Map › Portugal › Algarve - Fuseta/Olhão › Praia da Alagoa
Algarve · Castro Marim · Faro · Altura
Praia da Alagoa
also known as Altura, Praia de Altura, Praia da Alagoa-Altura
Nearby Praia da Manta Rota 2 km · Fábrica / Cacela Velha 5 km · Isla Canela 11 km · Ilha de Cabanas 13 km · Isla Cristina 15 km · Fuseta Lagoon 25 km · El Rompido 34 km · El Portil 40 km · Praia da Rocha Baixinha 58 km · straight-line distance
When it fills in
Two different clocks. Summer days run on the sea breeze and usually need until around midday or early afternoon before it is worth rigging, then hold into the evening. The winter east Levante is a synoptic flow that can blow all day and through the night, so a winter session is not a question of hour but of whether the flow has reached this far west. Indicative timing, no hourly record published for Altura.
The wind
locals call it Levante
Direction
Kite sizes
metres · typical quiver highlighted
Character
mixed
fills in: Two different clocks. Summer days run on the sea breeze and usually need until around midday or early afternoon before it is worth rigging, then hold into the evening. The winter east Levante is a synoptic flow that can blow all day and through the night, so a winter session is not a question of hour but of whether the flow has reached this far west. Indicative timing, no hourly record published for Altura.
Typical strength
12-20 in summer; 15-25 with good east wind in winter; around 15 kt cited for a workable session.
The quiver, in words
Summer at 12-20 knots is a 12 m at the bottom end and a 9-10 m once it is properly in, for a 75-85 kg rider; the winter Levante at 15-25 knots is 8-9 m, dropping to 7 m on the strong days. High-tide chop takes a little more power than the flat low-tide window.Indicative sizing from the recorded ranges, not from a local gear survey.
Direction to shore
side to side-on from E/SE/SW; W/NW is often side-shore to side-on depending on the exact flow.
Dominant direction
E, SE, SW; W/NW also cited
Forecast
Month by month
- Jan24
- Feb33
- Mar24
- Apr23
- May42
- Jun, riders' month40
- Jul, riders' month21
- Aug, riders' month13
- Sep22
- Oct31
- Nov18
- Dec19
windy days per month (3 h+ at 12 kn+)
Ringed months are the ones riders and schools name: Jun, Jul, Aug.
- 24%Jan16°
- 33%Feb16°
- 24%Mar17°
- 23%Apr19°
- 42%May19°
- 40%Jun22°
- 21%Jul23°
- 13%Aug23°
- 22%Sep21°
- 31%Oct21°
- 18%Nov18°
- 19%Dec16°
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 | 24% | 39% | 32% | 10.8 kt | N | 12:00 | 12.7°C | 16.1°C | 62 |
| Feb | 33% | 49% | 37% | 11.4 kt | ENE | 12:00 | 13.6°C | 15.6°C | 57 |
| Mar | 24% | 42% | 32% | 11.2 kt | SW | 15:00 | 14.9°C | 16.5°C | 62 |
| Apr | 23% | 45% | 32% | 10.8 kt | SW | 15:00 | 17.8°C | 18.7°C | 60 |
| May | 42% | 68% | 58% | 12.7 kt | SW | 15:00 | 21°C | 19.2°C | 62 |
| Jun | 40% | 57% | 52% | 12.1 kt | SW | 17:00 | 23.6°C | 21.8°C | 60 |
| Jul | 21% | 58% | 37% | 11.3 kt | SW | 15:00 | 26.9°C | 22.8°C | 62 |
| Aug | 13% | 47% | 29% | 10.5 kt | SW | 16:00 | 26.7°C | 23.2°C | 62 |
| Sep | 22% | 47% | 40% | 10.6 kt | SW | 15:00 | 22.5°C | 21.4°C | 60 |
| Oct | 31% | 48% | 45% | 11.5 kt | WSW | 16:00 | 20.6°C | 21°C | 62 |
| Nov | 18% | 37% | 30% | 10.2 kt | NNE | 11:00 | 16.6°C | 18.4°C | 60 |
| Dec | 19% | 34% | 26% | 9.8 kt | NE | 11:00 | 13.2°C | 16.3°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
ocean
Standing depth
The sand shelves gradually and you can stand at both high and low tide, reportedly.
Tides
Reportedly tide independent. Low tide is flatter and still standing depth; high tide is choppier but rideable, and you can stand there too.
Temperature
23°C summer · 15.7°C winter
Wetsuit
Shorty in summer, a normal full suit in spring, autumn and winter. In the warmest water a 2 mm long-sleeve shorty or a 3/2 spring suit is enough once the wind is up.
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
2 schools name this spot
On your own
Room to launch: large
Somewhere else
Praia da Manta Rota, 2 km
Every spot within 40 km is on the map at the top of this page, with its distance under it.
Rescue
Launch
Wide sand beach at Altura with a straight beach launch. Two car parks and four beach accesses, three of them raised boardwalks down to the sand, and four bathing supports strung along the beach. Plenty of room to rig outside the season; in July and August the usable space is what is left beyond the last support.
Space
large
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, rig at the end of the concession area, about 400 m east, and leave a wide buffer to the swimmers.
- Ride low tide for the flattest water.
- Watch both forecasts, the winter east Levante and the summer SW, and treat W/NW with care because the accounts disagree on it.
- Ask at the school where this year's tolerated kite zone starts and stops; the limits are not published anywhere.
- The four bathing supports are the marker to work from: they show you exactly which stretch is the bathers' and where the beach thins out.
- Out of season, the same beach is empty and the whole sand strip is available, which is when the winter east wind is worth the trip.
Getting there
Airport
Faro Airport (FAO)
Route
By car from Faro Airport it is about 57-58 km and 45-55 minutes: the Via do Infante toward Monte Gordo, then the Altura signs.
Transfer
50 min
Cost level
medium
Staying
Hotels, apartments and beach-resort accommodation in Altura, Praia Verde, Monte Gordo, Castro Marim and Tavira.
No-wind days
Swim off the beach, walk over to Praia Verde or Monte Gordo, look around Castro Marim's old town or Tavira, take a sailing or SUP session, or spend the day in the eastern Algarve and the Ria Formosa.
Photos
FAQ
Is it suitable for beginners?
It is listed for intermediate and expert riders; summer bathers and the need for launch discipline make it unsuitable as a default beginner spot without instruction.
When is the best time?
June to August is listed as the best window, with a five-star east-wind Levante period also possible from October to April.
What is the wind like?
Summer brings 12-20 knot SW thermal wind, while winter Levante can reach 15-25 knots from the east.
Are there rules?
The 2026 bathing season runs 1 June to 30 September, and riders must stay clear of the central bathing concession, moving about 400 m east in summer.
What are the hazards?
Bathers in the reserved summer bathing zone are the main hazard, along with offshore drift risk if using wind angles other than side-on.
Last updated: August 2026