MapFranceHossegor – Seignosse, LandesCapbretonHossegor – Seignosse, Landes

Capbreton

Nouvelle-Aquitaine · Landes - Hossegor/Seignosse

also known as Plage des Océanides, VVF, La Piste/VVF, La Plage

Part of Hossegor – Seignosse, Landes →

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

wavesnot for beginnershigh crowds

On this page

The spot
Wind
Forecast
Month by month
Water
Level
The scene
Launch
Schools
Tips
Getting there
Photos
FAQ

Riding essentials

Season

May–Oct

Months riders and schools name

How windy

14-32 kts

Character: mixed

Room to launch

huge

access rules on record, below

Water

waves

21–23 °C in summerOpen sandy Atlantic beach break south of the Capbreton harbour system

Hazards

Reported by riders

Level

Intermediate to advanced

With a caveat: see Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

Crowds

high crowds · busy June July August September

Schools

named at this spot

From the airport

Biarritz Pays Basque Airport (BIQ)

Transfer times under Getting there

When it fills in

Afternoon into evening is the reliable window. The summer thermal builds from early afternoon and holds until the light goes; frontal wind arrives at any hour and does not wait for the sea breeze.

Nearbystraight-line distance

Backup spotsWhere riders go when the wind doesn't work here.

Hossegor Les Estagnotsno page yet
Seignosse Les Estagnotsno page yet
Hossegor La Nordno page yet
Ondres-Labenneno page yet
Tarnosno page yet
Anglet La Madragueno page yet

The spot

Location

Capbreton is the surf town at the south end of the Landes, and the kite beach, such as it is, is Plage des Océanides/VVF south of the harbour.

Water characteristics

The water is real Atlantic: swell, shorebreak, baïne rips, sandbanks that shift, and the harbour channel with its jetties a short drift to the north.

Wind weakness

Wind is the weak point. You ride NW, W or SW, all cross-on and rough for the waves; south is gusty; the annual average sits around 7.7-8 kts, so you ride here when a front or a summer thermal shows up, not on a booked week.

Season ambiguity

Which months count as the season is unresolved: one window is May-October with thermals from June to August and lows in September and October, the other is November-March.

Summer restrictions

In summer the regulated beach belongs to bathers and surf schools during lifeguard hours, 13 June to 27 September in 2026, and no kite channel is published for that period.

Alternative and skill level

With a car, Seignosse Estagnots up the coast is the established summer kite launch on this stretch. Océanides is for an experienced rider on a good forecast, ideally on a strapless board.

The wind

locals call it Atlantic thermal and frontal flow

Direction

cross-on

Direction to shore

cross-on. NW, W and SW are the safe, rideable directions; south wind is gusty and unreliable. Keep clear of the harbour channel and its approach, and give the jetties/groynes a comfortable margin.

Dominant direction

WNW over the year in station observations; W-NW thermals in summer and W-SW frontal lows in autumn. One reading has E as the dominant wind and SE as the best wind; unresolved.

Kite sizes

4567891011121314151617

metres · typical quiver highlighted

The quiver, in words

No local sizing table is published, so this is indicative for 75-85 kg on a strapless or directional board, worked back from the usable band recorded for the spot, roughly 12-25 kts with fronts running past 30: 12 m at the light end around 12-16 kts, 9-10 m on a normal 17-22 kt day, 7-8 m once it holds above 25, 5-6 m for the autumn depressions at 30-40 kts.Summer thermals on this stretch of the Landes are big-kite affairs and 12-14 m is the usual answer. A twin-tip rider can take roughly a metre less than those numbers.

Character

mixed

When it fills in: see above ↑

Average strength

7.7-8 kts annual average; a 23.8 kt seasonal figure also circulates, basis unconfirmed.

Typical strength

14-32 kts usable range reportedly; summer thermals 10-20 kts, autumn lows up to 35-40 kts.

inconsistent and can be gusty, especially in southerly flow; historical wind-day reliability is low.

Two seasons are claimed: November-March, or May-October with June-August thermals and September-October lows. Averages are low; come on a forecast, not on a calendar.

Forecast

Live forecast

Windguru Windfinder Windy

Month by month

Jan42
Feb28
Mar45
Apr47
May, riders' month44
Jun, riders' month43
Jul, riders' month50
Aug, riders' month48
Sep, riders' month30
Oct, riders' month42
Nov40
Dec32

windy days per month (3 h+ at 12 kn+)

Ringed months are the ones riders and schools name: May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct.

42%Jan13°
28%Feb13°
45%Mar13°
47%Apr15°
44%May17°
43%Jun21°
50%Jul22°
48%Aug24°
30%Sep22°
42%Oct20°
40%Nov17°
32%Dec14°

windy days per month (3 h+ at 12 kn+) · water °C below · season highlighted

Modelled from the operational forecast archive at 1.5–7 km (2023-2024), daylight hours only, not a ground station: it resolves thermal, lake and valley winds far better than coarse reanalysis but still tends to understate a strong local thermal.

Every figure, month by monthWindy days · Force 4+ · 12 kn or more · Knots · Wind from · Peaks at · Air · Water · Readings

Month	Windy days	Force 4+	12 kn or more	Knots	Wind from	Peaks at	Air	Water	Readings
Jan	42%	50%	44%	13.6 kt	W	12:00	7.8 °C	13.2 °C	62
Feb	28%	42%	37%	14.2 kt	N	14:00	10 °C	12.8 °C	57
Mar	45%	69%	63%	16.1 kt	W	14:00	11.4 °C	13.1 °C	62
Apr	47%	72%	67%	15.1 kt	NNW	16:00	13.3 °C	14.7 °C	60
May	44%	79%	66%	14.2 kt	NNW	16:00	16.3 °C	17.2 °C	62
Jun	43%	67%	62%	13.6 kt	NNW	16:00	19.4 °C	21 °C	60
Jul	50%	81%	71%	13.6 kt	NNW	17:00	21.1 °C	22.4 °C	62
Aug	48%	77%	66%	14.2 kt	NW	17:00	21.8 °C	23.7 °C	62
Sep	30%	58%	47%	13.2 kt	NNW	15:00	19.8 °C	22.4 °C	60
Oct	42%	65%	60%	14.5 kt	E	14:00	16.9 °C	20.1 °C	62
Nov	40%	57%	45%	15.4 kt	E	10:00	12.1 °C	16.9 °C	60
Dec	32%	53%	45%	15.2 kt	E	11:00	9.7 °C	14.2 °C	62

How this is modelledmodelled · 2023-2024

A weather model's cell over this place, not a station on it. Good for comparing places, weaker for one beach.

A windy day has at least three consecutive daylight hours at 12 knots or more. The typical daily max and the direction are columns of the table above, month by month. Highlighted months are the riding season from the spot record.

High-resolution weather model (modelled) · Open-Meteo historical forecast archive — best-match operational model (ICON-D2 / AROME / ICON-EU / GFS by region), not a ground station · 2023-2024

The water

Type

waves

Standing depth

Partial standing depth reported at low tide on sandbanks; otherwise open Atlantic beach water.

Tides

Tide matters. High tide brings the waves in, low tide is more technical near shore, the range is 3-4 m and the currents grow with it. Best tide per bank is contested: La Piste/VVF is usually low-to-mid, though high tide is also claimed for La Piste.

Temperature

21–23 °C summer · 13–14 °C winter

Modelled monthly average: 13–24 °C

Wetsuit

Summer: 2 mm/shorty to 3/2 depending on tolerance. Winter: 4/3 to 5/4 with boots on colder days. Spring/autumn commonly 3/2 or 4/3.

Currents

Baïne rips are the Landes hazard: they pull bathers and surfers out, and they run stronger near the harbour channel and on moving tides.

Conditions

Open sandy Atlantic beach break south of the Capbreton harbour system. The Gouf de Capbreton and coastal structures affect swell, sandbars and currents; conditions range from chop and small waves to powerful shorebreak on bigger swells. Océanides is very exposed to swell.

Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

not for beginners here

Intermediate to expert: Atlantic waves, shorebreak, baïne currents, the harbour and its jetties, surfers, plus a full beach in summer. Some Capbreton banks are beginner surf; none of them is beginner kite.

The scene

What riders come here for

wave ridingstrapless surfboardstrong-wind freerideforecast-driven sessionscombining kite with surf

Surf-town resort atmosphere. Summer is busy with families, surf schools, surfers and tourists; outside summer it is quieter but still a well-known Landes surf zone.

Launch and rules

three ways on to the water, and what each one asks of you

With a school or a boat

3 schools name this spot

See who they are

On your own

Room to launch: huge

Read the access rules

Somewhere else

4 spots nearby

All 4 spots within 40 km are under Nearby

Rescue

VHF channel 16

Rescue — full text1 min read

There is a municipal lifeguard post on Océanides, staffed 13 June-3 July and 31 August-27 September 2026 from 12:30 to 18:30, and 4 July-30 August 2026 from 11:00 to 19:00.

It covers the flagged bathing zone, not kitesurfers, and outside those windows nobody is on the sand. For an incident on the water the number is 196, free and round the clock from any French phone, or VHF channel 16 if you carry a radio; 112 from the beach.

No kite-specific rescue, club patrol or boat cover was found at Capbreton.

Launch

The sandy beach at Plage des Océanides/VVF, near the lifeguard post, with space north or south of the post to stay out of the crowd.A kite/wing sector is also referenced south of the harbour toward Estacade/Miramar, but Capbreton/Miramar is in practice a surf and wingfoil spot; Seignosse Estagnots is the main summer kite launch on this stretch of coast.

Hazards riders report 10 reported

Crowds and zones

Crowding
Boat traffic near the only harbour on the Landes coast

Bottom

Jetties, groynes, breakwaters and confused water around coastal structures

Waves and currents

Rip currents near the harbour/canal mouth
Rip currents/baïnes on the Landes sandbar beaches
Stronger current and no-go margin around the Capbreton harbour channel/Boucarot pass
Powerful Atlantic shorebreak and shallow impact zones on low tide or bigger swell
Crowded summer beach with bathers, surf schools and surfers

Other

Blockhouses and hard obstacles around La Piste/Santocha sectors
Changing sandbanks

Rules & access

1 min read

2026: the Océanides lifeguard post runs 13 June-3 July and 31 August-27 September from 12:30 to 18:30, and 4 July-30 August from 11:00 to 19:00. While the flags are up, board sports are practised outside the flagged bathing zone, which is the rule the lifeguards state themselves.

Local regulations

At Plage de la Piste bathing and nautical activities are forbidden in the immediate perimeter of the blockhouses, and paragliding is banned at la Piste and Prévent. The harbour entrance and the Boucarot pass are off limits.

How to find current rules

Across the Landes each commune regulates nautical activity and the zoning is displayed at the lifeguard posts. No kite-specific Capbreton zone, channel or bylaw exists in the published municipal material for 2026, so the map at the post is what governs; read it before you rig.

Access rules drift faster than anything else we hold — check locally, and propose an edit if this has changed.

Schools that ride here

Rider tips

Give the harbour entrance and the Boucarot channel a wide berth downwind and to the side: the boat traffic and the strongest current lines are there.
Read the zoning board at the Océanides lifeguard post before you rig, above all from June to September.
West wind is onshore and messy for waves; east and southeast clean the surf but blow off or cross-off, so ride them only with a downwind exit planned.
At low tide the banks go shallow and the shorebreak closes out; on a moving tide expect the baïnes to pull harder.
If the beach is full of swimmers and surf-school groups, drive to Seignosse Estagnots instead of threading through them.
Bring a 4/3 from autumn; the water drops to 13-14 C in winter.

Getting there

Airport

Biarritz Pays Basque Airport (BIQ)

Route

By car, or on the RDTL/XL'R bus along the Dax-Soustons-Capbreton-Bayonne line; Yégo runs the local transport. Biarritz-Parme is the airport, direct coaches run to Capbreton-Hossegor, and there are bus links through Bayonne. The Capbreton marina is there if you arrive by boat.

Transfer

25-35 min by car from Biarritz airport; about 50-55 min by direct coach/bus where available.

Cost level

medium

Staying

Large surf-resort choice across Capbreton, Hossegor and Seignosse: hotels, surf lodges, apartments, campsites and holiday villages; summer demand is high, especially near the beaches.

No-wind days

Surfing at Santocha, La Piste, Prévent, Estacade or nearby Hossegor/Seignosse; wingfoil/foil lessons; beach walks and dune paths; Capbreton harbour and fish market; cycling on local paths; Hossegor lake and surf-town cafes/shops.

Photos

FAQ

When is the best time to kitesurf at Capbreton?

Reported wind windows range from May through October for thermal and frontal flow to November through March, though historical wind averages are low, so conditions should be checked forecast by forecast.

Is Capbreton suitable for beginners?

No, spot guides consistently rate it intermediate to advanced because of Atlantic waves, shorebreak, baïne rip currents and harbor proximity.

What is the wind like at Capbreton?

Summer thermals typically run 10-20 knots in the afternoon, while autumn depression winds can reach 35-40 knots; overall reliability is inconsistent and gusty, especially in southerly flow.

Are there hazards to know about at Capbreton?

Baïne rip currents, changing sandbanks, a stronger current near the harbour channel, jetties and groynes, and a busy summer beach with bathers and surf schools are all reported.

The bigger pictureEverything about Landes - Hossegor/Seignosse

Last updated: August 2026