Five beaches in Greece are included in a “Top 40” list compiled by Guardian’s editors, with Voidokilia, in the extreme southwest Messinia prefecture topping the specific sites in the east Mediterranean country.
Voidokilia is the external shore of a saltwater lagoon facing the Ionian Sea, just north of the harbor town of Pylos. The beach’s azure waters, a cave, the remnants of a medieval castle and the presence of numerous birds, including seasonal flamingos, are what attracted the Guardian to Voidokilia, which means “ox stomach”.
Other beaches cited in Greece are “Kaladi” on the southwest Aegean island of Kythira, Palaiochori on Milos, “Super Paradise” on upscale hub Mykonos, and Balos on the large island of Crete.