Trunk Bay Ranked No. 1 in World as Sandy Point and Magens Bay Give USVI Three Top-25 Beaches

ST. JOHN — Trunk Bay has been ranked the world’s best beach in Beach.com’s Global Beach Index 2026, leading a strong showing for the U.S. Virgin Islands that also placed Sandy Point National Wildlife Refuge at No. 7 and Magens Bay Beach at No. 17. The territory secured three of the 25 positions in a list spanning 14 countries and four continents, with one beach from each of the three main Virgin Islands represented. The No. 1 placement adds another accolade to Trunk Bay following recognition from other beach-ranking systems. Beach.com described the index as a “first-of-its-kind, data-driven” ranking combining recommendations from travel experts with traveler reviews, satellite observations and environmental information. According to the company’s published methodology, 58 travel experts, content creators and local authorities submitted 322 beach nominations between February 20 and March 14. The analysis also incorporated more than 93,000 Google Maps reviews, five years of NASA MOD...