Arizona's 5 Best Beaches For Fun On The Water, According To Reviews

While Arizona may be at least a five-hour drive from the nearest ocean, with nearly 130 lakes and five significant rivers, it has a surprisingly wide variety of options when it comes to beaches, especially considering so much of the state is covered in desert. From raucous Spring Break party boats to peaceful wildlife sanctuaries, the Grand Canyon State offers a little something for everyone. What's more, the calm, clear waters of the popular beaches along Lake Havasu or the Colorado River are often better suited for swimming or boating than many of the beaches in neighboring California.

Whether you're a local looking to escape the heat for the weekend or you're a sun-seeking visitor planning a vacation out on the water, this guide to Arizona's most popular lakes, rivers, and reservoirs provides a good launching point. All of the beaches that appear on this list were chosen because they rank highly on Google (4.5 stars or higher out of five) and were mentioned on official state tourism guides and other reputable media publications. In no particular order, below are the five best beaches in Arizona, according to reviews.

With a 4.7-star rating on Google and almost 5,000 reviews, Lake Havasu State Park is a popular Arizona beach destination, and not just with spring breakers. Specifically, Windsor Beach has white sand and calm, clear Colorado River water that make this desert oasis an obvious choice for families, young couples, and anyone looking to picnic and sunbathe on a real beach. Unlike many of Arizona's other beaches, which have rocky or rough terrain, the sand at Windsor Beach is smooth, similar to what you might find at one of the ocean beaches in California, like the classic white-sand shoreline of Silver Strand Beach in Oxnard, California.

Reviewers report the bathrooms are clean, the beaches are well-maintained, and the park staff is friendly. "This park is lovely," says one reviewer on Google. "They also have a wonderful cactus garden that is cared for by volunteers. We highly recommend a visit here!"

Windsor Beach is located just 4 miles outside of Lake Havasu City. In addition to swimming and boating, you can also camp right on the beach at one of the park's 73 boat access campsites or 13 beachside cabins (which can sleep up to six people and come equipped with solar-powered heating and cooling). The park is open year-round, 24 hours per day, seven days per week. The entrance fee is $20 per vehicle Monday through Thursday, and $25 Friday through Sunday and on holidays.

With a 4.7- star rating on Google and more than 1,400 reviews, Pebble Beach Recreation Area can get quite popular in the summer, when the Salt River clogs with people floating down the river on inner tubes and families bunch onto the sandy strips of beach with their coolers, dogs, and pop-up tents. "A great place to have a picnic and go swimming with little ones," says one reviewer on Google. "A lot of tubing and kayaks that come by. Covered tables. Trees near river for shade. Lots and lots of sand." If you go during the off-season or early in the morning, when the river is quiet (save for the lone kayaker or anglers fishing for trout) you may spot a few of the more than 300 wild horses that call the area home. 

Pebble Beach is located on the Salt River about a two-hour drive from Mesa, Arizona's third-largest city that is an affordable desert getaway. Because the river is located in the Tonto National Forest, you'll need to purchase an $8 day pass to visit the beach. The Visit Phoenix website explains that you can purchase this pass at a gas station or convenience store on the way. Pebble Beach is open year-round, 24 hours per day.

Willow Beach has a 4.7 rating on Google, with almost 2,200 reviews. Willow Beach may be located in Arizona, but with Sin City and its surrounding suburbs less than an hour away, you're just as likely to find Las Vegas residents and tourists swimming and paddling along this shimmery stretch of the Colorado River as you are Arizonans. Reviewers report liking the view from the beach and appreciating the covered picnic areas. "I'm so in love with the Colorado River," writes a reviewer on Tripadvisor. "The beautiful majestic canyon, seeing the bighorn sheep and all the gorgeous birds. Lots of large fish seen in the clear emerald water."

Willow Beach is frequented by kayakers and kayaking tour groups who enter the water here to make the trek to Emerald Cove, a picturesque cove with glistening waters near the Hoover Dam. Willow Beach is located on the part of the Colorado River that cuts through Black Canyon and is part of the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. Entry into the national recreation area is $25 per vehicle. The beach is open year-round, open daily beginning at 8 a.m. during the fall, winter, and spring, and during the summer, the area opens at 7 a.m. 

While Tempe Beach Park is more of a park than a beach, with more than 10,000 reviews on Google and an average 4.6-star rating, it has amassed enough positive reviews to make it on this list. "Tempe has the most beautiful urban park that I have ever seen in Arizona," says a reviewer on Yelp. "There are many beautiful lights at night ... It is quite spectacular, and I highly recommend coming during the evening if possible."

Located just east of Phoenix in the vibrant college suburb of Tempe, Arizona, on Tempe Town Lake, this 25-acre urban park offers many of the same recreational activities you'd come to expect of a beach park, such as cycling, kayaking, and paddleboarding. You can also picnic in the shade or catch a concert on the grassy lawn. Unlike other beaches on this list, however, Tempe Beach Park does not allow swimming. 

Built in 1931, Tempe Beach Park is one of the city's oldest parks and remains a place of nostalgia for those who grew up in the area, boasting memories of swimming in the park's pool (which is no longer there), attending Little League games at the historic baseball field, or watching a movie in the open-air cinema. The beach park is open year-round and parking is free on the weekends or $2 per hour on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Patagonia Lake State Park may not be as well-known as Lake Havasu or Tempe Beach, but with almost 2,800 reviews on Google and a 4.6 rating, it's made a name for itself as an ideal place to hike, fish, and birdwatch. "A beautiful, peaceful little lake area," reports one reviewer on Google. "Great for paddle boarding, swimming, kayaking, picnicking, and relaxing. Beautiful scenery. Lots of little picnic areas you can kayak to across the main water for a more private experience."

While Boulder Beach on Patagonia Lake has a roped-off section designed especially for swimming, you're allowed to swim anywhere in the lake you wish, except around boat launch areas. But with the diverse activities available, you may find it a struggle to stay parked on the beach all day. The lake is located inside a state park, where you can birdwatch along the creek trail at The Nature Conservancy, kayak under a bridge or even around an island, and fish for bass, catfish, or rainbow trout. 

Patagonia Lake State Park is located about one hour and 20 minutes south of Tucson. The park is open year-round and the entrance fee is $20 per vehicle Monday through Thursday and $25 per vehicle Friday through Sunday and holidays.

The definition of what can be classified as a beach can be a little murky, so our research focused on many well-known Arizona beaches listed on Google Maps. We focused on the most popular spots in the state, so while there are likely hundreds of amazing, unofficial, and little-known swimming holes in Arizona's lakes and creeks, we figured if it wasn't well-known enough to earn a spot on the map, then we could safely eliminate it from our catalog. We also ruled out any beaches that didn't have official amenities, like paved road access, parking lots, and public bathrooms. 

From there, we turned our attention to Google reviews, taking into consideration both the review quantity and quality. To be included on this list, the beach had to have amassed 1,000 or more reviews on Google and a ranking of 4.5 stars or higher. After we'd noted the highest-ranked beaches, we cross-referenced the Google reviews with Tripadvisor reviews, Yelp reviews, and write-ups found on official tourism publications or reputable media outlets, such as Visit Arizona's roundup of best beaches in the state.

And finally, while many of the most highly-rated beaches were located close to one another (like along Lake Havasu), we decided to vary our list by picking beaches situated in different areas of the state, from the southernmost area just about 30 minutes from the Mexican border all the way in the north near Las Vegas.