Clearwater Beach Competes For Bragging Rights As Best Beach In South

CLEARWATER, FL — Clearwater Beach is once again a contender for USA Today's 10Best Readers' Choice Awards for "Favorite Beach In the South."

Editors from the media outlet selected 20 beaches in the southern United States, from Virginia to Texas, as finalists for the magazine's top beaches, with winners to be decided by a vote of the people.

With that in mind, the city of Clearwater is urging residents to vote once a day for Clearwater Beach until polls close on Monday, May 22, at noon.

USA Today's 10Best Readers' Choice Awards also posts a daily leaderboard, so residents can keep track of their favorite beach's standing.

The winning beaches, as determined by readers' votes, will be announced on Friday, June 2.

There's no big prize for winning other than bragging rights.

This isn't Clearwater Beach's first rodeo in the ranking ring, however.

The beach has earned top rankings from a hodgepodge of media sites and websites promoting everything from pet food to flood insurance.

Among its previous honors, USA Today first named Clearwater the best beach in the country back in 2012, according to Patch. The magazine also named Clearwater the Best Beach Town in 2013 and the No. 2 Florida Beach in 2015.

Clearwater Beach was also named No. 1 beach in the country by the travel site TripAdvisor in 2016, 2018, 2019 and 2020, while it earned No. 18 in 2013, No. 21 in 2014, No. 8 in 2015, No. 4 in 2017 and N0. 6 in 2019. In 2016 and 2020, TripAdvisor named Clearwater Beach to its list of top 25 beaches in the world.

Today.com named Clearwater Beach the No. 1 Beach in 2018 out of 355 beaches reviewed.

This year, on March 12, Southern Living magazine named the city of Clearwater No. 13 on its list of Best Southern Beach Towns and, in 2022, Southern Living named Clearwater Beach No. 2 on its list of the 25 Best Beaches in America.

Travel + Leisure is also in the ranking game. It named Clearwater Beach No. 5 on its list of 25 Best Beaches in the U.S.A. in 2022.

U.S. News & World Report joined the beach-ranking bandwagon as well, naming Clearwater Beach No. 5 on its list of Best Beaches in the U.S. out of 27.

This year, the nine judges from the USA Today's 10Best Readers' Choice Awards, who choose the finalists, touted Clearwater Beach for its perfectly groomed sugar-white sand beaches, warm Gulf of Mexico waters and picture-perfect sunsets that vary from pastel hues of pink and baby blue to fiery orange and yellow.

Related:

• Clearwater Beach Named Top Beach In U.S. By TripAdvisor
• Clearwater Beach Still Ranked Top Beach Destination in the USA
• No Surprise; Clearwater Beach Named America's Top Beach Again
• Is Clearwater Beach the Best Beach Town in Florida? USA Today Poll Says Yes Says
• Clearwater Among 50 Best Coastal Beach Towns In America

But it's the "upbeat social vibe" that packs in the people at Clearwater Beach, said the judges, including water sports and beach games during the day and live music and dancing at night.

They also gave points for Clearwater Beach's Beach Walk, "a winding beachside promenade with lush landscaping, artistic touches and unobstructed beach views" lined by restaurants ranging from mom-and-pop crab shacks to fine dining venues featuring menu items carefully curated by culinary masters.

The judges also gave Clearwater Beach a thumbs up for its "not-to-be-missed" daily sunset celebration at Pier 60 featuring local artisans and street performers and for providing visitors with a "safe and clean experience." The city noted that the beach is monitored by lifeguards year-round and is cleaned and raked every day by city staff.

Other beaches chosen as finalists by the panel of judges include:

1. Lauderdale-By-the-Sea Beach
2. Emerald Isle Beach in North Carolina
3. Venice Beach
4. Folly Beach, South Carolina
5. Virginia Beach Oceanfront, Virginia
6. Cape Hatteras National Seashore, South Carolina
7. Tigertail Beach on Marco Island
8. St. George Island Park, St. George Island
9. South Beach on Bald Head Island, North Carolina
10. Matagorda Beach, Texas
11. Driftwood Beach on Jekyll Island, Georgia
12. Hunting Island State Park, South Carolina
13. Gulf Shores Beach, Alabama
14. Bowman's Beach on Sanibel Island
15. Grayton Beach State Park in Santa Rosa
16. Mustang Island State Park in Corpus Christi, Texas
17. Anastasia State Park, St. Augustine
18. Stuart Beach in Stuart
19. Henderson Beach State Park in Destin

However questionable the accuracy or reliability of polls, Visit St. Pete/Clearwater, Pinellas County's visitor's bureau, and Amplify Clearwater, the city's chamber of commerce, have found the rankings to be good fodder for their promotional materials.

Plus, the rankings give residents and business owners something to brag about.