Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer has no other spot on this map within 40 km of it. straight-line distance
When it fills in
Frontal wind with no thermal cycle, so it can be up at dawn and gone by noon. The tide clock sets your session, not the hour: no water entry until at least two hours after high water.
The wind
Direction
Kite sizes
metres · typical quiver highlighted
Character
synoptic
fills in: Frontal wind with no thermal cycle, so it can be up at dawn and gone by noon. The tide clock sets your session, not the hour: no water entry until at least two hours after high water.
Typical strength
12-13 knots at the bottom end, comfortable up to about 30. That band is where lessons are run.
The quiver, in words
Indicative for a 75-85 kg rider, no local gear survey: 12m near the 12-13 kt floor, 9m through the middle of the range, 7m or smaller as it approaches 30 kt.
Direction to shore
West is side-shore on port tack; NE and E come in side-shore to side-on on starboard. The safe opening runs West round to North-East, stretched at the edges to west-southwest and east-northeast by confirmed riders only. Anything with an offshore component, SW round through ESE, is forbidden.
Dominant direction
WSW to NE usable; west is the top side-shore direction, and NE to E works on starboard tack.
Forecast
Month by month
- Jan67
- Feb74
- Mar, riders' month68
- Apr, riders' month64
- May, riders' month42
- Jun, riders' month46
- Jul, riders' month45
- Aug, riders' month43
- Sep, riders' month50
- Oct, riders' month63
- Nov, riders' month71
- Dec63
per cent of the month at force 4 or more
Ringed months are the ones riders and schools name: Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov.
- 14Jan9°
- 15Feb9°
- 13Mar9°
- 13Apr11°
- 11May14°
- 11Jun17°
- 11Jul19°
- 11Aug20°
- 11Sep19°
- 12Oct17°
- 15Nov14°
- 14Dec11°
avg knots per month · water °C below · season highlighted
| Month | Force 4+ | Knots | From | Air | Water |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 67% | 14 kt | WSW | 5.8°C | 8.9°C |
| Feb | 74% | 15.1 kt | WSW | 7.7°C | 8.8°C |
| Mar | 68% | 13.3 kt | S | 8.7°C | 9.1°C |
| Apr | 64% | 13.2 kt | SW | 9.8°C | 10.7°C |
| May | 42% | 10.9 kt | NNE | 13.2°C | 13.7°C |
| Jun | 46% | 11 kt | W | 16.1°C | 16.9°C |
| Jul | 45% | 11.1 kt | W | 18.1°C | 19°C |
| Aug | 43% | 10.9 kt | W | 18.7°C | 20.3°C |
| Sep | 50% | 11.3 kt | SSW | 16.7°C | 19.1°C |
| Oct | 63% | 12.3 kt | SSW | 14.1°C | 16.9°C |
| Nov | 71% | 14.5 kt | SSW | 9.8°C | 13.5°C |
| Dec | 63% | 14.2 kt | SSW | 6.9°C | 10.6°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
sea
Tides
It rides at any state of tide and the waves clean up as the water drops, but the launch window opens no earlier than two hours after high water. The flood runs hard and people do get cut off out on the sand.
Temperature
19.5°C summer · 7.6°C winter
Wetsuit
Neoprene wetsuit supplied by Albatre Kitesurf for lessons; cold-water wetsuit needed outside summer.
Currents
Wind and current can carry you offshore, and the current is strong on the rising tide.
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: The largest sand beach in Seine-Maritime at low water, with a big free car park. Kitesurfers meet at the small Saussemare beach car park on Route de Saussemare, which is car-access only, and rig on the grass.
Somewhere else
No neighbour on record
No other spot in the atlas sits within reach of this one.
Rescue
Launch
Rigging is on grass, with kitesurfers meeting at the small Saussemare beach parking, at the entrance to the Parking de la plage de Saussemare on Route de Saussemare.
Space
The largest sand beach in Seine-Maritime at low water, with a big free car park. Kitesurfers meet at the small Saussemare beach car park on Route de Saussemare, which is car-access only, and rig on the grass.
Rules & access
Access rules drift faster than anything else we hold — check locally, and propose an edit if this has changed.
Rider tips
- Meet at the small Saussemare beach parking, at the entrance to the Parking de la plage de Saussemare on Route de Saussemare, and rig on the grass there.
- Read the Saussemare weather station before you rig; if the wind has any offshore component, anything from SW round through ESE, stay on the beach however clean it looks.
- Watch the rising tide: the current picks up on the flood and the sand you walked out on will not be there when you come back.
- Bring a proper cold-water wetsuit outside summer; the water is about 19.5 C in summer and 7.6 C in winter.
- Lessons run March to November and the school supplies the neoprene.
- Do not go in on a high tide. The local rule is at least two hours after high water, whatever the forecast looks like.
- The first 300 m off the sand is a 5-knot strip and everyone under muscle power - swimmers, longe-cote groups, surfers, SUPs - has right of way through it.
- No dogs on the beach between 1 April and 31 October, and horses use the Saussemare sand outside June to September.
Getting there
Route
About 1 hour from Rouen by motorway, 20 minutes from Dieppe along the coast, and 5 minutes from Veules-les-Roses.
Staying
Gites, guest rooms, Camping du Mesnil and Camping du Grand Sable.
No-wind days
stand-up paddle with Albatre Kitesurf · windsurfing · sand yachting · coastal walks · Cote d'Albatre villages
FAQ
When is the best time to kite at Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer?
A local school runs lessons from March to November on the Saint-Aubin, Saussemare and Le Grand Sable beach area.
Is Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer good for beginners?
Yes, the municipality calls it suitable for beginners to learn, and a local school teaches from beginner through advanced levels.
What is the wind like at Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer?
The usable window runs from west-southwest to northeast, with west rated the top side-shore direction; offshore-component winds from southwest through east-southeast are officially forbidden.
What hazards should riders know at Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer?
Wind and currents can carry riders offshore, the rising tide brings strong current, and there is a risk of tidal isolation on the exposed beach.
Last updated: August 2026