HONOLULU, May 24 — Hawaii’s Kailua Beach Park has been named America’s best beach 2019 by the coastal expert who has been authoritatively ranking the country’s best beaches since 1991.
Stephen P. Leatherman, better known as Dr Beach, released his annual list of Top 10 Beaches, which considers everything from the size of breaking waves, midday air temperature and wind speeds, to the colour of the water, sand, amenities and noise.
Topping the list this year is Kailua Beach Park for its white sand coral beach, small waves, kayaking and presence of lifeguards, free parking, beach showers, volleyball courts, kayak rentals and picnic tables.
Overall, beaches are graded on 50 criteria. Leatherman is a coastal scientist who has published 20 books and hundreds of scientific articles and reports on beach health, coastal erosion and storm impacts.
Winners on this year’s list are evenly distributed across the US, with destinations from ranging from Hawaii, New York, North Carolina, to Florida and Massachusetts.
Here are the top 10 beaches in the US 2019:
1. Kailua Beach Park — Oahu, Hawaii
2. Ocracoke Lifeguarded Beach — Outer Banks of North Carolina
3. Grayton Beach State Park — Florida Panhandle
4. Coopers Beach — Southampton, New York
5. Duke Kahanamoku Beach, Oahu, Hawaii
6. Coast Guard Beach — Cape Cod, Massachusetts
7. Caladesi Island State Park — Dunedin/Clearwater, Florida
8. Hapuna Beach State Park — Big Island, Hawaii
9. Coronado Beach — San Diego, California
10. Beachwalker Park — Kiawah Island, South Carolina — AFP-Relaxnews
