• Introduction
• Best Family Beaches
• Best Natural Wonder Beaches
• Best Scene Beaches
• Best Romantic Beaches
• Best Secluded Beaches
• Best Beach Cities and Towns
• Best Vintage Beaches
• Best Beach Eats and Bars
• Best Beach Tunes and Movies

Best Secluded Beaches

Get away from absolutely everything at these remote seashore hideaways.

Roque Bluffs, Maine
Sand Color (Pebble beach) 
Length 1/2 mile
Average Summer Water Temp 68
Location 75 miles NE of Bar Harbor
Getting to Roque Bluffs is half the fun. From Route 1 in Machias, follow Roque Bluff Road for 6 miles, past lobster-trap-scattered blueberry barrens, dense stands of boreal fir trees, and finally through a thicket of fragrant beach roses, where you’ll access one of Maine’s hidden gems. The park consists of a freshwater kettle pond and an ocean-facing pebble beach, both of which provide pristine but chilly swimming (thanks to the Labrador current). Facilities include picnic tables, grills, changing rooms, and bathrooms, but the real draw is the solitude of the beach and the pure cobalt waters on Englishman’s Bay.

If you love this beach, try Jasper Beach in Machiasport. It’s much rockier, but just as quiet, and easier to find.
 
Bowman’s Beach, Sanibel Island, FL
Sand Color: Linen-white 
Length 2 miles
Average Summer Water Temp 86
Location 27 miles SW of Ft. Myers
The secret’s out about the beauty of Sanibel Island’s beaches, so you won’t be alone in searching for a stretch of sand to call your own. But that’s just what you’ll get when you leave your car and make the quarter-mile walk to Bowman’s Beach, Sanibel’s most peaceful place. The island is well-known as one of the best shelling spots in the country, but you’ll find little competition here. There’s minimal development and ditto on amenities – though Bowman’s does have one perk not found on any other beach on Sanibel: barbecue grills.

If you love this beach, try Algiers Beach at Gulfside City Park; the hard-to-find location keeps crowds away.
 
Carova Beach, Outer Banks, NC
Sand Color Chardonnay 
Length 12 miles
Average Summer Water Temp 79
Location 27 miles SE of Virginia Beach
This barrier beach covers the upper stretches of the Outer Banks and is the most undeveloped of an already spartan beach chain. Part of what keeps the region mellow is the lack of paved roads, with Highway 12 stopping north of Corolla. Four-wheel-drive is a must, as the only route to these beaches is a ride on the sand or a primitive system of dirt roads connecting vacation homes in the wooded interior. Drive slowly to see the wild horses (many are descendants of shipwrecked Spanish mustangs) that roam the protected dunes. 

If you love this beach, try Sandbridge Beach, VA; it’s more accessible than Carova.

Read our Top 10 Secluded U.S. Beaches article for more ideas on enjoying surf and sand in solitude!

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