MapSpainGetares – Palmones, Algeciras BayPalmonesGetares – Palmones, Algeciras Bay

Palmones

Andalusia · Tarifa - Algeciras Bay · Campo de Gibraltar · Palmones / Los Barrios; Algeciras nearby

also known as Los Palmones, Playa de Palmones

Part of Getares – Palmones, Algeciras Bay →

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

beginner-friendlymedium 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

Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Sep, Oct

Months riders and schools name

How windy

10-15 kt

Character: mixed

Room to launch

access rules on record, below

Water

mixed

21.4 °C in summerFlat water is the draw, with chop and small wind waves outside the sandbar in stronger Levante

Hazards

Reported by riders

Level

Beginner to advanced

With a caveat: see Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

Crowds

medium crowds · busy Apr May Oct Jun

Schools

named at this spot

From the airport

International Airport (GIB)

Transfer times under Getting there

When it fills in

There is no daily cycle to plan around. Levante is a gap wind driven by the pressure difference across the Strait, not a thermal, so it runs through the night and holds for days once an episode sets in; you plan the trip around the episode, not the hour. Mornings are the usual pick when the Levante is strong.

Nearbystraight-line distance

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

Tarifa spotsno page yet
El Rinconcillono page yet
Sotograndeno page yet
La Linea - Playa Ponienteno page yet
Canos de Mecano page yet

The spot

Palmones is the sheltered Levante backup to Tarifa, on Playa de Palmones at the mouth of the Rio Palmones in Algeciras Bay.

Wind and conditions

The useful wind is E to ESE Levante, and it bends into the bay cross-on and softer instead of blowing offshore the way it does on the Tarifa town beaches; expect it roughly 10-15 kt lighter than Tarifa on the same day, which usually means 9-12 m. You come here for flat, soft water, not for big air or waves.

Riding area

The riding area is tighter than it looks: the river, lagoon and marsh next door are a protected area from which kite-surf and windsurf are excluded, published in 2014 with no end date, and the bay carries anchored cargo ships, the Algeciras-Ceuta ferry lane and current at the river mouth. Low water opens more shallow ground around the sandbar.

Summer access

Summer access is unresolved, with the published rules running from a 15 June to 15 September ban to year-round riding inside marked zones, and part of that confusion belongs to Getares, a different beach across the bay in Algeciras.

Before you launch

Beginners here only with supervision, and everyone else should read the beach signs and ask at the lifeguard post before rigging. The view is Gibraltar, anchored ships and port infrastructure, and the beach itself is urban: 750 m of sand about 30 m wide with restaurants and a promenade behind it.

The wind

locals call it Levante

Direction

cross-onE to ESE for riding

Direction to shore

cross-on

Dominant direction

E to ESE for riding; regional winds alternate mainly Levante and Poniente, with the old Palmones station average showing NNE at 10 kt over 2010-2022 observations.

Kite sizes

5678910111213141516

metres · typical quiver highlighted

The quiver, in words

9-12 m covers most Levante days for a 75-85 kg rider, with 14 m worth carrying for the light end and 7-8 m only when a big Levante episode still drives more than 25 kt into the bay. On the same day you will usually be one or two sizes larger here than at Los Lances or Valdevaqueros.

Character

mixed

When it fills in: see above ↑

Average strength

10 kt annual average at the Palmones historical station. A rideable Levante session here commonly sits around 20-25 kt.

Typical strength

Often used when the Tarifa Levante is over 30 kt. Palmones runs roughly 10-15 kt lighter than Tarifa and rarely tops 25 kt, though no spot-specific riding average is published.

Cleaner and softer than the exposed, offshore Levante on the Tarifa beaches, and not a destination wind on a weak Levante day.

The Plan B when strong Levante blows Tarifa out. Spring and autumn come up again and again, with April to mid-June and mid-September to October the usual picks. Summer access is disputed and hemmed in by bathers and protected-area rules.

Forecast

Live forecast

Windguru Windfinder Windy

Month by month

10 ktJan16°
10 ktFeb16°
10 ktMar16°
10 ktApr16°
9 ktMay18°
9 ktJun19°
8 ktJul21°
8 ktAug22°
8 ktSep21°
9 ktOct20°
9 ktNov18°
10 ktDec17°

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

Modelled monthly averages. Highlighted: the months riders and schools name (Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Sep, Oct).

Modelled from weather reanalysis on a 10–25 km grid (1980-2016), not a ground station: reliable for trade and synoptic winds, understates thermal sea breezes and valley winds.

Every figure, month by monthKnots · Wind from · Air · Water

Month	Knots	Wind from	Air	Water
Jan	9.7 kt	E	13.3 °C	16.1 °C
Feb	10.2 kt	E	13.9 °C	15.6 °C
Mar	10.1 kt	E	15 °C	15.6 °C
Apr	9.6 kt	W	16.1 °C	16.1 °C
May	9 kt	W	18.3 °C	17.8 °C
Jun	8.5 kt	W	21.7 °C	19.4 °C
Jul	8.4 kt	E	23.9 °C	21.1 °C
Aug	8.1 kt	E	23.9 °C	22.2 °C
Sep	8.4 kt	E	22.2 °C	21.1 °C
Oct	8.8 kt	E	19.4 °C	20 °C
Nov	9.4 kt	E	16.1 °C	18.3 °C
Dec	9.8 kt	E	14.4 °C	16.7 °C

How this is modelledmodelled · 1980-2016

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.

Algeciras (model 86% weighted on Gibraltar International Airport) · Weatherspark (NASA MERRA-2 reanalysis, 1980-2016)

The water

Type

mixed

Standing depth

Shallow flat water reportedly sits near the river-mouth sandbar and lagoon, but no standing-depth limit has been published for it.

Tides

Atlantic-driven but modest for the Strait: roughly 0.2 m at low water against 0.9 m at high water on a late-August 2026 day. Low water opens more flat, shallow ground around the river-mouth bar, though the spot is also rated tide-independent, so the tide is a comfort question rather than an access one.

Temperature

21.4 °C summer · 14.8 °C winter

Modelled monthly average: 16–22 °C

Wetsuit

Published guides suggest a wetsuit year round: roughly 1-2 mm/shorty in summer, 3/2 to 4/3 in shoulder season, and 4/3 or warmer in winter depending on cold tolerance.

Currents

Current runs at the Rio Palmones mouth, enough that it is also flagged as a swimming hazard.

Conditions

Flat water is the draw, with chop and small wind waves outside the sandbar in stronger Levante. The inner lagoon, marsh and river are not a legal riding area. Everything around the bay is industrial port and shipping.

Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

Schools sell it for every level, because the Levante arrives side and cross-on here and the water is flatter than Tarifa.

Against that, the riding area can be small, crowded with school groups, and hit by strong Levante, river-mouth current, shipping and protected-zone limits, which is why it also gets rated intermediate to expert.

Beginners belong in a supervised lesson.

The scene

What riders come here for

flat waterfreeridebeginner lessons with supervisionstrong-Levante backupsheltered bay riding

Who it suitsbeginner

A local and school backup rather than a destination beach. It fills when Tarifa is too strong in Levante, and the urban-beach users and the restaurants are there whatever the wind does.

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: ok

Read the access rules

Somewhere else

6 spots nearby

All 6 spots within 40 km are under Nearby

Rescue

Municipal cover exists, but only in the bathing season.

In 2026 the service ran 13 June to 13 September, with a beach chief, lifeguards, a first-aid post staffed by a nurse and an ambulance on site; it logged 26 medical assists and eight rescues in July 2026 and 19 assists with two rescues in August 2026.

Outside those dates the beach is unmanned. There is no kite-specific rescue and no rescue craft based here, so the emergency number is 112.

Launch

Sandy urban beach by the Palmones promenade, with restaurants and beach services behind it. Riders also come in from the Algeciras and Rinconcillo side and walk toward the river mouth.

Hazards riders report 14 reported

Wind

Limited riding area and crowding when strong Levante pushes Tarifa schools/riders to Palmones.

Crowds and zones

Maritime traffic, anchored cargo ships and industrial-port surroundings in Algeciras Bay.
Summer bathers and beach-service zoning.
Possible water-quality/pollution events in the bay; a July 2026 tar spill temporarily closed bathing in the affected zone.
The first 200 m off the beach counts legally as bathing water, capped at 3 knots unless a buoyed channel is in place.

Waves and currents

shallow water at low tide
Currents near the Palmones river mouth.
Shallow sandbars/low-tide shallows and small breaking waves near the river-mouth sandbar.

Protected areas and rules

adjacent protected marshland/birdlife
Kitesurf and windsurf are prohibited inside the Marismas del Rio Palmones protected area under the Andalusian PORN published in 2014.
Do not ride in the river, lagoon or marsh: those zones are protected and closed to kites all year

Other

seasonal closure
The Algeciras-Ceuta ferry lane and the anchorage sit across the bay; stay near the beach.
Beach loading in summer is heavy: about 500 users a day and around 1,000 at weekends on 750 m of sand averaging 30 m wide.

Rules & access

1 min read

2015-2026: no Los Barrios rule names kitesurfing anywhere. The governing text is municipal beach ordinance no. 13, which fixes the bathing season as 1 June to 30 September and, inside a duly buoyed exclusive bathing zone, bans sport and recreational navigation together with any floating craft whatever its propulsion.

Unbuoyed areas and channel rules

Where nothing is buoyed, the bathing zone is the first 200 m of water off the beach; speed there is capped at 3 knots and launching or beaching must go through a marked channel at that speed. Leaving boats or gear outside signposted areas is an offence, and organised sporting activity needs municipal authorisation.

2026: the municipal surveillance, lifeguard and medical service ran 13 June to 13 September.

Protected area exclusion

2014: kite-surf and windsurf are excluded from the Marismas del Rio Palmones protected area under Decreto 221/2013, published in BOJA on 13 January 2014, with no end date in the plan - the river, lagoon and marsh are off limits all year.

Conflicting accounts

Accounts of a summer ban on the beach itself conflict: 15 June to 15 September, August only, or year-round access provided marked zones are respected. Part of that confusion is Getares, a different beach across the bay in Algeciras that carries its own 15 June to 15 September prohibition.

Read the beach signs and ask at the lifeguard post before rigging.

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

Use Palmones when the Levante is too strong or too offshore and gusty at Tarifa, not as a primary light-wind spot.
Size up against your Tarifa call: the same Levante episode lands roughly 10-15 kt lighter inside the bay.
Stay out of the river, lagoon and marsh even if other riders are in there; the protected-area plan excludes kite-surf and windsurf all year.
In summer the lifeguard post is staffed, 13 June to 13 September in 2026, so walk over and ask about the buoyed zones instead of guessing.
Watch the river-mouth current if you drop the board near the sandbar or cross toward Rinconcillo.
Do not confuse this with Getares: the 15 June to 15 September prohibition quoted around the bay belongs to that beach, on the Algeciras side.

Getting there

Airport

Gibraltar International Airport (GIB) is the nearest airport; Malaga (AGP) and Jerez (XRY) are farther alternatives.

Route

By car from Tarifa, drive toward Malaga and Algeciras and carry on to the Palmones and Los Barrios beach access, about 28 km from Tarifa or around 30 minutes. From Gibraltar it is about 17.3 km and 18 minutes.

Transfer

18-25 minutes from Gibraltar area by car; about 30 minutes from Tarifa by car.

Cost level

medium

Staying

Accommodation exists in Palmones/Los Barrios and nearby Algeciras, including hotels around the commercial district; many kiters still base in Tarifa or Gibraltar depending on trip focus.

No-wind days

Seafood in Palmones, birdwatching in the Palmones river marshes, hiking and MTB in Los Alcornocales from Los Barrios, Gibraltar, Tarifa surf and SUP, and the other Strait spots when the wind moves.

Photos

FAQ

Is Palmones suitable for beginners?

Local schools market it for all levels since Levante is cross-on and flatter than Tarifa, but river-mouth current and shipping traffic mean beginners should stick to supervised lessons.

What is the wind like at Palmones?

E to ESE Levante is the wind used here, commonly described as 10-15 knots lighter than Tarifa and rarely over 25 knots, with spring and autumn recommended most.

Are there rules or restricted zones at Palmones?

Kitesurfing and windsurfing are banned inside the Marismas del Rio Palmones protected marsh under a 2014 decree, and sources disagree on whether the adjacent beach itself is closed from 15 June to 15 September 2026.

Are there kite schools near Palmones?

Yes, Tarifa-based schools including Kite Fun Tarifa, KitePassion Tarifa and Kiteboarding Gibraltar use Palmones as a Levante backup.

What hazards are there at Palmones?

Currents at the river mouth, shallow sandbars, and maritime and industrial-port traffic in Algeciras Bay.

The bigger pictureEverything about Tarifa - Algeciras Bay

Last updated: August 2026