Sitges Beach in Barcelona Named Happiest Beach in the World

We’re pretty sure any day at any beach could be just the thing to make anyone happier. However, it turns out there are some beaches around the world that are a little bit better than others at packing in the joy. 

In March, CV Villas, a global luxury villa rental company, unveiled its list of the happiest beaches in the world. The way the company went about finding them was rather scientific. It first created a seed list of 103 of the world’s most popular beaches. Next, it analyzed over 1,000 Instagram photos tagged in each beach and used AWS Rekognition software to analyze the images to find “positive facial expressions.” It then calculated an average smile score for each beach (giving it a grade from 0 to 100) and ranked them from highest to lowest.

After doing all that data work, it named Barcelona’s Sitges Beach the World’s Happiest Beach.

“Sitges Beach in Barcelona, Spain, is crowned the world’s happiest beach, with a near-perfect happiness score of 98.42 out of a possible 100,” the findings revealed. “Just outside Spain’s popular city, it is much beloved among locals and travelers for a mix of smooth sands and warm, welcoming atmosphere with a lively promenade, too.” 

One traveler took to Tripadvisor to call out that the beach has “nice sand and there were sea walls that allowed a peaceful sea area.”

However, this beach isn’t the only one from Spain to make the list. “Mallorca’s Port de Soller ranked third with a smile score of 96.95,” the findings revealed. “Framed by the Tramuntana mountains, the Mediterranean hotspot leaves beachgoers grinning and ready to snap photos, admiring the view.”

In fact, the entire Iberian Peninsula proved to hold the secret to happiness.  

“Following in the rankings, neighboring Portugal claims four spots in the top 20, with Praia da Falésia (97.24) and Praia Dona Ana (94.31) landing in second and seventh place, respectively,” the findings noted. “Both located in Southern Portugal, Instagram users seem particularly keen on showing off bright smiles while dipping into the turquoise waters on offer in this part of the world.” 

Wales also had a strong showing, taking the fourth and fifth spots with Rhossili Bay and Caswell Bay, respectively. And naturally, Greece had a fantastic showing in this list, claiming five beaches, including Elafonisi Beach (93.34) and Ai Helis in Kefalonia (92.25) at No. 10. (The company noted, “If you’re planning your next summer escape, Elafonisi Beach, in Crete, is particularly popular for striking sands with an ombre pink facade, making for a perfect photo opportunity.”)

However, there were a few top happy beaches outside of Europe as well, with Cannon Beach in Oregon snagging No. 16 and Siesta Key Beach in Florida taking No. 21. But, again, this is a beach day we’re talking about. So if you get to have one anywhere, ever, make sure to smile about it.