TAMPA, Fla. – A year after one Florida beach nabbed the top spot in the annual Dr. Beach Top 10 beaches in the U.S. list, two other Sunshine State strips of sand found their way onto the annual ranking.
Caladesi Island State Park near Clearwater came in at No. 4 while Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Park in Naples grabbed the No. 8 spot.
Duke Kahanamoku Beach on Oahu in Hawaii grabbed the lead spot as determined by Stephen Leatherman, a professor at Miami’s Florida International University who came up with his Dr. Beach list in 1991.
The way the list works is that each year, Leatherman uses 50 criteria to name the top 10 beaches. When a beach makes it to No. 1, it is retired from the list so other beaches can get a shot in successive years. After 25 years, Leatherman reset it so former winners were back in the mix.
Since the reset in 2016, Florida beaches have landed No. 1 three times including 2023’s winner St. George Island State Park in the Panhandle. The 2020 winner was Grayton Beach State Park while Siesta Beach on Siesta Key near Sarasota was named No. 1 in 2017.
Caladesi Island State Park has been climbing the charts as winning beaches retire from eligibility.
Primarily accessible by boat, and located north of Clearwater and west of Dunedin, Caladesi was rated No. 1 on the 2008 list.
“Caladesi is reached by pedestrian ferry boat, private boats or a long walk north from Clearwater Beach – the inlet is closed so Caladesi is no longer a true island, but still a great getaway,” Leatherman said. “The white beach is composed of crystalline quartz sand which is soft and cushy at the water’s edge, inviting one to take a dip in the sparkling clear waters. There are boardwalk trails, but my favorite is the kayak and canoe trails through the mangroves to see the large blue herons and other birds that frequent this wonderful natural area.”
Delnor-Wiggins has not been on the Dr. Beach list since 2015, the last year before Leatherman hit the reset. It’s located on the south side of an inlet for the Cocohatchee River in Southwest Florida north of downtown Naples.
“This barrier island beach boasts of beautiful white sand beaches and crystal-clear Gulf waters,” Leatherman writes. “Activities include swimming, snorkeling, paddle boarding, shelling, and fishing. Wildlife in the park includes bald eagles, ospreys, and manatees. Pine trees provide welcome shade.”
He notes the park is still recovering from the devastation of Hurricane Ian in 2022 so some areas of the park remain closed.
Other Florida beaches that have garnered top honors in years past include Fort DeSoto Park in St. Petersburg in 2005, St. Joseph Peninsula in Port St. Joe in 2002, St. Andrews State Park in Panama City in 1995 and Bahia Honda State Park on Big Pine Key in 1992.
The complete list for Top U.S. beaches for 2024 is:
1. Duke Kahanamoku Beach, Oahu, Hawaii
2. Coopers Beach, Southampton, New York
3. Wailea Beach, Maui, Hawaii
4. Caladesi Island State Park, Dunedin Clearwater, Florida
5. Beachwalker Park, Kiawah Island, South Carolina
6. Main Beach, East Hampton, New York
7. Poipu Beach, Kauai, Hawaii
8. Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Park, Naples, Florida
9. Coast Guard Beach, Cape Cod, Massachusetts
10. Coronado Beach, San Diego, California
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