An iconic Esperance location has been named the world’s best beach by travel experts who compiled a list of the top 50 beaches across the globe.
Lucky Bay is about 35km south-east of Esperance in Cape Le Grand National Park and attracts thousands of domestic and international tourists each year wishing to experience its snow-white sand and crystal-clear turquoise waters.
The popular beach now holds the title of the world’s best beach after won top spot on The World’s 50 Best Beaches 2023 list, presented by personal care product company Banana Boat.
Released on Wednesday, the list was compiled by more than 750 journalists, editors, bloggers, travel influencers and agencies along with a team of “beach ambassadors”.
Each beach was ranked according to five criteria: sheer untouched nature, remoteness, how swimmable it is, annual days of sunshine, and average annual temperature.
Lucky Bay won first place with an “untouched nature” and “swimmable” score of nine out of 10, 303 days of annual sunshine and an average annual temperature of 17.5C.
Little Hellfire Bay located 5km from Lucky Bay took out 28th place.
The World’s 50 Best Beaches co-founder Tine Holst said the list was a way of uncovering hidden gems that were often overlooked by the travelling public.
Ms Holst said Lucky Bay’s unique characteristics allowed the Esperance beach to stand out from other locations across the globe.
“Lucky Bay came up again and again in our voting process and it is easy to understand why,” she said.
“It boasts absolutely perfect white sand and turquoise water and is not crowded even on a busy day.
“But what truly sets it apart is the opportunity to see kangaroos in such a picturesque setting, a creature that the vast majority of the world finds adorable and exotic.”
Beach ambassador Helen Janneson-Bense said Lucky Bay’s natural beauty and resident kangaroos made it the best beach in the world.
“Lucky Bay is not only the most pristine beach you’ll ever lay eyes on, it has resident friendly kangaroos that visit the beach daily,” she said.
“They are wild kangaroos though very tame and you’ll easily be able to snap photos with them.”
The World’s 50 Best Beaches said it consulted with the world’s top travel influencers and professionals for months before they organised the beaches by the most number of votes and ranking according to the criteria.
Queensland’s Whitehaven beach made fourth place on the best beaches list while Turquoise Bay in Cape Range National Park near Exmouth was named 17th in the world.
