Hyams Beach, Australia: Is This Really the Whitest Sand in the World?

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This post was originally published in May 2019 and was updated in December 2020.

If there’s one thing we love here at Jonistravelling.com it’s a wildly boastful claim of something being the best, biggest or most beautiful place in the world. When I heard that Hyams Beach, in the Jervis Bay region of NSW, Australia had the whitest sand in the world I knew it had to be investigated. I sent our roving beach reporter, Jonno ( just me, shirtless and in shorts — a rare occurrence) to check it out. This is what he found.

Hyams Beach

Hey dudes, Jonno here. I don’t get let out of the bag often, so it was with some excitement that I watched my far more sensible, t-shirt and jeans wearing alter ego Jon jump into an overpriced rental car and navigate the highways south of Sydney to Jervis Bay. The destination — Hyams Beach. The mission — debunk or confirm the fact that Hyams Beach has the whitest sand in the world (a claim apparently made by the Guinness Book of Records).

Arriving at Hyams Beach (where I was finally unleashed) on a crisp autumn’s morning, I was instantly blinded by the empty white sands of Hyams Beach. Or maybe it was the sun. Anyway, I remember wishing I bought my sunglasses along. Hyams Beach has been getting a lot of attention lately, so I figured it would be packed, but then I remembered it was 8 am, and who goes to the beach at 8 am!?

After a quick swim I headed off to some other nearby beaches (the shirt was back on, so Jonno was back in the bag), but I would return.

Back to Hyams Beach

I returned to Hyams Beach that afternoon and the crowds were there to join me. It was the school holidays / Easter / Anzac Day period — surely one of the busiest times in these parts, but after walking 10 minutes away from the area of beach close to the car park it was practically empty. I guess kids (or parents lugging all the gear) don’t like to stray too far from their car.

READ MORE: Where Are the Best Beaches in Jervis Bay?

The ground squeaked beneath my feet as I traversed the long crescent of white sand that is Hyams Beach. The clear blue water to one side and the trees (not sure which kind — no tree-based research was done for this article) on the other. I was all alone, so I did what anyone does in this situation — took heaps of shirtless selfies then pulled out my science stuff (I won’t go into the details) and measured the sand. It turns out my scientific instruments were contaminated from previous beach visits and the results can’t be used. I also saw a creek surrounded by trees, which is irrelevant to this post but I liked the photo and thought you’d be a bit confused why I added it below with no explanation.

So, is this the whitest sand in the world?

Apparently, the Guinness Book of Records says it is, and that’s way more official than a hastily made up character on a blog post few people will ever read. But can you believe everything you read on the internet? Does the Guinness Book of Records even have a “whitest sand” category? Rather than just blindly believing and regurgitating what I’d read, I dug a little deeper (figuratively — I was nowhere near Hyams Beach at this point) and was shocked by what I read. There is no “whitest sand” category in the Guinness Book of Records and some guy in a pub made the whole thing up. A group of scientists tested the “whiteness” of Australia’s beaches and found Hyams Beach barely made the top 10. Now I don’t know what to believe, and I’m too lazy to go to the book shop and look at the Guinness Book of Records for myself or verify if those scientists did their job properly (or if they even existed in the first place).

Let’s just say it’s probably (almost definitely) not the whitest sand in the world. It’s as white as you need though, and it’s easily one of the best beaches I’ve been to.

The Nearby Beaches

Hyams Beach is one of at least 10 white-sand beaches in Jervis Bay. The next beach over (Chinamans Beach) is arguably nicer and there are a couple in Booderee National Park that could stake that claim too. It’s a special area and Hyams Beach is only one small part of it. 

Chinamans Beach

Have you been to Hyams Beach? Where was the whitest sand you’ve ever seen? Let me know in the comments below!

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Jon Algie

A travel blogger from New Zealand who hates talking about himself in the third person and has no imagination when it comes to naming websites.

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