Beach destinations you can fly to from Cologne (CGN)

Côte d'Azur: Nice, Cannes, Antibes, Saint-Tropez

French Riviera classic, pebble Mediterranean beaches

Istrian beaches: Rovinj, Pula coastline

Croatian Istria pebble beaches

Kvarner Gulf + Krk island beaches

Northern Adriatic beach gateway

Northern Corsica beaches

Cap Corse and northern beach entry

Northern Dalmatia beaches, Kornati islands

Adriatic beach entry, quieter than Split

Bacvice, Brač Island (Zlatni Rat), Hvar

Split is the gateway to Dalmatian island beaches

Costa Smeralda: Porto Cervo, Cala Brandinchi

Premium Sardinian beach, jet-set destination

Amalfi Coast: Positano, Amalfi, Capri (via boat)

Italy's iconic cliff-and-cove coastline

Banje Beach, Lokrum Island, Sveti Jakov

Dubrovnik's beach side, often paired with old town tourism

Southern Sardinian beaches: Chia, Villasimius

Sardinia's southern beach hub

Playa de Palma, Cala Major, Es Trenc

Mallorca's beach holiday capital, mass and quiet beaches

Puglia beaches: Polignano a Mare, Salento, Otranto

Italian heel beaches, increasingly fashionable

Cala Salada, Ses Salines, Cala Comte

Ibiza's beaches complement its nightlife identity, quiet north coves and party south coast

Mondello, San Vito Lo Capo, Cefalù

Northern Sicily beach hub

Calabrian Tropea, Tyrrhenian beaches

Italy's deep-south beach coast, Tropea cliffs

Costa Blanca: Benidorm, Calpe, Altea

Spain's other major beach coast, mass tourism centre

Hammamet, Sousse beach resorts

Tunisian beach access, established Mediterranean package destination

Glyfada, Paleokastritsa, Sidari

Ionian Islands beach destination

Eastern Sicilian beaches: Taormina, Catania coast

Sicily's eastern beach access

Halkidiki peninsulas beach gateway

Gateway to the Halkidiki beaches

Thassos island + Macedonian-coast beaches

Ferry gateway to the Thassos beaches

Costa del Sol: Marbella, Estepona, Nerja

Spain's premier beach coast, year-round mild climate

Cascais, Estoril, Costa da Caparica

Lisbon's beach side, accessible city-and-beach combination

Praia da Marinha, Lagos, Albufeira, Praia da Rocha

Portugal's Algarve coast, cliff-and-cove beaches

Paradise, Super Paradise, Elia, Psarou beaches

Mykonos beaches range from quiet coves to party-club shores

Çeşme + Aegean-coast beaches

Aegean beach gateway

Red Beach, Perissa, Kamari volcanic beaches

Santorini beaches are secondary to caldera views but distinctive volcanic black/red sand

Tigaki, Paradise Beach

Eastern Aegean island, popular package beach destination

Northern Crete: Elounda, Malia, Agios Nikolaos

Greece's largest island beach hub, north coast resort strip

Lindos, Faliraki, Tsambika

Dodecanese beach hub with medieval old town

Turkish Riviera: Lara, Konyaaltı, Belek, Side

Mediterranean beach mega-destination, all-inclusive heartland

Porto Santo island beach, Madeira coves

Madeira's beach overlap with wine identity, Porto Santo for golden sand

Corralejo, Jandía, Cofete

Best Canary beaches for waves and surf

Maspalomas dunes, Playa del Inglés

Gran Canaria year-round beach destination

Playa de las Américas, Los Cristianos, Costa Adeje

Tenerife's beach hub, year-round Canary Islands sun

Santa Maria beach, all-inclusive resorts

Major package winter-sun island

Dune beaches, all-inclusive resort island

Long Atlantic dune beaches