Sunset Beaches

Western exposure and an open horizon.

Two conditions, and the second removes most candidates. A west-facing aspect is necessary but common; an unobstructed horizon in that direction is not, and a headland, an island or a line of hotels ruins it. Where both hold, the sunset runs down the length of the sand rather than past it, which is the difference between a view and an occasion. That geometry is why Negril, Seminyak, Jericoacoara and Radhanagar have the reputations they do, and why an entire village climbs a dune every evening at Jericoacoara. Latitude changes the experience: tropical sunsets are fast, taking twenty minutes from first colour to dark, while at high latitudes the same process lasts hours or does not conclude at all — Uttakleiv in June has no sunset because the sun does not set.