I thought this was about driving on the right side of the road vs left side. My parents came up to visit from Arizona. We took them to the beach to see the sea. They turned back as soon as they saw sand. They said they have seen enough sand for one life time.
It seems your parents have the right idea about sand and know exactly how to deal with it! The sea/beach without sand is glorious...spent some time on the pebble beaches of Nice, France and loved it, but the deach with sand...should be banned!