Beachgoing

[3] Beaches in 16th-century Europe historically were seen as frightening places where piracy, invasions, and destruction by hurricanes, king tides, and tsunamis were an unpredictable danger.

[7] As the primary reason for early travel to seaside towns was for a prescribed daily five-minute dip, resorts built up to entertain the affluent visitors for the remaining portion of each day.

[6] Sea-bathing remained a popular treatment for tuberculosis into the mid-1800s, by which time beachgoing had developed into a leisure activity meant to provide a respite from daily life.

[7] By the early 1900s, seaside vacations had become a cultural phenomenon in Europe and North America[6] and the therapeutic benefits of sunlight began to be recognized[10] and by 1913 "sunbathing" was referred to as a desirable activity for the leisured class.

[11] In the 1920s, after fashion-designer Coco Chanel accidentally got sunburnt while visiting the French Riviera, tanned skin became perceived as fashionable, healthy, and luxurious.

[citation needed] In some areas with beaches, hostile architecture was used to keep populations seen as less welcome away; in the 1920s American urban planner Robert Moses designed a stretch of Long Island Southern State Parkway with low stone bridges so that buses could not pass under them.

[16][17] Other areas, particularly in the US, designated certain days of the week during which persons of color or non-Christians were admitted to public beaches or passed parking bans to exclude non-residents.

[20][21] As air travel became affordable and common, beachside towns throughout the tropics and subtropics developed seaside resorts to attract tourists.