Walks of LIFE: 2008 World Best Beach

10 EMERALD BAY, PANGKOR LAUT, MALAYSIA

This island, three miles off the west coast of Malaysia, has pale aqua waters, fine golden sand and emerald-green rainforest rising behind the bay. Its 300 acres are privately owned, so the place is not overrun with tourists – and a real effort has been made at conservation.

9 FERNANDO DE NORONHA, BRAZIL, SOUTH AMERICA

Set in a marine reserve 200 miles off the mainland, this island has a strict eco-policy: only a few hundred visitors are allowed each day. Its beaches are lively near the small villages, empty in the surrounding nature reserves. There is an extinct volcano, with cliffs plunging to the sea and sea pools formed from its craters. The long white beaches are surrounded by waters thronging with barracudas, rays, giant turtles, 14 species of shark and pods of up to 600 dolphins. This is the place for fabulous beach walks – particularly from Praia do Cachorro to Sueste (where footballers and surfers hang out at sunset, caipirinhas in hand) and along the sands of Praia do Leão, where turtles nest.

8 GARDNER BAY, ISLA ESPANOLA, GALAPAGOS ISLANDS

The only way to access this mile-and-a-quarter of white sand is with a National Parks ranger – and for good reason. The shoreline is home to sea lions, marine iguanas, turtles, pelicans, boobies and 10,000 pairs of waved albatrosses that nest on the island between April and November.

7 MNEMBA ISLAND, TANZANIA, EAST AFRICA

Of all the small islands to stay on, Mnemba is one of the most romantic. It is tiny, taking half an hour to walk around, but it has everything: coral gardens on one side, crashing waves on the other and creamy white sand the consistency of flour. Because the interior is pine forest, you are serenaded by the cooing of doves as soon as you walk off the beach where turtles also come to nest. The only inhabitants are the staff of Mnemba Island Lodge, plus the 20 or so guests.

6 VIXEN POINT, PRICKLY PEAR ISLAND, BVI

Ask serious yachties where in the Caribbean they would like to moor for a day, and they will often say Prickly Pear Island – declared a National Park in 1988. The sand is pale, the natural woodland acts as a windbreak, there are no rip currents, and the gently sloping sand allows bathers to immerse themselves in the sea slowly. Vixen Point is close to Necker, Branson’s island hideaway – the ideal base for a day trip here, if money is no object.

5 WINEGLASS BAY, TASMANIA, AUSTRALIA

There are only two ways of getting to this beach in the Freycinet National Park : by boat and on foot – and the foot option isn’t easy. The trek there and back, through the towering Hazard Mountains, can take three hours – with a steep 40-minute climb. It is worth it, however, for the pure sand, the warm, sheltered, pale sapphire water and the birdlife – ranging from white-bellied sea eagles to New Holland honeyeaters.

4 NOORDHOEK, CAPE TOWN,

SOUTH AFRICA

This isn’t a swimming beach – the Atlantic here is strong and cold, with monster waves – but it is one of the most magnificent stretches of white powder sand on which to ride horses. There are more than four miles of the stuff, punctuated only by dunes and pieces of driftwood.

3 PAMPELONNE, ST TROPEZ,

FRANCE

Not much has changed since the days of Colette, the French novelist who rubbed shoulders here with Matisse and the Prince of Wales. While still oozing sophistication, Pampelonne attracts more flash cash than blue-blooded royalty. Bill Gates anchors his superyacht offshore, while P Diddy and Beyoncé pop corks among bejewelled friends lunching at Le Club 55 . Women in crystal-studded thongs and Gucci flip-flops parade the shores. The sand is clean, the sea is blue – but Pampelonne is more about the scene, and being seen, than it is about scenery.

2 ANSE VICTORIN, FREGATE ISLAND, SEYCHELLES

THE SAND IS WHITE, SOFT AND SO FINE THAT IT SQUEAKS WHEN YOU STEP ON IT; THE COLOUR OF THE SEA SHIMMERS FROM AQUAMARINE TO DIAMOND, THEN SINKS INTO A DEEP INKINESS WITH POCKETS OF TURQUOISE IN WHICH TO SNORKEL; AND THE GENTLY SLOPING FOREST BEHIND IS ALIVE WITH TROPICAL BIRDS, INCLUDING THE RARE SEYCHELLES BLACK PARADISE FLYCATCHER.