By Sarah Greaves-Gabbadon
CJ Travel Editor

Trying to earn your Caribbean beach bum credentials? You can’t consider yourself a coastal connoisseur until you’ve planted your posterior on (at least) one of these marquee strands.

Seven Mile Beach, Negril, Jamaica

So what if its not actually seven miles long? The relaxed, reggae-fueled vibe and the colorful cast of characters that parades along this northwest beach make its exact dimensions incidental.

Cabbage Beach, Paradise Island, Bahamas

If you find yourself on Paradise Island you’ll likely find yourself on its most popular beach, where two miles of white sand is bordered by resorts and restaurants. (Head to the northwest end if you’re seeking solitude.)

Seven-Mile Beach, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands

We’ll bet that these blindingly white sands are some of the hottest we’ve ever walked across, yet nothing deters us from getting our fill of the bathtub-warm waters that wash Grand Cayman’s most famous beach.

Grand Anse Beach, Grenada

Sheltered on the island’s Leeward side, this two-mile-long stunner is Grenada’s most popular beach and home to several large resorts and small hotels so you can stay right where you want to play.

Loblolly Bay, Anegada, British Virgin Islands

On the coral island of Anegada, known for its breathtaking beaches, this stretch is a standout, with palapas for shade, restaurants for sustenance, and a few hotels in case you decide never to leave.

Magens Bay, US Virgin Islands

Why does this St Thomas shore top many best beach lists? We suspect it has something to do with its photogenic mile-long white-sand stretch, which has been captured on the cover of several travel magazines.

Pain de Sucre, Terre de Haut, Guadeloupe

On Terre-de-Haut, one of five islands in the French-Caribbean archipelago, this strand is like a postcard come to life with golden sands, crystalline water and leaning coconut palms.

Grand Anse d’Arlet, Martinique

We can think of so many reasons why the beach that borders this southern fishing village is featured in Martinique’s promotional material: golden sand, Ti Sables restaurant, and a relaxed vibe are just three.

Grace Bay, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands

This 12-mile stretch on Providenciales has it all: sand as fine as confectioner’s sugar; gin-clear water; and an appropriately laidback vibe.

Maundays Bay, Anguilla 

Like all of Anguilla’s 33 beaches, Maundays Bay is public, so you don’t have to be a guest of plush Cap Juluca (the resort which presides over its sands), to sample its pleasures.