The 20 Most Complained-About Beaches Worldwide

As summertime creeps up on us, many people are in search of the perfect vacation destination. Sandy shores make great spots for relaxing with a beach read, frolicking in the water, or just enjoying the weather. However, huge crowds and unsanitary conditions can ruin a fun beach day in an instant. If you’d like to avoid these problems, you may want to steer clear of certain beaches. 

1. The 20 Beaches With the Most Complaints  

The online security software company Cloudwards compiled this list of beaches that received the most complaints. The business’s research team first determined the top 200 most popular beach destinations from around the world based on travel publications, tourism rankings, and social media. They then analyzed each location’s poor TripAdvisor reviews, homing in on negatively-charged keywords, such as unclean, garbage, and crowded. Complaints were divided into four categories: dirtiness, overcrowding, long queues, and noise. The researchers then assigned each beach a “Complaint Score” ranging from 0 to 100, based on the number of complaints. You can view more details here [PDF]. 

People have a lot to say about beaches in the United States, particularly regarding cleanliness and large crowds. Waikiki Beach in Hawaii takes the No.1 spot as the destination that beachgoers criticize most. Sixty-seven percent of complaints mentioned overwhelming groups of people as the main issue. 

California’s Venice Beach trailed not too far behind. The destination was considered the dirtiest of all beaches surveyed, with nearly 61 percent of dissatisfied TripAdvisor reviewers noting the lack of cleanliness. The first beach on the list outside of the U.S. is Playa Manuel Antonio in Costa Rica. With a popular destination like this one, you can expect to wait in one of the longest queues on the list. Cloudwards even reports that some visitors spent more time waiting than enjoying the beach.

The 20 Beaches With the Most Complaints  

If you‘d like to save money during your summer vacation, check out this list of the top 15 budget travel destinations.

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