NEWTON, Mass., March 7, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- TripAdvisor^®, the world's largest travel site*, today announced the winners of its annual 2012 Travelers' Choice^® Beach Destinations awards.  One hundred eighty-one top beach locations were named around the world, covering 21 regions including lists for Africa, Asia, Australia, Brazil, Caribbean, Central America, Europe, France, Greece, India, Indonesia, Italy, Mexico, Middle East, South America, South Pacific, Spain, Thailand, Turkey, U.K. and the U.S.

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Award winners were determined based on the most highly rated beach destinations by travelers in TripAdvisor reviews.  Unlike any other honors, TripAdvisor Travelers' Choice winners are based on millions of valuable reviews and opinions from travelers around the world.

"Travelers seeking a brief beach respite from the cold or planning their grand summer getaways will quickly warm up to the thought of trips to these award-winning beach destinations, as identified by TripAdvisor's community of millions of travelers," said Barbara Messing, chief marketing officer for TripAdvisor.  

Travelers' Choice Award-winning World Beach Destinations:

1. Providenciales, Turks and Caicos
2. Palm/Eagle Beach, Aruba
3. Tulum, Mexico
4. Negril, Jamaica
5. Saint Pete Beach, Florida
6. Boracay, Philippines
7. Cancun, Mexico
8. Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
9. Miami/Miami Beach, Florida
10. Varadero, Cuba
11. Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
12. Playa del Carmen, Mexico
13. Virginia Beach, Virginia
14. Oludeniz, Turkey
15. Honolulu, Hawaii
16. Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt
17. Daytona Beach, Florida
18. Fort Lauderdale, Florida
19. Lahaina, Hawaii
20. Cayo Coco, Cuba
21. Marsa Alam, Egypt
22. Cabo San Lucas, Mexico
23. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
24. Icmeler, Turkey
25. Puerto Alcudia, Spain

Travelers' Choice Award-winning U.S. Beach Destinations:

1. Saint Pete Beach, Florida
2. Miami/Miami Beach, Florida
3. Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
4. Virginia Beach, Virginia
5. Honolulu, Hawaii
6. Daytona Beach, Florida
7. Fort Lauderdale, Florida
8. Lahaina, Hawaii
9. San Diego, California
10. Key West, Florida

The complete list of 2012 Travelers' Choice Beach Destinations can be found at: http://www.tripadvisor.com/TravelersChoice-Beaches.

About TripAdvisor
TripAdvisor® is the world's largest travel site, enabling travelers to plan and have the perfect trip. TripAdvisor offers trusted advice from real travelers and a wide variety of travel choices and planning features with seamless links to booking tools. TripAdvisor-branded sites make up the largest travel community in the world, with more than 50 million unique monthly visitors*, and over 60 million reviews and opinions. The sites operate in 30 countries worldwide, including China under daodao.com. TripAdvisor also includes TripAdvisor for Business, a dedicated division that provides the tourism industry access to TripAdvisor's millions of monthly visitors.

TripAdvisor, Inc. (NASDAQ: TRIP) manages and operates websites under 18 other travel media brands, and together the sites attract more than 69 million unique monthly visitors**.  TripAdvisor's travel media brands include: www.airfarewatchdog.com, www.bookingbuddy.com, www.cruisecritic.com, www.everytrail.com, www.familyvacationcritic.com, www.flipkey.com, www.holidaylettings.co.uk, www.holidaywatchdog.com, www.independenttraveler.com, www.onetime.com, www.seatguru.com, www.sniqueaway.com, www.smartertravel.com, www.travel-library.com, www.travelpod.com, www.virtualtourist.com, www.whereivebeen.com and www.kuxun.cn.

*Source: comScore Media Metrix for TripAdvisor Sites, Worldwide, January 2012

**Source: comScore Media Metrix for TripAdvisor Inc. and its subsidiaries, Worldwide, January 2012

©2012 TripAdvisor, Inc. All rights reserved.

SOURCE TripAdvisor

SOURCE TripAdvisor