Best Beach

Sick of cutting your feet on shells? Annoyed by the inevitable close encounters with jellyfish? Tired of wading through brackish water that looks like it was just churned out of the treatment plant? Head to Moody Gardens. The Galveston Island attraction/resort has created a new, improved beach, and it's charging guests a fee to enjoy it. The three-acre Palm Beach accommodates up to 2,500 people and features freshwater lagoons, white sand beaches, palm trees, lifeguards, paddleboats, Jacuzzis and regulation sand volleyball. Fooling yourself into enjoying a fake beach (at the beach) makes for an ironically amusing escape possible only in Galveston. The downside is that it's open only during the summer.