Sandy Bay is the busiest of Porthcawl's beaches — a wide, gently shelving arc of fine sand wrapped around the eastern side of the harbour. It is the obvious family beach: shallow water, donkey rides in summer, an esplanade behind, and the long-running Coney Beach Pleasure Park immediately above the dunes.
The beach is patrolled by RNLI lifeguards in summer. Behind it, the pleasure park's funfair noise can drift across on still days — much of the appeal of Sandy Bay is exactly that mixture of beach and old-style seaside entertainment. The harbour breakwater at the western end is the best place to watch storm waves in winter.