Map › France › Corsica - Bonifacio › Porto Pollo - Plage du Taravo
Corse · Serra-di-Ferro, Golfe du Valinco · South Corsica · Porto Pollo
Porto Pollo - Plage du Taravo
also known as Plage du Taravu, Taravo, Porto Pollo Corse, Portipoddu
Nearby Plage de Capu Laurosu 9 km · Plage du Ricanto 23 km · Baie de Figari 36 km · Pont de Ventilègne 40 km · La Tonnara 41 km · Piantarella 52 km · straight-line distance
On the clock
12:00 · 16:00 · 17:00
The thermal comes in reasonably well between 12:00 and 16:00. Mornings are light, 8-10 knots, and the strongest hour is often around 17:00.
The marks are the clock times the record names, laid on a 24-hour day. The bar between the first and the last covers those hours; it is not a promise of wind.
The wind
locals call it Libecciu / west thermal
Direction
Kite sizes
metres · typical quiver highlighted
Character
mixed
fills in: The thermal comes in reasonably well between 12:00 and 16:00. Mornings are light, 8-10 knots, and the strongest hour is often around 17:00.
Typical strength
8-10 knots in the morning, 15-22 knots once the afternoon thermal is properly in. A 10-20 knot band is also given for the Corsican summer breeze, and the west mistral days run harder than either.
Thermal or synoptic
thermal and synoptic
Also on record
22.0 kt (one unconfirmed figure).
The quiver, in words
For 75-85 kg, 9-12 m covers most afternoons: 11-12 m when the thermal is only just in, 8-9 m on a hard west day. Indicative, worked out from the wind range rather than a measured local quiver.
Direction to shore
West is side-on to side-shore. East is straight offshore and gives the flat water. North-north-west is also a land wind, and it brings a shore break with it.
Forecast
Month by month
- Jan10
- Feb7
- Mar15
- Apr22
- May, riders' month10
- Jun, riders' month3
- Jul, riders' month5
- Aug, riders' month5
- Sep, riders' month8
- Oct8
- Nov25
- Dec15
windy days per month (3 h+ at 12 kn+)
Ringed months are the ones riders and schools name: May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep.
- 10%Jan16°
- 7%Feb15°
- 15%Mar15°
- 22%Apr16°
- 10%May19°
- 3%Jun23°
- 5%Jul26°
- 5%Aug26°
- 8%Sep24°
- 8%Oct22°
- 25%Nov20°
- 15%Dec17°
windy days per month (3 h+ at 12 kn+) · water °C below · season highlighted
| Month | Windy days | Force 4+ | 12 kn or more | Knots | From | Peaks at | Air | Water | Readings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 10% | 18% | 16% | 7.9 kt | ENE | 13:00 | 9.9°C | 15.5°C | 62 |
| Feb | 7% | 9% | 7% | 6.5 kt | ENE | 13:00 | 10.3°C | 14.7°C | 57 |
| Mar | 15% | 24% | 19% | 8.8 kt | WNW | 14:00 | 11.9°C | 14.8°C | 62 |
| Apr | 22% | 30% | 25% | 8.9 kt | WSW | 14:00 | 13.7°C | 15.8°C | 60 |
| May | 10% | 13% | 10% | 6.8 kt | W | 14:00 | 18°C | 18.9°C | 62 |
| Jun | 3% | 5% | 3% | 7.1 kt | WSW | 14:00 | 23°C | 23.1°C | 60 |
| Jul | 5% | 6% | 6% | 6.8 kt | WSW | 14:00 | 26°C | 25.6°C | 62 |
| Aug | 5% | 8% | 6% | 7.1 kt | WSW | 14:00 | 25.6°C | 26.4°C | 62 |
| Sep | 8% | 10% | 10% | 7.1 kt | WSW | 14:00 | 21.8°C | 23.7°C | 60 |
| Oct | 8% | 19% | 15% | 7 kt | W | 14:00 | 19.3°C | 22.1°C | 62 |
| Nov | 25% | 30% | 27% | 8.8 kt | ENE | 13:00 | 14.6°C | 19.9°C | 60 |
| Dec | 15% | 19% | 15% | 7.6 kt | ENE | 09:00 | 11.5°C | 16.9°C | 62 |
modelled
A weather model's cell over this place, not a station on it. Good for comparing places, weaker for one beach.
Modelled from the operational forecast archive at 1.5–7 km (2023-2024), daylight hours only, not a ground station: it resolves thermal, lake and valley winds far better than coarse reanalysis but still tends to understate a strong local thermal. A windy day has at least three consecutive daylight hours at 12 knots or more. 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.
High-resolution weather model (modelled) · Open-Meteo historical forecast archive — best-match operational model (ICON-D2 / AROME / ICON-EU / GFS by region), not a ground station · 2023-2024
The water
Type
sea
Standing depth
Sandy, gently shelving entry with footing at both high and low water, so the beach works the same on either tide. No published bathymetry for the bay.
Tides
Small Mediterranean tide influence; no tide-critical access issue is listed for the beach.
Temperature
25°C summer · 13°C winter
Wetsuit
Summer usually shorty, light full suit or no wetsuit depending on wind chill; winter full suit around 4/3 is prudent.
Currents
No measured current data for the bay. The Taravo river discharges at the beach, so expect some outflow near the river mouth and murky water after rain; ear infections are a recurring local complaint.
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
1 school names this spot
On your own
Room to launch: wide
Somewhere else
Plage de Capu Laurosu, 9 km
Every spot within 40 km is on the map at the top of this page, with its distance under it.
Rescue
Launch
Direct sand launch from the Taravo beach kite zone. Two ways in: from Porto Pollo village next to the small supermarket, where you can park the car beside the beach, or onto the big beach via the road opposite the pharmacy.The sand is broad and easy and parking is free, but places are scarce in July and August and swimmers take up the space.
Space
wide
Rules & access
Access rules drift faster than anything else we hold — check locally, and propose an edit if this has changed.
Rider tips
- In summer, ride inside the yellow buoys of the Taravo zone and read the beach notice before you pump up.
- East wind is flat and completely offshore; do not send a beginner out in it.
- Come in the afternoon; the summer thermal is weak or absent early in the morning.
- Ask KWC or the regulars whether any safety boat is on the water that day; there is no fixed one.
- Watch the port traffic at the Porto Pollo end of the beach.
- Come for the middle of the day. The thermal is in between 12:00 and 16:00 and mornings sit at 8-10 knots.
- Ask the zone association or the regulars whether any safety boat is on the water that day; there is no fixed one.
- Park early in July and August; the free places by the beach fill and the village ones are few.
- The river runs out onto the beach and the water is not always clean after rain, so rinse your ears.
Getting there
Airport
Ajaccio Napoleon Bonaparte Airport is the nearest practical airport; Figari Sud Corse is also used for southwest Corsica.
Route
By road through Serra-di-Ferro/Porto Pollo to the Taravo beach. A car is the practical option with gear; there is also a bus from Porto Pollo to Ajaccio airport with a change in Ajaccio/Saint Roch.
Transfer
About 44-60 minutes by car from Ajaccio airport depending on traffic; around 1 h 55 min by bus with a change.
Cost level
medium
Staying
Village accommodation, rentals and campsites around Porto Pollo, Serra-di-Ferro and the Valinco/Taravo area.
No-wind days
Paddle in the morning, snorkeling/diving around Porto Pollo, hiking toward Cupabia, Valinco beaches, Propriano, Filitosa and boat trips.
Photos
FAQ
When is the best time to kite at Porto Pollo?
May through September is the main season, with a very regular, almost daily summer thermal reported by local sources.
Is Porto Pollo good for beginners?
Yes, the managed Taravo kite zone is described as ideal for beginners and foil, though riders should avoid the fully offshore east wind and choppy strong west-wind days.
What is the wind like at Porto Pollo?
West wind, known locally as the Libecciu, is dominant and side-on to side-shore at 15-22 knots; east wind is flat but completely offshore.
Are there rules or restricted zones at Porto Pollo?
A managed kite zone marked by yellow buoys must be used in summer, and navigation outside it within the 300 m coastal band is forbidden at all times.
Last updated: August 2026