Horseshoe Bay

Lovely beach and the $7 per person (each way) for the shared rides from the Royal Naval Dockyard cruise terminal is a great price as it is a pretty long drive (25 minutes). They have decent bathrooms and foot washing stations for free, and the area is generally free of trash and no one harassing you to buy anything. Unfortunately, Bermuda is just expensive - I was hoping to try some local cocktails, but they were $18 - $22 each here, a pretty expensive premium over the already expensive price of cruise ship drinks. Also, the charges for beach chairs and umbrellas are ridik. We arrived at 4PM, so the day is basically wrapping up already. When we walked up to 2 chairs and 1 umbrella together, we asked how much and they told us $20. Great, sold....but then he said it was $20 per chair so we said we would think about it. We later went back and said we would take for $40....and he proceeded to say that doesn't include the umbrella, which he would remove unless we paid $10 for it. We said we would think about it. Then we said fine (it was HOT and sunny), we will take it, and he said the price was now $20 and he didn't remember saying it was $10. So, basically $60 for a few hours use of 2 chairs and umbrella that were already sitting there unused. At 5PM they started putting everything away anyhow (but did not ask to take ours). Anyhow, nice beach but this left a...

Get there early!

Whether you're in Bermuda staying at a resort or if you're in by way of a cruise, you need to plan to get to Horseshoe Bay early.

We (two adults and a baby) traveled by bus from the dockyard, which was easy, but be warned the bus stops are a 10-15 minute walk up a stepped platform from the beach entrance. If you go by way of taxi or a private shuttle, there is a parking lot right next to the entrance.

Access to the beach is free, but they have a private company that provides rentals for chairs and umbrellas. We arrived around 9:00 AM and we're probably 4th in line for rentals. Most of the people already on the beach were locals. The staff here were friendly (everyone in Bermuda is friendly, I don't know how) but were also very accommodating. We were just going to get one chair and an umbrella, but the staff member suggested that we get chairs in the cove area, at this time of day they were largely in shade so for the same price of a chair and umbrella, we just got two chairs and it was perfect.

By 10 AM, chairs were filling up and people were coming in droves.

The beach is beautiful and absolutely worth the visit and there is a bar located near the entrance. There is also a public bathroom where you can change or rinse off. A...

Simply unreal. The bulk of the beach itself is excellent, and world class. However, you should stroll down the beach a bit into the rocky section, because that is also a uniquely stunning. You can catch some shade, too, under the overhanging rock formations.

The water itself is very gentle, making it a wonderful place to swim. This is due to the coral farther off the coast.

There is a modest shop to rent things and pick up food. Also, there is a bus stop and often taxis at the entrance.

There is a smaller area, almost like a kiddie pool, when you head to the right.

Lastly, there is a massive rock that is commonly climbed. It is steep, but very easy to walk up, and it provides an amazing view of the beach and ocean.

Overall, this has to be one of the best beaches, right up there with the British Virgin Islands, Seychelles, Thailand, and more. The only hard part is landing a perfectly sunny day.

One quick thing: be careful of Portuguese man o' war jellyfish. I never saw them nearby while swimming, but they will often be washed ashore, here or there, earlier in the day. These are especially painful jellyfish, so be very...