The Most Popular U.S. Beaches, From Ocean City to Honolulu
The Daily Beast crunched the numbers to find where the most faithful beachgoers are laying down their blankets this year.
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With Fourth of July upon us and summer season in full swing, The Daily Beast set out for the third year to find which shores are attracting the most beach blankets. We used data from more than 100 of the country's busiest beaches from the United States Lifesaving Association and five-year population estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau, and scored each destination equally on overall attendance and beachgoers per-capita to determine which of the 25 shores are the most popular.
Getty; Shutterstock
25. Palm Beach, Florida
Beachgoers: 3,474,241
Population: 1,324,085
Beachgoers per capita: 2.6
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24. Encinitas, California
Beachgoers: 2,748,951
Population: 59,782
Beachgoers per capita: 46
Mike Blake/Reuters
23. Seal Beach, California
Beachgoers: 2,000,000
Population: 24,308
Beachgoers per capita: 82.3
Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty
22. Maui, Hawaii
Beachgoers: 3,431,142
Population: 154,937
Beachgoers per capita: 22.1
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21. Hilton Head, South Carolina
Beachgoers: 2,500,000
Population: 37,420
Beachgoers per capita: 66.8
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20. Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Beachgoers: 3,792,815
Population: 167,370
Beachgoers per capita: 22.7
Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg, via Getty
19. Oceanside, California
Beachgoers: 4,261,226
Population: 167,799
Beachgoers per capita: 25.4
Mike Blake/Reuters
18. Clearwater Beach, Florida
Beachgoers: 4,500,000
Population: 108,138
Beachgoers per capita: 41.6
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17. Sarasota, Florida
Beachgoers: 5,331,330
Population: 380,479
Beachgoers per capita: 14
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16. Long Beach, California
Beachgoers: 6,700,000
Population: 463,589
Beachgoers per capita: 14.5
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15. Cape May, New Jersey
Beachgoers: 1,083,732
Population: 3,774
Beachgoers per capita: 287.2
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14. Hollywood Beach, Florida
Beachgoers: 6,677,893
Population: 142,060
Beachgoers per capita: 47
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13. Jacksonville Beach, Florida
Beachgoers: 4,000,000
Population: 21,470
Beachgoers per capita: 186.3
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12. Laguna Beach, California
Beachgoers: 4,785,250
Population: 22,873
Beachgoers per capita: 209.2
Lucas Jackson/Reuters
11. North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Beachgoers: 4,000,000
Population: 13,926
Beachgoers per capita: 287.2
Denis Jr. Tangney/Getty
10. Daytona Beach, Florida
Beachgoers: 10,000,000
Population: 495,581
Beachgoers per capita: 20.2
Mary Ann Anderson/MCT, via Getty
9. Huntington Beach, California
Beachgoers: 10,497,969
Population: 191,403
Beachgoers per capita: 54.8
Lucy Nicholson/Reuters
8. Newport Beach, California
Beachgoers: 9,703,500
Population: 85,323
Beachgoers per capita: 113.7
Ali Majdfar/Getty
7. South Padre Island, Texas
Beachgoers: 1,500,000
Population: 2,837
Beachgoers per capita: 528.7
Edward A. Ornelas/San Antonio Express-News, via Zuma
6. Miami Beach, Florida
Beachgoers: 12,027,832
Population: 88,628
Beachgoers per capita: 135.7
Joe Raedle/Getty
5. Del Mar, California
Beachgoers: 2,559,384
Population: 4,197
Beachgoers per capita: 609.8
Mike Blake/Reuters
4. Honolulu, Hawaii
Beachgoers: 17,737,954
Population: 955,215
Beachgoers per capita: 18.6
Larry Downing/Reuters
3. Ocean City, Maryland
Beachgoers: 4,500,000
Population: 7,134
Beachgoers per capita: 630.8
Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post, via Getty
2. San Diego, California
Beachgoers: 23,100,326
Population: 1,308,619
Beachgoers per capita: 17.7
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1. Rehoboth Beach, Delaware
Beachgoers: 2,500,000
Population: 1,105
Beachgoers per capita: 2,262.4
Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post, via Getty
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