# Countries with three or more uninterrupted sea coasts **URL:** \ **Category:** Thread Games\ **Created:** [September 20, 2025, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217 "2025-09-20T05:07:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/41 "2025-09-20T11:56:01Z")
What about England? Its coasts are broken by Scotland, Wales. But we still don’t know what the OP’s definition of country is. Is Wales a country? Scotland? England? Or is the United Kingdom a country? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stafford\_Cripps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stafford_cripps/32/7167_2.png) [@The\_Stafford\_Cripps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stafford_Cripps)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/42 "2025-09-20T11:57:14Z")
What does it matter? As has already been mentioned, England only has 2 coasts, not 3. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/43 "2025-09-20T12:04:07Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > Example: the USA has only two coasts: East Coast and West Coast. The South Coast is continuous with the East Coast, so it doesn’t add to the total, even though one is on the Atlantic Ocean and the other is on the Gulf of Mexico. Alaska has its own count (1) I disagree. I think the USA counts. Its coasts are broken by Canada and Mexico, and its separate coasts are on: 1. Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico 2. Pacific Ocean 3. Arctic Ocean and Pacific Ocean ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/44 "2025-09-20T12:04:59Z")
> [@The\_Stafford\_Cripps](#): > > England only has 2 coasts, not 3. Agree. I retract England. But we still don’t know the OP’s definition of country. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stafford\_Cripps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stafford_cripps/32/7167_2.png) [@The\_Stafford\_Cripps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stafford_Cripps)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/45 "2025-09-20T12:05:13Z")
Exclaves are excluded, whether they’re small like Kaliningrad, or massive like Alaska. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/46 "2025-09-20T12:07:04Z")
So a country essentially means one contiguous body of land? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stafford\_Cripps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stafford_cripps/32/7167_2.png) [@The\_Stafford\_Cripps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stafford_Cripps)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/47 "2025-09-20T12:12:32Z")
It’s there on the OP: > [@dtilque](#): > > The coasts all have to be on a single contiguous territory of that country. Exclaves and islands do not add to the total, but rather each has their own coast count. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/48 "2025-09-20T12:14:29Z")
Thanks. Okay. So Russia still counts, but for a different reason. ➤ **France** — coasts are broken by Spain, Monaco ➤ **Russia** — its coasts are on the Pacific/Arctic, Baltic Sea, Black Sea ➤ **Saudi Arabia** — coasts are broken by Yemen, Qatar ➤ **Spain** — coasts are broken by Portugal, Gibraltar Four so far? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stafford\_Cripps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stafford_cripps/32/7167_2.png) [@The\_Stafford\_Cripps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stafford_Cripps)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/49 "2025-09-20T12:16:16Z")
Why are you ignoring Malaysia? (An exclave comes into play here, but that’s in the coastline breaking country, not the country that’s a candidate for this game). ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/50 "2025-09-20T12:20:31Z")
I’m looking at it. I’m not sold yet. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/51 "2025-09-20T12:28:35Z")
Agreed. We have at least five so far. ➤ **France** — coasts are broken by Spain, Monaco ➤ **Malaysia** — on Borneo Island its coasts are broken by the two separate parts of Brunei ➤ **Russia** — its coasts are on the Pacific/Arctic, Baltic Sea, Black Sea ➤ **Saudi Arabia** — coasts are broken by Yemen, Qatar ➤ **Spain** — coasts are broken by Portugal, Gibraltar ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stafford\_Cripps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stafford_cripps/32/7167_2.png) [@The\_Stafford\_Cripps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stafford_Cripps)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/52 "2025-09-20T12:32:04Z")
> [@Bullitt](#): > > **Malaysia** — on Borneo Island its coasts are broken by the two separate parts of Brunei the third break being Indonesia ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/53 "2025-09-20T12:35:07Z")
Yes. Thank you. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/54 "2025-09-20T12:44:27Z")
To put it as clearly as possible: Start at some point on a country’s coastline. Follow the perimeter of that country (or of that piece of that country, for disconnected countries), along a combination of coastline and international land borders, until you get back to your starting point. Two sections of coastline are considered separate if there’s a section of international border in between them. If a country is disconnected (with either islands or enclaves), then each piece has its own count, and the country’s count is the count of its highest piece. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/55 "2025-09-20T13:30:56Z")
> [@The\_Stafford\_Cripps](#): > > Exclaves are excluded, whether they’re small like Kaliningrad, or massive like Alaska. Then European Turkey should count as an enclave apart from Asian Turkey. Upthread, you wrote that these counted as two coasts for Turkey. Topologically, European Turkey is equivalent to Alaska. That’s where I got the idea to bring up archipelago nations like Japan. Thinking on Malaysia—by your rules, is Borneo Malaysia an enclave apart from mainland Malaysia? ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Tan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/charlie_tan/32/12582_2.png) [@Charlie\_Tan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Tan)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/56 "2025-09-20T14:24:40Z")
So what about Morocco? Its coast is broken by the two Spanish exclaves, i.e. international borders. If Gib (being an exclave) breaks the Spanish coastline between Portugal and France , then the same goes for Morocco. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/57 "2025-09-20T14:36:50Z")
> [@Charlie\_Tan](#): > > So what about Morocco? Its coast is broken by the two Spanish exclaves Explicitly, Ceuta and Melilla are those exclaves. Yes I think Morocco counts. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stafford\_Cripps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stafford_cripps/32/7167_2.png) [@The\_Stafford\_Cripps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stafford_Cripps)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/58 "2025-09-20T15:22:37Z")
> [@bordelond](#): > > Upthread, you wrote that these counted as two coasts for Turkey. No, that wasn’t me. Re Borneo, no, the point is that Malaysian Borneo is a single contiguous territory. It’s not excluded just because there’s a separate bit of continental Malaysia (which by itself has a score of 2).. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/59 "2025-09-20T15:44:04Z")
OK, all the answers I know of have been mentioned. Here’s the list I made up before posting this thread: Canada (Atlantic/Arctic, Pacific, Boundary Bay) France (Atlantic/Channel, Med E of Monaco, Med W of Monaco) Malaysia (Sarawak, interrupted by the two parts of Brunei) Morocco (E of Melilla, Melilla to Ceuta, W of Ceuta) Russia (Pacific/Arctic, Black Sea, Gulf of Finland) Saudi Arabia (Red Sea, Persian Gulf N of Qatar, Persian Gulf S of Qatar) Spain (Atlantic, Med, between Gibraltar and Portugal) Now before you complain that I said Canada was wrong, please check what I wrote. I very, very carefully avoided saying that it was either right or wrong. I just pointed out that the list of coasts that had been given was wrong. Boundary Bay, for those not familiar with it, is the body of water between Point Roberts and the rest of Washington state. While I was at it, I also made a list of two coast countries using the same criteria. I was only considering independent countries, so England is right out. However, I didn’t spend as much time on this, so may have missed one or two: Colombia Costa Rica Cyprus Egypt Germany Guatemala Honduras Indonesia (Timor) Israel Mexico Nicaragua North Korea Panama Senegal Thailand UAE USA ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2025, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217/60 "2025-09-20T15:53:17Z")
> [@Charlie\_Tan](#): > > If Gib (being an exclave) breaks the Spanish coastline between Portugal and France , then the same goes for Morocco. No, because unlike Spain, Morocco does not have a land border with Gibraltar. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/countries-with-three-or-more-uninterrupted-sea-coasts/1023217.md?page=4)