Sun, Sand and Stress? Why Europe’s Famous Beaches Are Getting Bad Reviews

Every summer, millions of tourists flock to Europe’s beaches dreaming of a relaxing escape — soft sands, clear waters, and a peaceful vibe. But for many, that dream quickly turns into a stressful reality.

A new report by cloud tech firm Cloudwards analysed over 1.3 million TripAdvisor reviews from 200 of the world’s most visited beaches. The goal? To find out which beaches people complain about the most — and why. Spoiler alert: Europe dominates the list, and not in a good way.

Top Complaints: Overcrowding, Dirtiness, and Noise

The research looked specifically at complaints related to overcrowding, dirtiness, long queues, and noise. Unsurprisingly, overcrowding was the biggest issue, with 8 out of the 10 most crowded beaches located in Europe.

Leading the pack was Sardinia’s La Pelosa in Italy — a stunning beach surrounded by turquoise water. But despite its beauty, nearly 87% of its negative reviews mentioned how unbearably crowded it gets. Not far behind was Spiaggia La Cinta, another Sardinian gem, also slammed for similar reasons.

The UK’s own Bournemouth Beach earned the title of Europe’s most complained-about beach overall, placing fifth globally. Visitors cited both the cramped conditions and cleanliness issues.

Greece’s Beaches: Pretty but Problematic

While Greece didn’t rank as badly for overcrowding as Italy, its beaches raised eyebrows in other areas. Balos Lagoon in Crete ranked high for dirtiness, with nearly half of its negative reviews mentioning poor cleanliness.

Elafonissi Beach, famous for its pink sand, saw over 70% of its complaints focused on crowding. Meanwhile, Porto Katsiki in Lefkada made the global top 10 for noise, a sharp contrast to the serene postcard images tourists expect.

Too Much Hype, Not Enough Space

So, why is this happening? Experts say the issue boils down to a mix of:

Limited beach space

Peak-season surges

Social media hype that brings massive tourist crowds to places not built to handle them

Many of these beaches look like paradise in photos, but when too many people show up, the magic quickly fades.

How Countries Are Fighting Back

In response to the mounting pressure, several countries are introducing new rules:

Sardinia now limits daily visitors to popular beaches, requires advance bookings, and even bans beach towels to protect the sand.

Greece introduced a €20 fee for cruise tourists visiting hotspots like Mykonos and Santorini.

Spain has banned alcohol on some beaches and started fining bad behaviour.

These changes are part of a wider attempt to manage overtourism and protect natural attractions.