Nearby La Pinède (Mèze) 20 km · Pont Levis (Sète) 23 km · Saint-Pierre-la-Mer 24 km · Plage du Créneau Naturel 29 km · Étang d'Ingril (Frontignan) 30 km · Gruissan 35 km · La Nautique 40 km · straight-line distance
When it fills in
The S to SW thermal is an afternoon wind, spring and autumn. Marin and Tramontane arrive with the synoptic pattern and can blow at any hour, through the night included, so there is no fill-in time to plan around outside the thermal season.
The wind
locals call it Marin; thermique; Tramontane
Direction
Kite sizes
metres · typical quiver highlighted
Character
mixed
fills in: The S to SW thermal is an afternoon wind, spring and autumn. Marin and Tramontane arrive with the synoptic pattern and can blow at any hour, through the night included, so there is no fill-in time to plan around outside the thermal season.
Typical strength
No anemometer and no webcam on the beach. Rideable days sit roughly in the 15-25 kt band, and the best-reading days average 15-16 kt with gusts into the mid-20s. Winter Tramontane goes harder and rougher than that. Indicative, not a measured spot average.
Thermal or synoptic
thermal and synoptic
The quiver, in words
For a 75-85 kg rider, indicative: 12 m in 14-17 kt, 10 m in 18-22, 9 m or 8 m in 23-27, 7 m above that. Gusts here are wide, so drop a size when the spread is big — a 15 kt average with peaks to 26 is a 10 m afternoon, not a 12 m one.October to May is where most of these days fall, since the band is closed to kites in summer. No measured local size record exists.
Direction to shore
SE Marin is straight onshore and the most reliable direction here. S to SW thermal is onshore to side-on. W runs side-shore and flattens the water along the seawalls, which is the freestyle setup.NW Tramontane crosses the pine wood before it reaches the sand and lands side-offshore, gusty, pushing toward open sea. East is turbulent: it passes over the port structures first, and kites get dumped in the water or against the dikes.
Dominant direction
SE Marin; S/SW thermal breeze; W; NW Tramontane
Forecast
Month by month
- Jan, riders' month58
- Feb, riders' month67
- Mar, riders' month65
- Apr, riders' month73
- May, riders' month51
- Jun67
- Jul58
- Aug56
- Sep52
- Oct, riders' month49
- Nov, riders' month72
- Dec, riders' month56
per cent of the month at force 4 or more
Ringed months are the ones riders and schools name: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Oct, Nov, Dec.
- 12Jan12°
- 13Feb12°
- 14Mar13°
- 14Apr15°
- 12May17°
- 13Jun22°
- 13Jul23°
- 12Aug24°
- 12Sep22°
- 13Oct20°
- 13Nov17°
- 12Dec14°
avg knots per month · water °C below · season highlighted
| Month | Force 4+ | Knots | From | Air | Water |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 58% | 12.2 kt | NW | 7.8°C | 12.4°C |
| Feb | 67% | 13.1 kt | WNW | 10°C | 12.3°C |
| Mar | 65% | 14.1 kt | WNW | 11.9°C | 13.1°C |
| Apr | 73% | 14.4 kt | NW | 14.2°C | 14.7°C |
| May | 51% | 11.9 kt | NW | 18°C | 17.3°C |
| Jun | 67% | 12.5 kt | NW | 22.8°C | 21.8°C |
| Jul | 58% | 12.5 kt | NW | 25.6°C | 23.2°C |
| Aug | 56% | 12.2 kt | NW | 25.4°C | 23.7°C |
| Sep | 52% | 11.9 kt | WNW | 20.7°C | 22.1°C |
| Oct | 49% | 12.5 kt | ENE | 18.5°C | 20.2°C |
| Nov | 72% | 13.1 kt | NW | 13°C | 17.2°C |
| Dec | 56% | 12.3 kt | NW | 9.3°C | 13.9°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
sea
Standing depth
Sand with a gentle slope and no rock on the bottom, so you can wade out a fair way, and with a tide of a few centimetres the depth barely changes through the day. Depth is not the problem: the groyne heads are, sitting submerged and invisible when the water is up.
Tides
Marnage of a few centimetres, referenced to the port of Sète. Wind setup and the Hérault's discharge move the water level and the water quality more than the tide does.
Temperature
22.6°C summer · 12.5°C winter
Wetsuit
Shorty or light suit in summer; full wetsuit in winter and early spring.
Currents
River-mouth outflow from the Herault can affect water quality/visibility and drift near the entrance channel, especially after rain.
Your level
The scene
What riders come here for
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
On your own
Room to launch: Wide sandy beach, but the usable width is cut by the groynes, by the summer bathing zone and by river debris after rain. The western end toward Vias is the open part and the farthest from the lifeguard.
Somewhere else
La Pinède (Mèze), 20 km
Every spot within 40 km is on the map at the top of this page, with its distance under it.
Rescue
VHF channel 16
Launch
Beach launch on the La Tamarissière side, west of the Hérault mouth. Park in the pine wood off Rue du Commandant Malet, a few steps from the sand.The open ground is west: about ten minutes down the beach, past access 10 toward the Vias boundary, the beach is no longer marked out and that is where riders go in summer. Closer to the groynes and the river entrance the hazards stack up.
Space
Wide sandy beach, but the usable width is cut by the groynes, by the summer bathing zone and by river debris after rain. The western end toward Vias is the open part and the farthest from the lifeguard.
Rules & access
Access rules drift faster than anything else we hold — check locally, and propose an edit if this has changed.
Rider tips
- Before any attempt between 1 June and 30 September, read the current Agde order and the beach signs: the 2021 ban may still stand.
- Keep well clear of the Herault entrance channel and its boat traffic, and learn where the submerged groynes are at whatever water level you find.
- After heavy rain, walk the beach first: the river dumps driftwood and the water goes murky.
- Foils stay out of the 300 m band all year (article 26 of the 2021 order).
- Learning: book a boat-supported lesson with a Cap d'Agde school or go to the Etang de Thau instead.
- Between 1 June and 30 September the marked band is closed to kites: walk about ten minutes west, past access 10 toward the Vias boundary, to the section that is not marked out.
- Read the current Agde order and the beach signs before any summer attempt; the 2021 text is the one still online and it may have been reissued.
- Foils stay out of the 300 m band all year under article 26, summer or not.
- Learn where the submerged groynes are at whatever water level you find, and keep well clear of the Hérault entrance channel and its boat traffic.
- After heavy rain, walk the beach first: the river dumps driftwood and the water goes brown.
- In a gusty Tramontane rig a size down; a 15 kt average with peaks to 26 is a 10 m day for 75 kg.
- Nobody is watching outside 11:00-18:30 in July and August. Ride with someone, and know that 196 is the coastguard number.
- Learning: book a boat-supported lesson with a Cap d'Agde school, or go to the Étang de Thau instead.
Getting there
Airport
Montpellier-Mediterranee is the nearest airport for Cap d'Agde; Beziers Cap d'Agde is the regional alternative.
Route
By car through Agde and Le Grau d'Agde on the Route de la Tamarissière. Free parking in the pine wood behind the beach off Rue du Commandant Malet, steps from the sand; no ramp and no pontoon, you walk onto a gentle sand slope.
Transfer
50 min
Cost level
medium
Staying
Cap d'Agde, Le Grau d'Agde and Agde offer hotels, campsites, holiday rentals and resort accommodation.
No-wind days
Cap d'Agde beach resort · restaurants and beach bars · water park and family resort activities · Agde old town · Etang de Thau day trips
Photos
FAQ
When is the best time to kite at La Tamarissière?
October to May is the usable kite season, since a 2021 municipal order bans kitesurf in the marked 300 m band from 1 June to 30 September.
Is La Tamarissière suitable for beginners?
No; the required level is listed as medium, and groynes, jetties and offshore Tramontane make it a poor choice for a first-time independent beginner.
What is the wind like?
SE Marin and S/SW thermal wind bring chop and windswell, W wind can flatten water near the seawalls, and NW Tramontane is gusty and side-offshore to offshore.
Are there rules or restricted zones?
Under the 2021 Agde order, kitesurf is banned in the marked 300 m band from 1 June to 30 September, and foil use is banned in that band year-round.
What hazards should I know about?
Submerged groynes and breakwaters, wood and debris after heavy rain, and boat traffic near the Hérault river mouth are the main hazards.
Last updated: August 2026