Map › Portugal › Algarve - Lagos/Alvor › Praia dos Salgados

Algarve · Albufeira / Guia · Faro · Guia

Praia dos Salgados

also known as Salgados

advanced onlymedium crowds

On this page

Wind
- Month by month
Forecast
Water
Level
The scene
Launch
- Rescue
Hazards
Rules & access
Schools
Tips
Getting there
Photos
FAQ

Nearby Praia Grande de Pêra 2 km · Praia da Rocha Baixinha 16 km · Praia da Rocha 19 km · Ria de Alvor (Alvor Lagoon) 26 km · Meia Praia 30 km · Praia de Porto de Mós 32 km · Ilha de Faro / Ria Formosa 32 km · Praia do Amado 52 km · Praia da Bordeira 53 km · Praia do Martinhal 54 km · Praia de Monte Clérigo 55 km · Praia do Tonel 56 km · straight-line distance

Seasonno season namedthe months riders and schools name How windyno knot figure publishedsynoptic Launchlargeaccess rules on record, below Waterocean22°C in summer · 7 things riders flag LevelIntermediate to advancedwith a caveat, in the Level section

Schoolsnone named here

From the airport40 minFaro Airport (FAO)

When it fills in

No onset time is published for this spot.

Praia dos Salgados is a south-facing Algarve sand beach between Albufeira and Armação de Pêra, and it only works when the wind swings SW-W. The summer Nortada is offshore here, which is the thing that catches out riders arriving from the lagoons at Lagos and Alvor. Sandy bottom, open coast, enough winter swell that surfers and bodyboarders use it.

Intermediate and up. Behind the sand sits Lagoa dos Salgados, a wetland people come to for the birds, so keep the kite and the pack-down off the dunes and away from the lagoon edge. Bathing season runs 15 May to 15 October 2026 and kites stay out of the marked bather areas.

The wind

locals call it Nortada

Direction

wind blows away from land — rescue cover matters here

Character

synoptic

It works on southwest to west synoptic days and on winter swell. The summer Nortada blows offshore at this south-facing central Algarve beach.

Open all year, but the pattern worth travelling for is SW-W wind with winter swell, not the summer Nortada.

Strength

No knot figure is published for this spot.

Direction to shore

SW-W is side-onshore to onshore at this south-facing beach; summer Nortada from N/NW is offshore here.

Forecast

Month by month

Jan37
Feb39
Mar53
Apr52
May66
Jun72
Jul68
Aug66
Sep52
Oct37
Nov33
Dec30

per cent of the month at force 4 or more

10Jan17°
11Feb16°
12Mar16°
12Apr17°
12May17°
12Jun19°
12Jul18°
12Aug19°
11Sep18°
11Oct19°
10Nov18°
10Dec17°

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

Month	Force 4+	Knots	From	Air	Water
Jan	37%	10.1 kt	E	13.1°C	16.5°C
Feb	39%	10.7 kt	E	14°C	16.2°C
Mar	53%	11.7 kt	NNW	14.7°C	15.8°C
Apr	52%	11.5 kt	NNW	17.3°C	17°C
May	66%	12.1 kt	NNW	20.1°C	16.9°C
Jun	72%	12 kt	NNW	22.5°C	18.6°C
Jul	68%	12.1 kt	NNW	25.4°C	18.4°C
Aug	66%	12.3 kt	NNW	25.4°C	18.7°C
Sep	52%	11 kt	NNW	21.7°C	17.7°C
Oct	37%	10.5 kt	ESE	20.3°C	19.3°C
Nov	33%	10 kt	N	16.7°C	18°C
Dec	30%	9.5 kt	N	13.9°C	16.9°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

Tides

Semidiurnal, two highs and two lows a day. Spring range runs near 3 m and neap range near 1.5 m, so the waterline moves a long way across this open sand between low and high. Indicative for the Albufeira coast rather than measured at the beach.

Temperature

22°C summer · 14°C winter

Wetsuit

Shorty or thin full suit in summer depending on upwelling; 4/3 or warm 3/2 in winter.

16–19°C water

South-facing sand beside Lagoa dos Salgados, sandy bottom, open central-Algarve coast. Winter swell puts enough movement in the water for surf and bodyboard.

Your level

not for beginners hereintermediateadvanced

Intermediate. Offshore summer wind and an open beach that picks up swell rule it out for first lessons.

The scene

What riders come here for

waveswinter sessionsfreeride on SW-W windwingfoil

A tourist beach and a walking spot, not a kite hub. Winter and SW-W days are quieter than the bathing season.

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: large

access rules on record

Somewhere else

Praia Grande de Pêra, 2 km

Praia Grande de Pêra Praia da Rocha Baixinha Praia da Rocha

Every spot within 40 km is on the map at the top of this page, with its distance under it.

Rescue

A supervised beach in season, with a first-aid post and a concession running May to October; the 2026 bathing water period is 15 May to 15 October. Outside those months nobody is watching the water. Nothing kite-specific here: no jet ski cover, no radio watch, no school on the sand.

The emergency number is 112.

Launch

Long sandy beach between Albufeira and Armacao de Pera, with the Salgados lagoon and its dune system behind it. Access is by asphalt road off the EM 526 between Albufeira and Pera, signposted from Vale de Parra, about 2 km down past the golf resort along the lagoon edge and in through a palm avenue.Car park with accessible bays, toilets, showers and drinking water at the beach; restaurant and bar in season.

Space

large

Rules & access

2026: Portaria n.o 204-A/2026 sets Salgados in Albufeira as bathing water from 15 May to 15 October 2026. The 2023 national beach edital bans surf, kitesurf, windsurf and similar activities inside areas reserved for bathers, along with anything that damages the dunes or the beach's biophysical integrity; it also requires recreational nautical craft to reach and leave the water through the marked access channels and demarcated areas, and prohibits their circulation, access and parking outside them. Ride outside the marked swimmer zones, use the marked access, and leave the lagoon edge alone. The beach carries Blue Flag status and a supervised bathing service from May to October.

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

Rider tips

Skip the summer Nortada here unless a local talks you through a plan; it blows offshore off this beach.
Wait for a SW-W synoptic day with swell you can handle.
Rig and pack on the sand, off the dunes, away from the lagoon edge.
Expect swimmers and walkers on the water line between 15 May and 15 October 2026.

Getting there

Airport

Faro Airport (FAO)

Route

From Faro Airport head west toward Albufeira and Guia, then down to the Salgados beach and hotel area.

Transfer

40 min

Cost level

medium-high

Staying

Salgados resort hotels and apartments, Guia holiday rentals, and Albufeira accommodation.

No-wind days

Birdwatching at Lagoa dos Salgados, beach walks to Galé and Armação de Pêra, golf at Salgados, surfing/bodyboarding when waves suit, and Albufeira old town.

Photos

2017-02-06 Praia dos Salgados (3) — Kolforn (Kolforn), CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

FAQ

Is Praia dos Salgados good for beginners?

No, it is rated intermediate to advanced; the offshore summer Nortada and open, wave-prone beach make it unsuitable for first lessons.

What is the wind like?

The useful pattern is southwest to west synoptic wind combined with winter swell, not the region's normal summer Nortada, which blows offshore here.

When is the best time to kite here?

The beach is marked open year-round, but SW-W wind days and manageable winter swell produce the workable conditions rather than the summer season.

Are there rules or restricted zones?

Portugal's 2026 bathing-beach rules keep kitesurfing out of the marked swimmer zone during the 15 May-15 October Albufeira bathing season, and riders should stay off the dunes and clear of the adjoining Lagoa dos Salgados wetland.

Last updated: August 2026