Discover America’s Hidden Beaches

Whether they’re a little challenging to get to or near a more popular sister, these beaches have relatively smaller crowds

a person standing on a sea stack overlooking a beach

Stake out these harder-to-find beaches for some much-needed space. A photographer captures images of Secret Beach, a somewhat hidden location along the southern Oregon coast.

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Berit Thorkelson,

AARP

Published September 24, 2025

It’s nice when a beach offers a little breathing room. Fall has the potential to deliver just that. You’ll bypass the patchwork of towels and scatter of sand pails and head straight to the good stuff: just water, sky and a roomy stretch of beach from which to enjoy them.

This scene’s not just beautiful; it’s great for your mental health. And that’s what travel tends to be, according to 95 percent of respondents to AARP’s 2025 Travel Trends survey. Study after study has found that soaking in so-called blue spaces, such as America’s oceans and lakes, delivers older adults a major mental health boost. Add in the benefits of fresh air and quiet time, and no wonder a vacation that includes relaxing beach time can feel like just what the doctor ordered.

Each of these seven beaches seems like a secret in some way. They’re either tucked off the beaten path, a relative challenge to access or eclipsed by a better-known nearby option. Add in the shoulder season’s typically smaller crowds and your odds of getting some space grow. Lacking in crowds doesn’t equal lacking in beauty. Pick one and find out for yourself.

Visitors to Secret Beach near Brookings, Oregon, can get views of the tree-covered sea stacks all to themselves.

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Secret Beach, Samuel H. Boardman State Scenic Corridor, Brookings, Oregon

Oregon resident and beach aficionado Graham Farran, 72, calls this “one of the prettiest spots on the Oregon coast … because of all the sea stacks covered in mature trees.”

Understand that your navigation will probably take you to the steep, rutty and unofficial trail behind a Highway 101 guardrail. For a gentler hike and richer experience, Farran suggests the Thunder Cove trailhead, less than a mile north up 101. It has a big parking lot and a path that delivers a lofty view of the string of beaches below.

Regardless of the path you take, plan your visit during a negative two-foot tide — that’s two feet below the average low tide — that opens sea caves connecting the beaches and reveals tide pools teeming with purple starfish along the way.

rocks covered in moss at a beach with a shipwreck in the beackground

The remains of a World War II-era ship give Shipwreck Beach in North Lāna‘i, Hawai‘i, a beautiful, eerie quality.

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Kaiolohia (a.k.a. Shipwreck Beach), North Lāna‘i, Hawai‘i

The rusty hull of a World War II–era oil tanker floats offshore, a hint at the dozens of ill-fated excursions that earned this eight-mile beach at the end of a shallow, rocky channel its name. Lāna‘i gets fewer visitors than more popular islands like Kaua‘i and O‘ahu, and four-wheel drive is required to get here, making the beach a reward for the determined.

Forget swimming, thanks to the windy, rugged conditions that claimed those ships. Stick to combing the beach for shells, driftwood and sunbathing sea turtles. Consider tackling a short inland trail to view beautifully preserved petroglyphs and enjoying views of Maui in the distance.

Thompson’s Harbor State Park on Lake Huron in Michigan offers few amenities but lots of waterfront to explore.

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Thompson’s Harbor State Park beach, Posen, Michigan

Nestled among the developed public beach options dotting the outline of Michigan’s mitten, this rustic beauty offers an excellent opportunity to see the sun rise over Lake Huron. Park supervisor Randy Brown says the park benefits from its lack of amenities — it has only a parking lot, a vault toilet and a numbered trail system. “You’ve got over 4,000 acres of land and several miles of shoreline that a lot of the time you can have all to yourself,” he says.

All trails lead to the lake, where visitors poke around the rocky shoreline or seek out the small sandy spot. Wildlife, too, appreciates this undeveloped tract. Watch for the threatened dwarf lake iris, a little purple sign of spring.

Ormond Beach, Florida, near popular Daytona Beach, promises a more laid-back vibe including a particularly dog-friendly 0.6-mile stretch called Dog Beach.

Courtesy Kay Galloway/Ormond Beach

Ormond Beach, Florida

Surely you’ve heard of Daytona Beach, known for its titular international speedway and party vibes? It’s just down the shore from lesser-known Ormond Beach, a smaller, quieter city with a stretch of easy-access public beach that’s all coral-colored sand and turquoise waters.

Melody Pittman, 56, a Florida resident and travel content creator at Wherever I May Roam, comes for chill beach days, unique restaurants and low-key local attractions. “The Casements, John D. Rockefeller’s winter home, a lesser-known historic site in Ormond Beach … is really worth the visit, and it’s absolutely free to tour,” she says.

a path near a beach with houses in the background

A profusion of wildflowers border a path to the quiet stretch of Carmel River State Beach known as Carmel Meadows, in California.

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Carmel Meadows Beach, Carmel, California

Though this beach is part of Carmel River State Beach, the easiest way to access it is by a trailhead tucked into a residential area. This little quirk helps keep its visitor count down, especially compared with nearby marquee beaches such as Carmel and Monastery.

Here, the basics shine: sun, bay waters and sandy beach edged in by rocky clusters. Hiking down the bluff offers a good vantage point to spot otters, whales and dolphins in the distance. It’s a nice foil to the neighboring tourist town of Carmel-by-the-Sea.

people standing on the shore where the mississippi and minnesota rivers meet

The Mississippi and Minnesota rivers meet at a quiet little beach on Pike Island in Fort Snelling State Park, in the heart of Minnesota’s Twin Cities.

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Pike Island Point beach in Fort Snelling State Park, St. Paul, Minnesota

This is one of those gems that can best be described as hidden in plain sight. The Minnesota and Mississippi rivers hug the small island’s southern and northern shores, respectively, before the two meet at a lovely little beach with a rich history, right at the island’s tip. This moment happens within one of Minnesota’s most popular state parks, in the middle of the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul.

Megan Gergen Ebert, 56, and her husband, Guido Ebert, 53, noticed the beach while kayaking. It was the rough midpoint of a 3.8-mile island hiking loop, according to AllTrails. They hiked it and became big fans. “It’s so peaceful, you’d never know you were in the heart of the Twin Cities,” Gergen Ebert says.

A couple of things to note: The rivers sometimes flood the island in the spring. Also, the park offers electric-powered all-terrain track chairs to keep its trails accessible to all.

a stretch of coastline along the alabama gulf coast

A beautiful and quiet stretch of beach in Fort Morgan, Gulf Shores’ neighbor, along the Alabama Gulf Coast.

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Fort Morgan, Alabama

Peek at a map and you can see the narrow strip of land at the far western edge of the Florida Panhandle as it transitions into Alabama and its well-known Gulf Shores vacation area. While it’s considered a more low-key alternative to the neighboring state’s famed beaches, keep going west down the peninsula to Fort Morgan, where the chiller trend continues.

The beaches are still powdery white and lead into clear, typically swimmable waters, and there are plenty of restaurants serving typical local seafood fare. Plus, there’s Fort Morgan, standing guard at the peninsula’s tip since 1834, a sprawling military site and National Historic Landmark that’s open to visitors.

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Berit Thorkelson is a travel writer and editor for aarp.org. She has also written for publications such as National Geographic Traveler, Better Homes & Gardens and The Minnesota Star Tribune's travel section.