The famous beaches are packed from June to September. These ones are not. We have found ten stretches of sand that rarely make the guidebooks, from a Cornish cove to a Hebridean strand.
1. Saltwick Cove, North Yorkshire
Reached by a steep path through a wood, this small bay has rock pools full of crabs and, at low tide, a fossil bed. No cafe, no car park, no crowds.
2. Pennar Sands, Pembrokeshire
A mile of pale sand with dunes behind. The nearest toilet is a 20-minute walk, which is why you will probably have the place to yourself.
3. Port Keld, Cornwall
A harbour beach tucked behind a fishing quay. Fresh crab sandwiches are sold from a hatch in the wall until they run out.
4. Tràigh Mhor, Outer Hebrides
A huge, white beach where the sea is a deep turquoise. Do not forget a warm coat: it is the Atlantic.
5. Kilnaboy Strand, County Clare
Dramatic cliffs, big surf and a pub that serves a pint of stout to anyone who has walked from the car park.
And five more
Our list also takes in a pebble beach in Northumberland with seal colonies, a dog-friendly cove in Devon, a sandbar in Norfolk that is only open for two hours a day, a sheltered inlet on the Isle of Wight and a tiny crescent in Anglesey reached by boat.
Take a bin bag. Hidden beaches stay hidden only if people leave them tidy.
