Barbados among 100 best beaches

Two St Philip beaches have been ranked as among the world’s 100 best beaches in a Facebook poll carried on CNN.com.
Crane Beach is ranked 23rd, while Bottom Bay was voted into the 91st spot.
The Crane was cited for its gentle waves, perfect for boogie boarding. It was noted for its “pinkish sands, no rocks or other feet-slicing things in the shallows”.
“… this stretch of sunny Barbadian serenity can be accessed by a staircase or beachfront elevator from The Crane resort, making it as novel as it is beautiful.”As for Bottom Bay, the highlights given were “turtles and whales can sometimes be spotted from the tops of the cliffs overlooking the ocean”.
The beach was described as “one of the few beautiful beaches in Barbados to have escaped development overkill. Bottom Bay is enclosed by high coral cliffs, making it an almost undiscovered pocket of paradise”.
The poll is based, according to CNN.com, on the recommendations of travellers and included beaches from every continent.
The site said: “We’ve scoured the planet, demanded answers from our most well-travelled friends, colleagues and cohorts, absorbed passionate pleas from readers, researched, investigated and examined the evidence then finally tipped the sand from our shoes, washed the brine from our eyes and put together a pretty good guide to the best beaches on the planet.
“Now we turn it over to you. Consider this list a premise, a platform from which you can jump into a dazzling, turquoise ocean of ‘further recommendations’.”
The best beach was voted as Grande Anse Beach, La Digue Island in the Seychelles.
Three Caribbean beaches placed in the top ten.
Grace Bay, Providenciales in the Turks and Caicos Islands was third, Anse de Grande Saline, St Barts was fifth, while sixth pot went to Cabbage Beach, Paradise Island in the Bahamas. In the first 30 choices, seven Caribbean beaches got the nod, and in the total list, 14 in all were named. (SP)