Map › France › Loire-Atlantique - Saint-Brevin-les-Pins › La Baule - Plage Benoit

Pays de la Loire · Loire-Atlantique - Baie de La Baule · Loire-Atlantique · La Baule-Escoublac

La Baule - Plage Benoit

also known as Plage Benoit, La Baule / Le Pouliguen, Baie de La Baule

beginner-friendlyhigh crowds

On this page

Wind
- Month by month
Forecast
Water
Level
The scene
Launch
- Rescue
Hazards
Rules & access
Schools
Tips
Getting there
Photos
FAQ

Nearby La Turballe - Pen Bron 8 km · Mesquer - Plage de Sorlock 16 km · Saint-Brevin - Le Pointeau 18 km · Pont-Mahé (Assérac) 18 km · Saint-Brevin - Les Rochelets 20 km · straight-line distance

Seasonno season namedthe months riders and schools name How windy12 to 30 ktmixed Launchlarge sandy beach outside peak beach restrictions; constrained by summer zones, bathers and high-tide building turbulenceaccess rules on record, below Watersheltered bay beach19°C in summer · 11 things riders flag LevelBeginner to advancedwith a caveat, in the Level section Schools6named at this spot From the airport54 minNantes Atlantique Airport (NTE)

When it fills in

No onset time is published for this spot.

Plage Benoit is the western end of La Baule bay, up against Le Pouliguen, and in practice it is a winter spot: the beach is closed to kites from 15 June to 15 September and on May weekends, and the whole bay is off limits from the day the first yellow swim buoy goes in until the last one comes out, roughly mid-May to mid-September.

Outside that, SE to SW works and SW is best; Line Up runs its lessons here from September to June, at low tide, in anything from NE to S. Tide decides the session. Low water leaves flat, shallow basins over the sandbanks, which is where the lessons happen; a rising tide with SW wind puts waves on the offshore bank.

At high tide the seafront buildings chew up the wind, so launch and land as close to the water as you can. In summer the only legal way onto the bay is the K13 channel at the Pornichet end, by the Les Vagues buildings: open 12:00-19:00 when the lifeguard-post chiefs decide it is, a minimum of 6 kt, transit only with no riding inside it, and then you stay beyond 300 m and at least 100 m off the beach.

Shells cut feet on the sandbanks, so neoprene boots. Typical wind strength and kite sizes here are unconfirmed; the water is 18.7 C in August and 8.8 C in February, so a 3-2 mm in the warm months and a full winter suit the rest of the year.

The wind

Direction

onshoreSE to SW

Kite sizes

5678910111213141516

metres · typical quiver highlighted

Character

mixed

Typical strength

Kitesurf lessons on this bay run from 12 to 30 kt, with landkite filling the 8-15 kt gap below that. The 6 kt minimum attached to the summer K13 channel is an opening threshold, not a riding range; at that strength only a foil moves. No measured freeride range exists for Plage Benoit itself.

Sheltered-bay wind, disturbed at high tide near the seafront buildings; launch and land close to the water then. Synoptic wind plus a summer sea breeze; no measured reliability table was found.

The bay is open to water sports in the low season, 15 September to 15 June. Summer is heavily restricted: K13 channel access only, and only when the channel is open and conditions are met.

Thermal or synoptic

summer thermal, reportedly (2026)

The quiver, in words

Nothing spot-specific is published. Taking the 12-30 kt window the local schools work in, a 75-85 kg rider is on 12-14 m at the bottom end, 9-10 m through the middle and 7 m or smaller once it passes 25 kt. Indicative, derived from that wind window rather than from a local quiver report.

Dominant direction

SE to SW, best SW; the low-tide school sessions at Plage Benoit run in NE to S.

Forecast

Month by month

Jan59
Feb58
Mar74
Apr57
May65
Jun51
Jul66
Aug53
Sep53
Oct62
Nov69
Dec76

per cent of the month at force 4 or more

14Jan10°
14Feb10°
15Mar11°
13Apr13°
12May16°
12Jun18°
12Jul19°
12Aug20°
13Sep19°
14Oct17°
17Nov14°
15Dec11°

avg knots per month · water °C below · season highlighted

Month	Force 4+	Knots	From	Air	Water
Jan	59%	14.2 kt	WSW	7.2°C	9.7°C
Feb	58%	13.7 kt	W	8.8°C	9.9°C
Mar	74%	15 kt	SW	10.1°C	10.8°C
Apr	57%	13.2 kt	NE	11.6°C	12.7°C
May	65%	12 kt	NE	15.3°C	15.6°C
Jun	51%	11.5 kt	WSW	18.5°C	18.4°C
Jul	66%	11.9 kt	WSW	19.4°C	19°C
Aug	53%	11.5 kt	W	20°C	20.3°C
Sep	53%	12.6 kt	WSW	17.7°C	19.1°C
Oct	62%	13.8 kt	SW	15.7°C	17.1°C
Nov	69%	16.6 kt	W	12°C	13.6°C
Dec	76%	15 kt	ENE	8.5°C	10.6°C

modelled

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

Modelled from weather reanalysis on a 10–25 km grid (2022-2024), not a ground station: reliable for trade and synoptic winds, understates thermal sea breezes and valley winds. 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.

ERA5 reanalysis grid point (modelled) · Open-Meteo historical weather API — ECMWF ERA5/ERA5-Land reanalysis, not a ground station · 2022-2024

The water

Type

sheltered bay beach

Standing depth

Shallow in the low-tide pools over the sandbanks; no measured standing-depth range was found.

Tides

Tide decides the session. Low water leaves flat, shallow basins over the sandbanks, and that is when lessons run; a rising tide with SW wind puts waves on the offshore bank, and mid-tide suits S and SE.In summer the K13 channel needs its second buoy showing before it opens, which means mid-falling water, though it can still be opened at high tide if the beach is quiet. High water pushes the ride up against the seafront.

Temperature

19°C summer · 9°C winter

Wetsuit

Cold Atlantic water: La Baule-Escoublac averages 18.7 C in August and 8.8 C in February. A spring suit/3-2 mm covers the warm months; winter needs a full winter suit.

10–20°C water

Large sandy bay at the Le Pouliguen end of La Baule. Low tide can produce clear, flat shallow basins over sandbanks; rising tide with SW wind can create waves on the offshore bank. High tide near the buildings can create wind perturbation and a more difficult launch.

Your level

beginnerintermediateadvanced

Beginners are taught here at low tide with a school. On your own, treat it with care: a busy resort bay, seasonal channel rules and turbulence off the buildings at high tide.

The scene

What riders come here for

freeridefoillearning with schoolfreestylewingfoillandkite

Resort-bay spot shared by schools, freeriders, foilers and everyone else on the beach; busy all year outside the summer closure.

Launch and rules

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

With a school or a boat

6 schools name this spot

See who they are

On your own

Room to launch: large sandy beach outside peak beach restrictions; constrained by summer zones, bathers and high-tide building turbulence

access rules on record

Somewhere else

La Turballe - Pen Bron, 8 km

La Turballe - Pen Bron Mesquer - Plage de Sorlock Saint-Brevin - Le Pointeau

Every spot within 40 km is on the map at the top of this page, with its distance under it.

Rescue

VHF 16

The K13 channel runs 12:00-19:00 under the lifeguard post chiefs, and only on the days they decide to open it; outside those hours riding is tolerated and nobody is watching. Pupils on a lesson ride in a flotation vest and a helmet with a radio link to the instructor. There is no kite-specific rescue boat.

At sea, 196 reaches a rescue coordination centre free, round the clock, and VHF 16 is the distress channel.

Launch

Launch from the Plage Benoit end of La Baule near Le Pouliguen when the beach and/or seasonal K13 kite channel rules allow it. In summer, the K13 channel near the Mazy jetty is for access only, not for riding.

Space

large sandy beach outside peak beach restrictions; constrained by summer zones, bathers and high-tide building turbulence

Hazards riders report 11

busy resort beach
seasonal channel restrictions
do not navigate in the access channel except for transit
Busy resort beach and crowded bay outside summer
East wind to avoid.
High-tide wind turbulence from seafront buildings
Shell cuts on the beach; wear neoprene boots
Seasonal channel restrictions and beach bans
K13 channel is for access only; navigation must be beyond 300 m and at least 100 m from shore in season
Wingfoil is forbidden in the K13 kite channel
Beach users have priority

Rules & access

2026: Municipal order ARR2026-212-KITE-SURF (Pornichet) requires kitesurf to reach the 300 m offshore band via the K13 channel, located between La Baule and Pornichet at the level of the Les Vagues buildings, and makes K13 the only entry/exit point from 15 June to 15 September, with openings decided daily by the beach-post chiefs; the channel opens 12:00-19:00 under lifeguard-post supervision when conditions allow, is a transit corridor rather than a riding area reserved for initiated riders rather than beginners or schools, and wingfoil is forbidden inside it. Plage Benoit is closed to kitesurf from 15 June to 15 September, plus bans on May weekends including bridge holidays; more broadly, kitesurf is prohibited in La Baule bay from the placement of the first yellow swim-zone buoy until the last buoy is removed, generally mid-May to mid-September. Riding must stay beyond 300 m and at least 100 m from shore, kite/board marking is mandatory in July-August, and beach users have priority regardless of activity.

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

Rider tips

Before any summer session, check the K13 opening notice (WhatsApp) and the beach signs; the channel opens 12:00-19:00 and only when the post chiefs say so.
At high tide, launch and land right at the water's edge; the seafront buildings make the wind unstable higher up the beach.
Wear neoprene boots on the low-tide sandbanks; the shells cut.
Skip east wind here.
In July-August your kite and board must carry identification marking.

Getting there

Airport

Nantes Atlantique Airport (NTE)

Route

Nantes-Atlantique Airport is about 75 km from the peninsula: 76.3 km by road to La Baule-Escoublac, about 54 minutes by car, or about 1 h 49 min by airport bus plus train.

Transfer

54 min

Cost level

high

Staying

A big seaside resort: hotels, apartments and beach lets around La Baule/Le Pouliguen, 2600+ hotels listed near La Baule-Escoublac.

No-wind days

La Baule beach · Le Pouliguen and Pornichet waterfronts · Guerande peninsula visits · surf and other beach activities

Photos

Plage de La Baule-Escoublac en automne (octobre 2022) — Florian Pépellin, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

FAQ

When is the best time to kite at Plage Benoit?

Local schools use the beach for lessons from September to June at low tide; summer access is heavily restricted.

What is the wind like?

Southeast to southwest wind is usable with southwest rated best by one source, while another cites northeast to south for low-tide school sessions.

Are there rules or restricted zones?

Under 2026 rules, Plage Benoit is forbidden from 15 June to 15 September; the K13 channel opens 12:00-19:00 under lifeguard-post supervision, and riding must stay beyond 300 m and at least 100 m from shore.

What hazards should I know about?

High tide near the seafront buildings can disturb the wind, and shells on the low-tide sandbanks make neoprene boots worthwhile.

Last updated: August 2026