Noordzeestrand, Texel

Texel's whole west coast is pretty much one enormous venue – only the marked summertime swimming zones are out of bounds along 20km of sandy beach, so just pick your spot! With all that space, a bit of company can be nice: the official kite zones are by Paal 9 (a few windsurfers come here too), between Paal 17 and 19 (the most popular spot), and Paal 28 to 33. The beach is separated by stone groynes up to Paal 19 – worth keeping clear of at high tide. The best waves are on ebb tide anyway. To the north there are no groynes but more current, which can sweep you to neighbouring Vlieland before you know it. The whole beach has free parking in the dunes.