Travel & Tourism

12 underrated beaches you can fly to from Manchester for as little as £28

From giant dunes to pink sand.

Daisy Jackson - 24th May 2025

Our run of unseasonably dry and sunny weather is coming to an end (I know, just in time for the bank holiday, how rude), and if you’re desperate for more of it, it might be time to escape our lovely Manchester.

Travel experts at Manchester Airport have put together 12 underrated but beautiful beaches you can jet off to from here.

And with flights starting from just £28 return, there’s plenty to tempt you away from town and into Tunisia (or a number of other destinations).

The list includes far-flung trips to Mexico and the USA as well as some little-known beaches that are much closer to home.

Manchester Airport is predicting that more than a million passengers will travel through Manchester over half term, with popular beach resorts in Europe expected to be packed with sun-seekers.

So these less popular locations might give you the chance of having a bit of peace and quiet while you sun yourself on the shores.

Playa de Las Catedrales, Galicia

Let’s start with the proper bargain – you can jet off to Spain’s underrated north-west coast, the Galicia region, for less than £30 this summer.

The most famous beach here is Playa de Las Catedrales, or ‘Beach of the Cathedrals’, where natural rock arches tower over smooth white sands.

You’ll need to hire a car and commit to around a three-hour drive to make it here from Santander, but it’ll be worth it.

Fly from Manchester to Santander with Ryanair from £28pp return

Dune du Pilat, Arcachon

Fancy spending your day relaxing on the highest sand dune in Europe, before spending an evening in a town that’s famous for its seafood? This is the one.

Arcachon is around an hour from Bordeaux, and the Dune du Pilat towers at almost 350ft high and a mile in length.

It means it’s never too crowded and you’ll always get a spot to take in a sunset.

Fly from Manchester to Bordeaux with easyJet from £84pp return

Golden Horn Beach, Croatia 

When a lot of us think of summer beach adventure, we think of Croatia – and you can whizz off to Split from just over £100 per person.

On the island of Brac, you’ll find Golden Horn Beach, surrounded by a pine forest and shimmering aquamarine waters.

From windsurfing to swimming it’s a popular spot, and only a 20 minute stroll from the town of Bol.

Fly from Manchester to Split with easyJet from £105pp return

Elafonisi, Crete

Fancy a little holiday to Greece? Look no further than Crete, the largest of the country’s 6000 islands and home to one of the world’s most famous beaches – because it’s pink.

Elafonisi Beach is a narrow strip of sand wrapped around a shallow lagoon, with crystal clear emerald waters.

It’s picked up this mesmerising pink hue thanks to all the shells scattered along the shoreline.

Fly from Manchester to Chania with Ryanair from £92pp return

Holbox, Mexico

Let’s go a little further afield now – all the way to sunny Mexico.

Pass beyond the party hotspot of Cancun, with its year-round flights and all-inclusive holidays, and head out to the island of Holbox.

It’s about 40 miles north and a total tropical paradise – expect white sands, laid-back vibes, local beach bars and restaurants.

You can even swim with whale sharks in summer, and may see flocks of wild flamingos and pelicans.

Fly from Manchester to Cancun from £290pp return

Cala Goritze, Sardinia

Ciao bella, it’s time for a trip over to one of Italy’s much less touristic destinations – the island of Sardinia.

Beaches here are unspoiled and uncrowded, like Cala Goritze on the east coast, which is only accessible by boat from Santa Maria Navarrese, or a three-mile hike.

Once you get here, you’ll be rewarded with a white sand cove and limestone cliffs.

Fly from Manchester to Olbia with TUI from £90pp return

Legzira Beach, Morocco 

If you think of souks and riads when you think of Morocco, think again – it’s also got some of the world’s best beaches, like those that pepper the coast around Agadir.

If you head a couple of hours south of this popular city, you’ll find the sleepy town of Legzira, said to look almost Martian with its red sands, dunes and cliffs thanks to the sands blown over from the Sahara desert.

A centrepiece is the Arch of Legzira, which splits the beach in two with just a narrow walkway that’s cut off at high tide.

Fly from Manchester to Agadir with TUI from £94pp return

Praia de Porto Santo, Madeira

Madeira is rocketing in popularity these days, but there are still undiscovered gems to find for yourself.

Take the two-hour ferry to the neighbouring island of Porto Santo, where the beach has a five-mile stretch of golden sand, family-run restaurants, and a golf course.

Flights to Funchal – Madeira’s capital – are a bargain too.

Fly from Manchester to Funchal with Ryanair from £56pp return

Scala dei Turchi, Sicily

Italy pops up a few times on this list for good reason – affordable flights from Manchester, great food, and gorgeous quiet beaches. Just like this one.

The Scala dei Turchi, or ‘Turkish Steps’, are hugely popular with locals but seem to fly under the radar for international tourists.

They’re white cliffs that descend to the sea in a series of jagged, sloping platforms like a staircase, ending in golden sands and gentle blue waters.

The area was apparently a haven for Turkish pirates in previous centuries, hence the name.

Fly from Manchester to Catania with Jet2.com from £188pp return

Plage de Sidi Mahrez, Tunisia

On Africa’s north coast is the popular holiday destination of Tunisia, but swerve the busy Hammamet-Sousse region near Tunis and instead go to the island of Djerba.

You can fly here direct from Manchester for a holiday filled with gorgeous beaches.

One of the best is Plage de Sidi Mahrez, a 10-mile stretch of white sand with a laid back atmosphere where you can enjoy water sports and camel rides.

Fly from Manchester to Djerba with easyJet from £157pp return

Shell Beach, Herm

Did you know the British Isles could do beaches this well, and with such a short flight from Manchester?

Over on the tiny Channel Island of Herm is Shell Beach, made up of millions of multi-coloured shell fragments washed in from the Atlantic ocean.

There’s almost a mile of golden shores to explore, with a much nicer climate than the mainland, and you can reach Herm with a 20-minute ferry from St Peter Port in Guernsey.

Herm is also a car-free island, but it’s only a 15 minute walk from the ferry terminal to the beach.

Fly from Manchester to Guernsey with Aurigny from £130pp return

Smith Point County Park, Long Island (NY)

If you ever fly to the Big Apple but find yourself thinking ‘Actually, that’s a bit too much Big Apple now’, turn yourself around and head to nearby Long Island.

In summer, it has a climate similar to the Mediterranean and loads of beaches, like the legendary Coney Island Beach with thrill rides, a boardwalk and family attractions.

A quieter spot is Smith Point Country Park, popular with families for camping and wildlife watching – you’ve got a good chance of spotting dolphins here.

Fly from Manchester to New York JFK with AerLingus from £350pp return

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Featured image: Alejandro Pérez on Unsplash