MapMoroccoPlage des Nations & Plage de MehdiyaPlage des NationsPlage des Nations & Plage de Mehdiya

Plage des Nations

Rabat-Salé-Kénitra · Sale-Kenitra coast · Pachalik de Ameur · Sidi Bouknadel

also known as Plage des Nations Rabat, Bouknadel

Part of Plage des Nations & Plage de Mehdiya →

wavesnot for beginnersmedium crowds

On this page

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

Riding essentials

Season

no season named

Months riders and schools name

How windy

7 knots

Character: mixed

Room to launch

access rules on record, below

Water

waves

22–24 °C in summerOpen Atlantic beach break with small-to-medium waves

Hazards

Reported by riders

Level

Intermediate to advanced

With a caveat: see Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

Crowds

medium crowds · busy Jul Aug

Schools

none named here

From the airport

Rabat-Salé Airport (RBA)

Transfer times under Getting there

When it fills in

No onset time is published for this spot.

Nearbystraight-line distance

Plage de Mehdiya12 km

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

Rabatno page yet
Val d'Orno page yet
Mehdyano page yet
Bouznika
Oued Cherratno page yet

The spot

Plage des Nations is where Rabat and Sale go when swell and wind line up, about 14 km up the coast on the P2 with parking right at the sand. Open Atlantic beach break, small-to-medium waves, a wide beach that empties the farther you walk from the hotel.

For intermediate riders and up

Intermediate and up: the shorebreak is active, currents are reported strong, and the sandbanks move enough that low tide turns technical with waves closing out.

Wind conditions

The wind is the argument here. WNW to NW is given as the best direction, arriving side-on to side-shore, while the NE trade also gets named, and the trade is less constant this far north than in southern Morocco.

Facilities and water

No best months, no wind statistics and no kite school or organized rescue are on record for the beach. Water peaks at 22-24 C around early August and drops to 16-18 C by late February, so a shorty in summer and a 4/3 or 3/2 with boots in the coldest weeks.

Keep off the cliffs farther south.

The wind

locals call it Alize / trade wind

Direction

onshoreoffshorewind blows away from land — rescue cover matters here

Direction to shore

This stretch of coast faces west-northwest and its offshore direction is east.WNW and NW therefore arrive onshore to side-onshore, and the NE trade lands cross-offshore, blowing off the land rather than along the beach.No local kite rating confirms how NE behaves once you are past the shorebreak, so treat an NE day here as the one that needs a plan for getting back.

Dominant direction

WNW to NW is reported, and NE when the trade wind blows. No single main direction is confirmed.

Character

mixed

Typical strength

No measurement at the beach. The nearest station is the airport about 12 km inland, averaging around 7 knots from the WNW year-round with gusts to 25; an annual inland figure that includes calm nights, so read it as indicative of direction rather than of what a sea-breeze afternoon puts on the sand.

Less consistent than southern Morocco: a local wind-session beach rather than a reliable kite destination.

The NE trade wind is less constant here than in the south, with spring and summer named as the season. No best months are given anywhere else, and no statistical data exists for Plage des Nations.

Forecast

Live forecast

Windguru Windfinder Windy

Month by month

Jan15
Feb32
Mar42
Apr50
May28
Jun26
Jul8
Aug12
Sep12
Oct30
Nov17
Dec27

per cent of the month at force 4 or more

9 ktJan18°
10 ktFeb17°
12 ktMar18°
11 ktApr19°
10 ktMay20°
10 ktJun23°
9 ktJul24°
9 ktAug24°
9 ktSep23°
10 ktOct23°
9 ktNov20°
10 ktDec19°

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	15%	8.8 kt	ENE	14 °C	17.9 °C
Feb	32%	10.3 kt	ENE	15 °C	17.3 °C
Mar	42%	11.5 kt	SW	15.2 °C	17.6 °C
Apr	50%	11.4 kt	N	17.3 °C	18.7 °C
May	28%	10.1 kt	WSW	19 °C	20.1 °C
Jun	26%	9.9 kt	WNW	21.5 °C	22.8 °C
Jul	8%	9 kt	W	22.7 °C	24 °C
Aug	12%	8.9 kt	WSW	22.7 °C	24.2 °C
Sep	12%	9 kt	WSW	21.4 °C	23.4 °C
Oct	30%	10.1 kt	SW	21 °C	22.5 °C
Nov	17%	8.6 kt	NE	17.8 °C	20.3 °C
Dec	27%	9.8 kt	ENE	15.4 °C	18.5 °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

waves

Standing depth

Foot-depth navigation is reported at both high and low tide. No shallow-water area is on record.

Tides

A real Atlantic range, not a formality. A mid-cycle day near Rabat swings about 1.7 m between high and low water, and spring high water reaches roughly 3.5 m, so the beach changes shape inside a single session.Low tide gets more technical, with more bottom uncovered and waves closing out; high tide is cleaner near shore and still wavy when swell is running.The surf is rated as working at all stages, and no best tide for kiting has been established.

Temperature

22–24 °C summer · 16–18 °C winter

Modelled monthly average: 17–24 °C

Wetsuit

Long suit in winter,shorty or shorts in summer,shorty in spring and autumn.Water peaks at 22–24 °C around early August and bottoms out at 16–18 °C around late February, so a 2 mm top or shorty through the warm stretch and a 4/3 or 3/2 plus boots in the coldest period.

Currents

Strong rips run through the surf zone and are the standing hazard here, more than the wave size. Nothing has been measured. Pick the piece of beach you would come ashore on before you launch, and expect to be moved down the coast while you sort yourself out.

Conditions

Open Atlantic beach break with small-to-medium waves. The water is clean and the waves are good; what you actually get depends on the swell and the shape of the sandbanks.

Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

not for beginners here

Intermediate and expert riders. Shorebreak, currents and shifting sandbanks and waves are the reasons.

The scene

What riders come here for

waveslocal sessionssurf-kite

A local and day-trip beach that riders from Rabat use because it is close. It gets popular, and it thins out the farther you walk from the hotel.

Launch and rules

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

With a school or a boat

No school names this spot

Nobody has been recorded teaching or running a boat here.

On your own

Room to launch: ok

Read the access rules

Somewhere else

1 spot nearby

Plage de Mehdiya12 km

The one spot within 40 km is under Nearby

Rescue

No lifeguard post, patrol or boat cover is on record for this beach, and no kite school operates on it. Self-rescue and a buddy watching from the sand are the whole safety system. Moroccan emergency numbers are 15 for an ambulance and 177 for the Gendarmerie Royale, which is the force covering coast and countryside outside the city limits.

Launch

Long sandy Atlantic beach north of Rabat and Sale. Medium-sized and wide, with more room the farther you get from the hotel.

Rules & access

1 min read

2026: rules are listed as none for Plage des Nations, and no municipal or beach-authority kitesurf ordinance turned up in the sources searched.

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

Rider tips

Walk away from the hotel end for space; it thins out fast.
Check the tide and the shorebreak before you launch: low tide gets more technical, high tide is cleaner near shore.
Ask whoever is already on the beach which direction is working, because WNW/NW and NE both get named for this spot.
Stay clear of the cliffs to the south, and do not launch near swimmers in summer.
The offshore direction here is east, so an NE day is blowing off the land. If you ride it, ride it with someone on the beach and stay inside.
Nobody is coming to get you. There is no lifeguard, no school and no boat; ambulance is 15, Gendarmerie Royale 177.

Getting there

Airport

Rabat-Salé Airport (RBA)

Route

From Rabat cross to Sale and take the P2 north along the coast until the signs for Plage des Nations. Parking is next to the beach, and Sale to the beach is about 14 km by road.

Transfer

About 15-25 minutes from Sale or the Rabat-Salé Airport area depending on where you start and on traffic; the drive from Sale is put at about 16 minutes.

Cost level

medium

Staying

Rooms, a shower, a toilet and food are listed at the beach itself, with resort and apartment options around Plage des Nations and more choice in Sale and Rabat.

No-wind days

Surfing at Plage des Nations, beach time, golf/resort activities around Plage des Nations, seafood cafes, and Rabat/Sale sightseeing including the medina, Kasbah of the Udayas and Bouregreg waterfront.

Photos

FAQ

Is Plage des Nations suitable for beginners?

No, it suits intermediate and expert riders, with strong currents, active shorebreak and shifting sandbanks as hazards.

What is the wind like?

Wind direction data is mixed between west-northwest to northwest and a less-consistent northeast trade flow.

What hazards should riders know about?

Hazards include strong currents, active shorebreak, closing waves on shifting sandbanks, and cliffs farther south.

The bigger pictureEverything about Plage des Nations & Plage de Mehdiya

Last updated: August 2026