Ftelia has long been famous: archaeologists believe a Neolithic settlement uncovered beside the bay to be the tomb of the Homeric hero Ajax. A far more recent but sure-to-be-a-hit addition to the beach on Mykonos’ wild northern shore is this club – an ‘open beach experience’ huddled into a sheltered corner. Blending world-class music with fantastic food in a dazzling beach setting, Lio Group took over this much-loved venue and installed a new lease of life by bringing the fun, freedom, and hedonism of Ibiza to Mykonos with a summer lineup featuring globally celebrated DJs. The space is fitted with an all-day dining restaurant serving fresh seafood among other tasty dishes curated by chef Stamatis Marmarino, two buzzing bars and a lounge area perfect for relaxing and sunbathing.
Address: Ftelia beach, Mikonos 846 00, Greece
Website: fteliapacha.com
Olive Bar and Kitchen, Goa
Mention the name Olive to any urban Indian and they’ll instantly recall the whitewashed walls, blue cushions, killer cocktails and breezy Mediterranean vibes evoked by one of the country’s most popular restaurant groups. But, intriguingly, until now it has only ever inhabited gentrified corners of cities, nowhere near, well, an actual beach.
All that changed when Olive Bar & Kitchen finally landed on a cliff overlooking Goa’s sleepy, hippie Vagator Beach in summer 2020 – a world away from some of the more raucous, divey bars dotting the coastline. It’s a curious sliver of Santorini on the Arabian Sea, with baskets of help-yourself flip-flops, wicker chairs and a Goan-meets-Greek menu: expect the likes of baked sardines, roasted chicken, jaggery cheesecake with coconut cream and signature thin-crust pizzas. And to drink there’s the Goa Trance, a punchy, tantalising concoction of multiple spirits – one too many of the tipples will have you returning first thing the following morning (or afternoon, realistically) for one of the bar’s ‘hangover cure’ drinks.
Address: Olive Bar & Kitchen, Unit 1, Vagator Helipad Big Vagator, Anjuna, Goa, 403509, India
Website: olivebarandkitchen.com
Basil’s Bar, Mustique
This shabby, endlessly talked-about, perennially loved over-water Caribbean party shack has been totally renovated – surprisingly, by Philippe Starck. Villa owners and islanders had every right to be wary. And yet you can still nurse a beer while the children snorkel with turtles in the bay. Still flop into bleached-teak rocking chairs, watching superyachts at anchor.
Still, arrive sea-soaked and sandy-footed for a Rum Runner while Bon Jovi and Bryan Adams take turns on the mic. In fact, anyone who’s never been before wouldn’t know that the clusters of straw hats along the beams weren’t legitimately lost property, nor have any inkling that the Mustique Company poured millions of dollars into it, because it still looks and feels like the real deal.
Old hands can appreciate the addition of the open-sided kitchen where chefs work their magic; the sweet bazaar selling surf kit; and the clever walkway from which you can spy rays gliding around under the deck. It’s just that the overhanging thatch is a bit neater, the painted wood lighter, and the dance floor more inviting. Ask Basil what his verdict is while he’s mixing you a Hurricane David (you should still definitely only have one, though).
Address: Basil’s Bar, St Vincent and the Grenadines
Website: basilsbar.com
Assaona, Mallorca
While most clubs around the bay of Palma – Purobeach, Nikki Beach, Anima Beach – veer towards a particular sort of bright, Champagne-popping, leather-beds flash, Assaona offers something different, picking up a more boho vibe by riffing on the smartened chiringuitos that have lined Ibiza’s shores for years but seem to have eluded Mallorca until now. Rough-hewn wooden tables, swinging oversized basket lights and straw-fringed parasols have transformed the old Nassau Beach site.
Of course, the setting – that amazing spot at the edge of the sandy beach at Portixol, with soaring views of the cathedral – hasn’t changed. The food is also on point: smokey grilled octopus, juicy beef tenderloin and fluffy rice littered with seafood delights, all served by staff in pressed desert-coloured linen to match the fat cushions on the benches, the canvas sail shades, Gervasoni sofas and seagrass rugs. Assaona marks a shift for this part of the island – a move away from the booming music and plastic wine glasses of high-summer high-jinks and towards a lovely, low-key destination that has resonance year-round.
Address: Assaona, Passeig Portitxol, 07006 Palma, Illes Balears, Spain
Website: assaona.com
Krabo, Athens Riviera
In 1960, a doctor named Giagkos Stavridis constructed a complex of holiday apartments in Vouliagmeni, a pine-fringed finger of land that curves into a deep-blue bay 12 miles from the Acropolis. He called it The Margi, after his two daughters, Maria and Gina. That same year, the Astir Palace hotel opened around the headland. And just like that, the Athens Riviera was born. Sixty years later, Vouliagmeni is still the capital’s most refined seaside enclave, with its yacht club, Matsuhisa restaurant and high-rolling beach scene. The Astir Palace has since reopened as Greece’s first Four Seasons, attracting a new wave of discerning tourists to this corner of the mainland. The space, from the earthy-toned restaurant to the sunloungers dotted along the beach, certainly complements the natural beauty of the area – it could be said that many along the Athenian Riviera disrupt it, may we say. The Mediterranean-leaning menus utilise organic and seasonal produce, fried squid served alongside sweet chilli jam, followed by hearty mains of grilled meatballs and flaky sea bass served right off the BBQ.
Address: Krabo, Zoska Bay, Thespidos Street, Vouliagmeni, 16671, Athens Riviera, Greece
Website: krabo.gr
La Brisa, Bali
Peeling-paint canoes transformed into plant-filled cabinets line paths leading to thatched treehouses, a turquoise pool with comfy daybeds and seats for sundowners looking over the surf. La Brisa feels like Robinson Crusoe sipped a few rums and jazzed up his shacks into a barefoot beach escape. There are nautical nods with chairs made from old barrels and antique buoys fashioned into twinkly lights. This place is more than artfully distressed, though; the wood used to build it came from 500 disused boats. The result? Plenty of upcycled touches, accompanied by scorching sunsets, Basil Beauty cocktails (vodka, passion fruit, pineapple and herbs) and locally caught seafood. Service is laid-back, but with surroundings this funky, an island-time approach is forgivable. On Sundays, the beachfront transforms into LYD Market, a buzzy celebration of creative and sustainable living often attracting more than 100 curated vendors. Pick up one-of-a-kind mementoes and treats for loved ones back home, from homemade beauty products to zero-waste essentials and organic goodies.
Address: La Brisa, Jl. Pantai Batu Mejan, Canggu, Kuta Utara, Kabupaten Badung, Bali 80361, Indonesia
Website: labrisabali.com
Chiringuito Puente Romano, Marbella
Right in the middle of the ‘good’ side of Marbella, Chiringuito Puente Romano is all about celebrating the more mellow vibes. This starts at breakfast with healthy fresh-pressed juices (watermelon, mint and aloe vera), iced teas and coconut water, and is followed up by sun-sleepy lunches of beetroot, quinoa, burrata and zucchini salads, huge sharing plates of seafood spaghetti and whole sea bass baked in salt. Pink wine is taken very seriously, with magnums of Ibizkus rosé bobbing around in ice buckets beside most tables. Chiringuito Puente Romano is part of Puente Romano Beach Resort, with its nightclubs and Nobu, so it’s not as low-key as its Balearic sister, but it’s definitely the most chilled-out spot on this hectic stretch of coast.
Address: Chiringuito Puente Romano, 29602 Marbella, Málaga, Spain
Website: puenteromano.com
Anhinga by OD, Turkey
Here are Greek architects K-Studio doing what they do best: a rustic aesthetic of raffia lanterns, tadelakt floors, patterned Turkish towels, and a lo-fi Ibiza-afternoon soundtrack. In the wrong hands, this sepia-toned styling would be a brown hash, but here, on the Aegean coast of Turkey, under the blazing sun, it’s ravishing. Chef and restaurateur Osman Sezener’s menu is notably more extensive than that offered in other beach clubs, meaning feasting needn’t interrupt tanning beside the glittering water. Crunch through octopus carpaccio salads at a leisurely pace, slurp oysters down with a tipple from the curated wine list (boasting several Turkish bottles), or indulge in something heartier from the wood-fired grill. After lunch, everyone slopes down to the canvas-canopied sunbeds on the beach to swim, paddleboard or leap off the pontoon. Villa owners in the surrounding pine-covered hills have their own WhatsApp group, suggesting “Drinks at the bar in 10?” Then they swoop in, turn up the music and party until cries of “last orders” ring out into the starry night.
Address: Anhinga by OD, Six Senses Kaplankaya, Bozbük Mahallesi, Merkez Sokak No:198, 48200 Milas/Muğla, Turkey
Website: kaplankaya.com
Hippie Fish, The Netherlands
A bright strip of beach bars on the sand softens the impact of the glass-and-concrete seafront of Zandvoort aan Zee. At the quieter end, just before seaside tack peters out into empty dunes, Hippie Fish strikes a gentle note: a whitewashed wooden hut with wicker sofas and stools dotted beside it. Inside are sofas in neutral colours, and (all too necessary for fickle Northern European summers) a couple of open hearths. Dutch design meets down-to-earth Dutch attitude: barefoot servers bring bottled beer, wine, fresh fruit juice, or the odd G&T rather than complicated cocktails. Children muck about in the sand. Hipster beards grow gritty. The food is good, from bar snacks (croquettes, mini spring rolls) to light lunches (cauliflower-and-tofu burgers) and sit-down dinners (langoustine bisque, razor clams). It’s a place to de-stress from morning to midnight.
Address: Hippie Fish, Boulevard Paulus Loot 3, 2042 AD Zandvoort, Netherlands
Website: hippiefish.nl
Tresanton Beach Club, Cornwall
When Olga Polizzi dreams up a beach club, she does it her way: with easy elegance. At this breezy spot at the Tresanton Hotel in pretty St Mawes, guests mingle on Mediterranean-style terraces – smart blue-and-white parasols, semitropical plants – sunbathing in swimsuits or sipping cold-pressed juices. A skip across the street from the hotel, the club sits above Tavern Beach, to which it has direct access. Choose from a menu that includes crab sandwiches, hearty burgers and homemade ice cream. Alternatively, order a round of Champagne and oysters, or see if you can identify the secret ingredient in the bar manager’s Bloody Mary. Opening times are British-weather-dependent; prepare to get cosy with a blanket. Whatever the clime, it’s a lovely place to forget everything humdrum while gazing towards St Anthony’s Lighthouse, with families rockpooling below.
Address: Tresanton Beach Club, 27 Lower Castle Road, St Mawes, Truro TR2 5DR
Website: tresanton.com
Grand Beach, Cape Town
Revamped by South African architect David Townsend, this Miami-meets-St-Tropez hideaway is a rare find in a city that, while not short on sea-view sundowner spots, bans booze on its beaches. Just a couple of metres from the Atlantic Ocean, beneath a fleet of swaying palms, a former crayfish warehouse serves as the restaurant with outdoor tables on the sand. Staff glide between pink Parisian café chairs with platters of fresh seafood and metre-long, paper-thin-crust pizzas topped with prawns or miso-roasted aubergine, sun-dried tomato and tzatziki. Cocktails include the Grand African Tiki (rum, fresh mango and coconut), and there are excellent craft beers and local estate wines. The best seat in the house? The private dining area on the water’s edge, adjoining one of the several small bars at Grand Beach, all housed in old shipping containers.
Address: Grand Beach, Granger Bay Road (off Beach Road), Granger Bay, 8005, South Africa
Website: grandafrica.com
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