheld camera work in my previous films to more structured, composed shots here. It reflects the emotional distance Marina has from this family, unlike the intimacy of the other two films. In 'Romería,' the family is clearly upper-middle-class, very different from the rural, working-class families of your earlier work. Why this shift? Again, it's partially based on my real family, but there's a lot of fiction. I met my father's side of the family as an adult, and they were quite different from the world I grew up in. The film explores what it's like to be an outsider in your own family. Marina, the main character, connects most with another outsider, the younger brother. That tension, both emotional and class-based, gave the film a new dynamic. Marina experiments with filmmaking herself, capturing parts of her journey. How did you decide when to use her point-of-view footage versus the film's own lens? Her footage had to feel raw and imperfect; she's still learning. That contrast with the rest of the film was intentional. Her desire to film wasn't in the original script, but it made sense. She's looking for her own voice as a filmmaker. In a way, the story became partly about that process, why people film, what compels them to tell stories. For me, it's my family history that led me to filmmaking. Her mom's diary becomes a central piece of the story. Was that an intentional parallel with Marina's filming? Yes, absolutely. The diary is a generational portrait, it captures how people lived, loved and partied in the '80s. It's based on letters my own mother wrote to friends, which were very intimate. The film draws a parallel between that written account and Marina's visual diary. She's searching for something through her lens, and eventually she starts filming not just empty spaces but her new family too. There's an unreliable narrative element to the story. Everyone remembers things differently, and Marina uncovers contradictions as she goes. How did you approach the story structure? That was key. Memory is subjective; everyone reshapes it. When I researched my own family history, I realized no two accounts ever matched. That inspired the episodic structure of Marina meeting different relatives. Eventually, she understands that the truth might never be fully knowable. So she imagines it. That liberation, creating your own memories to form your identity, is at the heart of the film. You've always worked with large ensembles, but the family in this film feels particularly authentic. What's your rehearsal process like? We cast actors who naturally shared traits with the characters. Then we did extensive improvisations, scenes that wouldn't appear in the film but shaped the family's shared history. We even had the actors who played Marina's parents act out scenes from the '80s to help others understand their dynamic. The goal was to give them real, felt experiences of their roles. We rehearsed in the actual locations to lock in the physical and emotional space. It really comes through on screen. The family feels authentic, with all the unspoken tension and buried emotion. That's the most important part for me, capturing those quiet dynamics, the things that go unsaid. Every look, every silence matters. I'm glad that came through. 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