St. Pete Beach has been announced today as the No. 1 Beach in the United States and No. 5 in the World by TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice 2021.

“We take Tripadvisor’s awards very seriously in St. Pete/Clearwater. We have been home to the number one beach for four of the past six years, but after a devastating 2020 for travel, we’re especially honored to receive the Travelers’ Choice Award this year,” said Steve Hayes, President and CEO of Visit St. Pete/Clearwater. “Our communities, including St. Pete Beach and Madeira Beach, have done an amazing job building these great destinations and keeping their beaches pristine for travelers from near and far.”

St. Pete Beach was previously No. 1 in 2012. Last year St. Pete Beach was No. 2. Another beach in the destination, Madeira Beach, is at No. 9 in the Best in The U.S. rankings. Treasure Island is No. 16 and Clearwater Beach came in at No. 18.

St. Pete/Clearwater is the only Florida destination with beaches in the Top 10 and the area has now had Tripadvisor’s No. 1 beach in the U.S. four of the last six years and five of the last 10 years (2012, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2021). This is Madeira Beach’s first time making Tripadvisor’s Best Beaches list.

The Travelers’ Choice Best of the Best Beaches Awards reflect the opinions of real travelers worldwide, based on a combination of the quality and quantity of reviews and ratings, and the volume of saves from Tripadvisor travelers over the past year. The purpose of Travelers’ Choice Beaches this year is to provide travelers with a virtual escape from the continuous doom and gloom of COVID-19, and to act as inspiration on where they might want to go once travel opens up again.

While travelers cannot visit all of these beaches right now, they still plan to head to the beach at some point this year – according to recent TAPS Covid-19 insights, 55% of global travelers are extremely/very likely to take a beach trip in 2021.