Photo by: Martin Allred

2-18-2015

The tally is finally  in and according to Tripadvisor, Sarasota’s Siesta Beach is ranked # 1 beach in the United States.  Several other Florida beaches rounded out the top 10 including, St. Pete Beach, St. Petersburg, Florida taking the # 2 spot.

Now, if only I could do something about the traffic.

On the Travelers’ Choice list for the United States, Florida made huge gains on Hawaii this year. According to TripAdvisor search traffic, interest in top 10-ranked Florida beaches is up on average 69% year-over-year.

Last year’s list featured Hawaiian beaches in seven of the top 10 spots, with only two Florida beaches listed in the top 10. This year, six Florida beaches ranked in the top 10, with only three in Hawaii.

This year’s No. 1 U.S. beach, Siesta Beach in Siesta Key, Florida, edged out last year’s top ranked Lanikai Beach in Kailua, Hawaii.

Here are 2015’s top 10 U.S. beaches:

1. Siesta Beach, Siesta Key, Florida

2. St. Pete Beach, St. Petersburg, Florida

3. Ka’anapali Beach, Lahaina, Maui, Hawaii

4. Wai’anapanapa State Park, Hana, Maui, Hawaii

5. Pensacola Beach, Pensacola Beach, Florida

6. La Jolla Cove, La Jolla, California

7. Kailua Beach Park, Kailua, Oahu, Hawaii

8. Clearwater Beach, Clearwater, Florida

9. St. Augustine Beach, St. Augustine, Florida

10. Beach at Panama City, Panama City Beach, Florida