Find Your Perfect Beach Getaway

The best family-friendly beaches in Spain: Playa de Muro, Salou, Benidorm's Levante, La Malvarrosa, the Mar Menor at Los Alcazares and La Concha. Five shelve gently; only La Concha has a real tide.

Beach hopping in Spain works car-free on two coasts: the Cercanias C-1 runs Malaga to Fuengirola in 46 minutes, and the Alicante tram reaches Denia. The Costa Brava still needs a car.

From Costa Brava to Costa del Sol, Spain's six Mediterranean costas are not interchangeable: Costa Brava has the coves and warmest August water, Cabo de Gata the wildest sand, Malaga the flights.

Mexico low season runs May to mid-December. The Pacific — Puerto Escondido, Huatulco — is the real bargain; Caribbean beaches get sargassum. September is cheapest and riskiest.

Mercado 23, Benito Juarez, Pino Suarez and Lucas de Galvez run daily; Olas Altas, Sayulita and San Jose del Cabo are seasonal. Skip Cancun's Mercado 28.

Whale sharks off Isla Mujeres run mid-June to mid-September, La Ventana kitesurfing November-March, Zicatela surf April-September, and Cozumel drift diving year-round.

Mexico's most Instagrammable beaches: the Marietas Hidden Beach, Balandra, Bacalar's seven-color lagoon, Holbox glow, Tulum ruins, and Las Coloradas pink lakes.

Rip currents, not crime, are the main hazard on Mexico's beaches. Red means the water is closed, Cancun lifeguards work 9am-5pm, and Zicatela and Zipolite are not swimming beaches.

Mexico bans vapes and pseudoephedrine outright, and Quintana Roo cenotes reject chemical sunscreen at the gate. Pack mineral SPF, reef shoes, a rash guard and pesos in small bills.

Pay a guide at Tulum, Campeche, Quiahuiztlán and Xcambó. Do Punta Sur, El Rey and San Juan de Ulúa yourself — INAH guides cost 600-1,500 pesos per group, not per person.

Mexico's best beach spas: Sense at Rosewood Mayakoba, SE Spa at Grand Velas, Maroma Spa by Guerlain, NIZUC's ESPA, One&Only Palmilla, Apuane at Punta Mita and Yäan in Tulum.

Mexico's cheapest beach towns are Puerto Escondido, Mazunte, Mazatlán, La Paz, Progreso and Bacalar at roughly US$40–70 a day. Cancún and Tulum cost double for the same sand.