Gay-popularToleratedTier 2 · Accepted in the cities#17 where the boys go

Sandy Bay

Llandudno, Atlantic seaboard, Cape Town · South Africa

Cape Town's nude beach, a wild Atlantic cove below the Twelve Apostles with a gay end at the far side. Cold water, hot afternoons.

Status
Tolerated
Crowd
Gay-popular
Country
South Africa
City
Cape Town
Water
Sea
Rank
#17 where the boys go
Best time
November to March
Confidence
Medium

Find it

34.0250° S, 18.3415° E
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, tiles by OpenFreeMap.
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The gay end

The far end of the beach, past the rocks, is the gay end.

Crowd A nude beach for everyone with a gay end everyone knows about. Walk in the direction the guide says and you will find the boys.

Getting there

Park at Llandudno's Sandy Bay car park and walk twenty minutes over the dunes. No facilities.

The rules

Tolerated. Not designated, but nude bathing has been the custom for years and is left alone. Rules and patrols can change, so read the signs when you arrive.

No photos of anyone, sunscreen everywhere, cover up the moment you leave the nude stretch, and go home with the light. It is a beach: sunbathe, swim, talk, flirt. Anything more belongs somewhere private.

Questions people ask

Is Sandy Bay a gay beach?

It has a gay end. The far end of the beach, past the rocks, is the gay end. Cape Town's nude beach, a wild Atlantic cove below the Twelve Apostles with a gay end at the far side. Cold water, hot afternoons.

Is it legal to be nude at Sandy Bay?

Tolerated rather than designated. Not designated, but nude bathing has been the custom for years and is left alone. Rules and patrols can change, so read the signs when you arrive.

How do I get to Sandy Bay?

Park at Llandudno's Sandy Bay car park and walk twenty minutes over the dunes. No facilities. Best time: November to March.

Method

Status says what the law and the locals allow; crowd says who is on the sand. Both come from gay-travel guides, the national naturist federations and members who were just there, scored on sources, recency, crowd, legal footing and safety. How we rank. Pins mark the beach; the gay end is described above. Last reviewed September 2026.