21 Blackgang beach, Isle of Wight

Quite simply, Blackgang beach is a strong contender for the most beautiful – and rarely visited – of all the island’s beaches. The reason for its low profile is clear enough: it is inaccessible to all but the most determined and reached by a steep, sometimes awkward (but never dangerous) path – which may also explain why it’s also the island’s unofficial nudist beach. The walk from car park to beach takes around 15 minutes but can feel much longer. The reward is a glorious beach of ochre coloured, fine-gained pebbles (your feet sink ever so slightly as you cross the beach) that lies under a magnificent sandstone escarpment that looks like a vast slab of honeycomb. On sunny days it is not too fanciful to think that the beach could pass for an iconic image of a remote part of Australia’s coastline. MR