A seaside town and a seaside village in Fife have been ranked among the best in the UK in Which?’s new guide.
The list comes from the consumer group’s “biggest national seaside survey ever”, highlighting top seaside destinations across the UK to inspire readers planning a staycation or day trip.
Each location is given an overall destination score and positioned in the ranking based on several factors, such as beach quality and the standard of the seafront or pier.
The survey also takes into account food and drink options, tourist attractions, scenery, shopping facilities, parking, value for money and typical hotel prices.
Peace and quiet is also a category, helping you find out whether you’ll be able to enjoy your surroundings in peace while there.
St Andrews and Crail both find themselves inside the top 5 best seaside spots with high destination scores of 81% and 80%, respectively.
They also ranked higher than Cornwall hotspots such as Bude, St Ives and Falmouth.
St Andrew’s ranking came from solid scores in most categories (scored out of five stars):
- Average hotel price - £145
- Beach – 5 stars
- Seafront/pier – 5 stars
- Food and drink – 4 stars
- Tourist attractions – 5 stars
- Scenery – 5 stars
- Shopping – 4 stars
- Peace and quiet – 2 stars
- Parking – 2 stars
- Value for money – 2 stars
Crail also ranked highly across the board:
- Average hotel price - £144
- Beach – 3 stars
- Seafront/pier – 5 stars
- Food and drink – 3 stars
- Tourist attractions – 2 stars
- Scenery – 5 stars
- Shopping – 2 stars
- Peace and quiet – 4 stars
- Parking – 3 stars
- Value for money – 3 stars
Recommended reading:
- 8 Scottish beaches named among UK's best to visit in 2026
- Scotland 'a magnet' as thousands move up from rest of UK, figures show
- I visited 'the most Scottish place outside of Scotland' – and took away one thing
Other Scottish seaside towns and villages among the best in the UK, with a destination score of 50% or above, are:
- North Berwick
- Plockton
- Dornoch
- Tobermory
- Pittenweem
- Ullapool
- Nairn
- Stonehaven
- Largs
- Oban
- Dunbar
- Portpatrick
- Portree
- Ayr
Which seaside town in Scotland is your favourite? Tell us in the comments below.
