MapSpainLa Salvé (Laredo)Spain

La Salvé (Laredo)

Cantabria · Laredo

also known as Playa de Laredo, Playa de la Salve, El Puntal de Laredo

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

beginner-friendlyhigh 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

Apr–Oct

Months riders and schools name

How windy

under Typical strength, below

Character: mixed

Room to launch

huge

access rules on record, below

Water

mixed

20–24 °C in summerLong urban sand beach from the old port to El Puntal, continuing as the Regaton along the Ria de Treto

Hazards

Reported by riders

Level

Beginner to advanced

With a caveat: see Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

Crowds

high crowds · busy Jun Jul Aug

Schools

named at this spot

From the airport

Santander (SDR)

Transfer times under Getting there

When it fills in

E and NE are reinforced by the thermal, so the useful hours are the middle of the day into the afternoon rather than first thing. No published start and stop times for the beach.

Nearbystraight-line distance

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

Playa de Regatonno page yet
Berriano page yet
Noja El Playonno page yet
Somono page yet
Pedrenano page yet

The spot

Location and water

La Salve is Laredo's town beach on the Cantabrian coast, 4.25 km of sand running from the old port down to El Puntal on the south side of Santona bay.

The kite and windsurf end is El Puntal, where you can pick the ria or the open sea.

Wind

E is the signature wind, stable and anticyclonic; NE is the usual spring and summer side-on direction; when it swings W or NW riders move round to the Regaton side.

Water conditions

The sand is smooth and the water calmer than the exposed open-ocean beaches nearby, but this is a river mouth and the flow at the Ria de Treto entrance deserves a look before you go out.

In July and August the real constraint is bathers, because E wind has you tracking parallel to a busy public beach.

Water bottoms out around 12-13 C in early March, so winter means a 4/3 mm and boots.

No 2026 municipal kite zone appears in an ordinance, so ask on the beach where the marked area is.

The wind

locals call it Este; Nordeste; W/NW storm winds in the Regaton zone

Direction

onshoreE/NE/W/NW

Direction to shore

E onshore at the El Puntal beach setup; NE side-on; W/NW use the Regaton side.

Kite sizes

4567891011121314151617

metres · typical quiver highlighted

The quiver, in words

No local size data. Thermal E and NE days usually sit at 12-16 knots, which puts a 75-85 kg rider on 11-14 m; a force 5 day wants 9-10 m and the force 7 days 6-7 m. Indicative, derived from the reported wind range rather than from measured local use.

Character

mixed

When it fills in: see above ↑

Thermal or synoptic

synoptic

Typical strength

No measured local average exists. NE days are given as Beaufort force 3 to 7; a consistent knots range for the beach is unconfirmed.

E is the signature stable anticyclonic wind for Laredo. NE is a spring and summer side-on wind. W and NW are autumn and winter storm winds and use a different launch and riding area.

Spring, summer and autumn are the season here. E and NE carry the spring and summer days, W and NW the autumn and winter storms; summer often runs a NE sea breeze, while late autumn and winter bring stronger NW and SW systems.

Forecast

Live forecast

Windguru Windfinder Windy

Month by month

Jan37
Feb36
Mar51
Apr, riders' month34
May, riders' month29
Jun, riders' month24
Jul, riders' month27
Aug, riders' month32
Sep, riders' month40
Oct, riders' month38
Nov52
Dec40

per cent of the month at force 4 or more

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

10 ktJan14°
11 ktFeb13°
12 ktMar14°
11 ktApr15°
10 ktMay17°
9 ktJun21°
9 ktJul23°
10 ktAug23°
10 ktSep22°
11 ktOct20°
12 ktNov17°
11 ktDec14°

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

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.

Every figure, month by monthForce 4+ · Knots · Wind from · Air · Water

Month	Force 4+	Knots	Wind from	Air	Water
Jan	37%	10.4 kt	S	9.2 °C	13.6 °C
Feb	36%	11.2 kt	W	10 °C	13.4 °C
Mar	51%	11.5 kt	W	12 °C	13.7 °C
Apr	34%	10.5 kt	E	12.6 °C	14.9 °C
May	29%	10 kt	WNW	15.2 °C	17.2 °C
Jun	24%	9.3 kt	WNW	18.6 °C	20.6 °C
Jul	27%	9.4 kt	E	20.4 °C	22.7 °C
Aug	32%	10.1 kt	WNW	21.1 °C	23.2 °C
Sep	40%	10.2 kt	W	18.9 °C	21.7 °C
Oct	38%	10.5 kt	S	18 °C	19.5 °C
Nov	52%	12 kt	W	13.7 °C	16.6 °C
Dec	40%	10.8 kt	SSW	10.9 °C	14.4 °C

How this is modelledmodelled · 2022-2024

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

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

mixed

Standing depth

The bottom is smooth fine sand, and El Puntal can suit a learner or an expert depending on whether you use the ria or the open sea, but no standing-depth zone is on record.

Tides

Cantabrian tides are large and the walk changes with them: at high water the sea is roughly 50 m from the usual rigging spot at the point, at low water you carry further.E and NE are said to work at any tide, and W or NW sessions move round to the Regaton side on the ria.Check the beach width and the shape of the river mouth on the day.

Temperature

Summer (°C) 20-24 peak range around mid-August; August average 21.6

Winter (°C) 12-13 lowest range around early March; winter around 13.2 and February average 12.4

Modelled monthly average: 13–23 °C

Wetsuit

Shorty or 3/2 mm summer suit in warm conditions; 4/3 mm with boots for the coldest winter/early-spring sessions, with 5/3 mm possible for long cold windy days.

Currents

No kite-specific current measurements found. El Puntal is beside the Ria de Treto/Santona bay entrance, so river-mouth/tidal flow should be treated as an on-site check.

Conditions

Long urban sand beach from the old port to El Puntal, continuing as the Regaton along the Ria de Treto. Sandy bottom, small to medium waves depending on the day, and more shelter than the exposed open-ocean beaches. The Puntal end gives a river-mouth option as well as open sea.

Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

The required level is marked beginner and courses run from taster to advanced, though the activity is also rated hard and not for kids. A beginner needs instruction and the right zone at El Puntal or Regaton; riding independently is an intermediate job once swimmers, onshore E wind, tide or river-mouth flow are in play.

The scene

What riders come here for

freeridelearning with a schoollight wave ridingwindsurfwingfoil

Urban family beach with an active wind-sports scene at El Puntal. Dozens of kiters are reported on windy days, and summer swimmer traffic is what forces careful spacing.

Launch and rules

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

With a school or a boat

4 schools name this spot

See who they are

On your own

Room to launch: huge

Read the access rules

Somewhere else

5 spots nearby

All 5 spots within 40 km are under Nearby

Rescue

Municipal lifeguard, first-aid and rescue cover exists on La Salve only, and only in the bathing season.

In 2026 that meant weekends and holidays from 30 May to 15 June, daily from 16 June to 14 September, weekends and holidays again to 27 September, 11:30 to 19:30.

El Puntal and El Regaton get none of it. Nothing is dedicated to kiters, so work out your downwind exit and plan a self-rescue.

Launch

Rigging at El Puntal is on the green strip beside the car park at the point, where a low dune takes the edge off the wind. The beach itself is 4.25 km of urban sand running from the old port down to the point, and W or NW sessions are ridden from the Regaton side on the ria - a stretch the municipal ordinance also excludes from kitesurf, so check before you set up.

Hazards riders report 10 reported

Wind

Summer bathers on a busy urban beach; with E wind riders need to keep clear while tracking parallel to the beach.
Wrong zone for the wind. El Puntal is the E and NE launch, Regaton the W and NW one.

Crowds and zones

Summer bathers: riders have to tack around them.
Traffic on a good day: 30-40 sails plus a similar number of kites sharing the same water off the point.
Lifeguard cover exists only on La Salve and only in the bathing season; the point has none.

Waves and currents

Possible tidal and river-mouth currents around El Puntal/Ria de Treto.

Protected areas and rules

Nearby Marismas de Santona, Victoria y Joyel natural park and bird marshes require environmental care.
The municipal ordinance excludes kitesurf at El Puntal and El Regaton under PORN zoning, even though both are described locally as the wind-sports end.

Other

Stormier autumn/winter W/NW conditions.
No dedicated kite rescue on record.

Rules & access

1 min read

2026: the municipal beach ordinance in force since 2021 reserves the first 100 m of water off every Laredo beach for bathers during the bathing season and bathing hours, and bans surf, windsurf, kitesurf and similar disciplines inside it. The 2026 mayoral bando sets that season at 30 May to 27 September and those hours at 09:00-20:30.

Outside restricted hours

Outside the hours, and once the signage and buoys are in place, kitesurf is free on Laredo's beaches - with El Puntal and El Regaton excluded, because the PORN zoning rules them out. Breaking those rules is a listed infraction. Local promotion of El Puntal for wind sports instead describes summer sessions as having to stay more than 200 m offshore, and navigation inside the ria is separately reported as prohibited.

School requirements

Schools need a municipal activity licence with civil liability cover and qualified instructors. The legal text and the local promotion do not agree about El Puntal, so read the signs and ask 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

With E wind, launch from the El Puntal end and be sure you can hold ground before you ride past the summer bathers.
Do not expect W or NW to work from the same launch; those winds go to the Regaton side on the ria.
Check the tide and the river-mouth flow at El Puntal before you put up a big kite or teach anyone.
Ask the local school or the lifeguards which area is marked in July and August.
Bring a 4/3 mm and boots outside the warm months; the water drops to roughly 12-13 C at its coldest.

Getting there

Airport

Santander (SDR) and Bilbao (BIO)

Route

The A-8 Bilbao-Santander motorway and the N-634 both reach Laredo, and buses serve the town. It sits on the Cantabrian coast between Santander and Bilbao.

Transfer

About 30-55 minutes by bus or 28 minutes by car from Santander Airport. Laredo is about 45 km from Santander Airport and 55 km from Bilbao Airport.

Cost level

medium

Staying

Beach-town flats and hotels along the Laredo seafront; no kite-specific lodging is listed.

No-wind days

Surf on La Salve, SUP and kayak, the boat between El Puntal and Santona, Laredo old town, diving at El Tunel, walking in eastern Cantabria, and Alto Campoo for skiing in winter.

Photos

FAQ

When is the best time to kite at La Salvé?

April through October is the best season, with E wind as the stable signature direction and NE common as a spring/summer side-on wind.

Is La Salvé suitable for beginners?

It is marked as beginner-friendly with instruction, but independent riding is more intermediate given summer swimmers, onshore E wind and tide or river-mouth flow.

What is the wind like?

E wind is described as stable and anticyclonic, NE is a common spring/summer side-on wind, and W/NW autumn/winter storm winds use the Regatón/ría side instead.

Are there kite schools nearby?

Yes, providers include KNS Watersports/El Puntal Laredo Water Sport Center and the Escuela Municipal de Wind Surf y Kite Surf at El Puntal.

Last updated: August 2026