While of course there is nothing quite like a trip abroad over the summer (even if you have to hear Jess Glynne’s Hold My Hand on loop to get there!) there is a place in the North East that, if the sun is out and the temperatures creep into the 20s,is the next best thing and has actually been likened to Ibiza, thanks to its sandy shores, seafront bars and epic sunsets.
Step forward South Shields beach, or Sandhaven, which was named beach of the year by the Sunday Times in 2022, to be more specific. Hear us out on this one; yes, while comparing a stretch of sand and sea in South Tyneside to the hedonistic White Isle might be a bit of reach, if you get yourself down there on a Sunday afternoon in July and August and Mother Nature plays ball, the atmosphere by the seaside is very much a party.
In July and August, the weekly free Sunday concerts have tens of thousands of people flocking to Bents Park and, while they have way too often been blighted by bad weather, when the sun does decide to put his hat on; once the music has stopped, you can guarantee the festivities will move closer to the sea, with the likes of The New Sundial, Platform 33 and The Sanddancer packed to the rafters both inside and out, as DJs and live bands deliver some al fresco entertainment.
Order a frozen strawberry daq and pretend you’re on your holidays without even needing to set foot on a plane. ChronicleLive was down by the coast one weekend last year and, with a live sax player playing dance anthems into the night, it was giving serious Ibiza vibes. And live music and great beaches isn’t the only thing South Shields has in common with Ibiza either, as it also has its own Ocean Beach.
Rather than day beds, Moet and sushi platters, think a waltzer, slushy and a carton of chips, as instead of being an expensive beach club, Shields’ Ocean Beach is a very popular theme park, that has people flocking all year round and has even been on Vera. Give us a turn on the log flume over a chance encounter with Wayne Lineker any day of the week!
However, while aesthetically the two Ocean Beaches couldn’t be more different, another thing their share is celebrity customers. In a chat with The Chronicle earlier this month, Perrie Edwards revealed that she took son Axel to the Shields’ O Beach, which has just re-opened for 2025, on her last visit home to South Shields.
Sandhaven Beach has a near perfect 4.5/5 score on Trip Advisor, with reviewers declaring it to be ‘an amazing beach.’ It is given a four star rating by the UK Beach Guide, with one very enthusiastic fan leaving a review on its site which reads: ‘I have travelled far and wide but never seen such beauty as sunset in South Shields’ Equally enamoured, a second writes: ‘A first class beach with lovely soft clean sand.’
View news Source: https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/whats-on/travel-tourism/sandhaven-beach-south-shields-bars-31064178
