Map › Spain › Cantabria — Playa de la Concha to El Sardinero › Playa de la Concha
Cantabria · Suances
Playa de la Concha
also known as Suances, La Concha Suances, Playa La Concha
Nearby Playa de Valdearenas 6 km · El Sardinero 21 km · Playa de Somo 24 km · Oyambre 25 km · Playa de Meron 26 km · straight-line distance
When it fills in
No onset time is published for this spot.
The wind
Direction
Kite sizes
metres · typical quiver highlighted
Character
mixed
Typical strength
Not measured at the beach. Around 120 days a year reach 12 kt or more, 12-14 a month between November and April against five or six in July and August, so a powered easterly session means roughly 15-25 kt. Indicative.
Also on record
7
The quiver, in words
No local kite-size guidance exists. From the wind range, a 75-85 kg rider takes 12 m for a 14-18 kt easterly, 9-10 m when a winter E or NE runs past 20 kt, and 14 m for the summer days that rarely deliver. Indicative, derived rather than reported.
Direction to shore
The beach sits inside a bay behind the headland and the mouth of the ria, sheltered from the northwest, which is why the swell has to wrap in to reach it. East and northeast, the winds that make it a kite spot, come across the bay side-shore to side-onshore rather than straight in off the sea. The exact shore angle is unconfirmed.
Dominant direction
E and NE for kitesurfing.
Forecast
Month by month
- Jan39
- Feb45
- Mar60
- Apr43
- May43
- Jun31
- Jul31
- Aug32
- Sep39
- Oct52
- Nov59
- Dec45
per cent of the month at force 4 or more
- 11Jan14°
- 12Feb14°
- 12Mar14°
- 11Apr15°
- 11May16°
- 10Jun19°
- 10Jul21°
- 10Aug22°
- 11Sep21°
- 11Oct19°
- 13Nov17°
- 12Dec15°
avg knots per month · water °C below · season highlighted
| Month | Force 4+ | Knots | From | Air | Water |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 39% | 11.3 kt | S | 9°C | 14.2°C |
| Feb | 45% | 12 kt | W | 9.7°C | 13.7°C |
| Mar | 60% | 12.2 kt | WNW | 11.6°C | 13.7°C |
| Apr | 43% | 11.3 kt | W | 12.2°C | 14.5°C |
| May | 43% | 10.6 kt | WNW | 14.6°C | 16.3°C |
| Jun | 31% | 9.7 kt | WNW | 17.9°C | 18.9°C |
| Jul | 31% | 9.7 kt | WNW | 19.8°C | 21.3°C |
| Aug | 32% | 10.3 kt | WNW | 20.4°C | 21.9°C |
| Sep | 39% | 10.7 kt | WNW | 18.4°C | 20.9°C |
| Oct | 52% | 11.4 kt | S | 17.5°C | 19.3°C |
| Nov | 59% | 13.4 kt | W | 13.6°C | 16.8°C |
| Dec | 45% | 11.7 kt | S | 10.8°C | 15°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
ocean bay beach
Standing depth
Gradual deepening and shallow water on green-flag days, but no kite-specific standing-depth area is confirmed.
Tides
Tide changes beside the Ria de San Martin create notable currents; the surf spot works best around medium to high tide.
Temperature
21°C summer · 12°C winter
Wetsuit
2 mm long-sleeve shorty or 3/2 mm spring suit in peak summer if windy; 4/3 mm with boots, and possibly 5/3 mm for long cold-wind winter sessions.
Currents
Tidal currents run beside the Ria de San Martin, and both the current and the breaking-wave positions shift after winter storms.
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
6 schools name this spot
On your own
Room to launch: medium, constrained by swimmers, sports zones and tide
Somewhere else
Playa de Valdearenas, 6 km
Every spot within 40 km is on the map at the top of this page, with its distance under it.
Rescue
Launch
Urban sandy beach launch along the Suances promenade. Use only where current daily signage, lifeguards and any sports channel allow it, especially in bathing season.
Space
medium, constrained by swimmers, sports zones and tide
Rules & access
Access rules drift faster than anything else we hold — check locally, and propose an edit if this has changed.
Rider tips
- Check the day's bathing and sports zoning before you rig; the 2026 ordinance puts compatibility with bathers first.
- Rig around the tide change and give the mouth of the Ria de San Martin a wide berth. The current there is the real hazard.
- In summer the cleanest window is outside the 11:30-19:30 bathing hours, since the zone restriction is written for bathing season and hours.
- Do not read surf-beginner friendly as kite-beginner friendly here.
- Ask a school or the lifeguards where the current is running that week; storms move it.
- The wind season is November to April. July and August give five or six days over 12 kt, and those are the months the ordinance is written for.
- Red Cross cover ran daily to 15 September in 2026 and weekends only after that, so a winter session here is unwatched.
Getting there
Airport
Santander Airport (SDR)
Route
Suances is a coastal town west of Santander. With kite gear a car or a taxi is the simple answer; buses run via Santander and Torrelavega, but beach-to-airport connections are unconfirmed.
Transfer
30 min
Cost level
medium
Staying
Hotels, apartments, hostels and inns in Suances, with the beach in the main tourist zone and restaurants and bars a short walk away.
No-wind days
Surfing at Los Locos or La Concha, SUP, promenade/beach time, Suances nightlife, Santillana del Mar, Santander and Cantabria coastal sightseeing.
Photos
Last updated: August 2026