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Tarifa - Wind capital of Europe at the Costa de la Luz

The little fishing village Tarifa (Andalusia) is situated at the southernmost point of the European mainland where meet the Atlantic ocean and the Mediterranean sea. 

You can see the mountains of the African coast incredibly close as the Strait of Gibraltar is only 13km between Tarifa and the African continent.

Tarifa is called the wind capital of Europe and attracts water sports enthusiasts from all around the world in any season of the year.

The beach of Tarifa it is the longest beach (about 10km) in Andalusia. The Costa de la Luz continues with beautiful sandy beaches in direction north until Portugal and cannot be compared in originality and beauty with the much more populated and built up Costa del Sol at the Mediterranean sea. 

Just behind the "Playa Los Lances" beach starts the the natural preserve of "Alcornocales" extending far into the back country. This area is a paradise of trekking and mountainbiking. 

At the very end of the Tarifa bay is where the Levante wind has gathered over the centuries a huge sand dune. The mountain of San Bartolomé, famous for hosting 200 of Spain's best climbing routes, rises just behind the dune.

The historical center of Tarifa is surrounded by thick walls. Although the center is small, you can easily get lost in the many little streets and squares. 

Small Plazas with orange trees, old houses with little balconies and plenty of nice restaurants and cafes dignify the town's image.

You can reach everything by foot in Tarifa town. The kitesurf- and windsurf stations and some of the best hotels and holiday houses are situated a few kilometers outside of Tarifa.

A rental car is recommendable, so you don't have to depend on public transports and get to do some very nice day-trips in Tarifa's sourroundings.

Fun & leisure in Tarifa

Nightlife in Tarifa

Tarifa is a small town and walking from one end to the other doesn't take longer than 15min. Still, the offers for nightlife are endless. 

Everything starts a bit later in Tarifa as people come back from beach usually not before 8pm in the summer. 

Up from 11pm it's worth to start a round through the bars of Tarifa in the old center. From flamenco music to modern bars with live DJs you'll certainly find your favourite place in Tarifa. In most of the bars a glas of beer or a shot are not more expensive than 1 Euro.

After 1am in the morning it's worth to go to one of the clubs in Tarifa to dance the rest of the night away. 

Restaurants in Tarifa

Many good recommendations for restaurants in Tarifa can be found in the old center. More great restaurants are also located  near the port.

Try the typical Andalusian recipes for fresh local fish like the tuna and sword fish, the unbeatable "Jamon" of the black Andalusian pigs or a filet of the best Spanish beef. 

We recommend to join the food with a bottle of Rioja and for dessert a glass of sherry from the nearby vineyards around Jerez de la Frontera.

Shopping in Tarifa 

And more superlatives: Tarifa with its 18.000 inhabitants has more surf shops than Maui (Hawaii). In the main street outside the old center you'll find an endless offer of fashion, kitesurfing and windsurfing material. 

Some clothing brands from Tarifa are very widely known all over Spain (Mala Mujer, No Work Team, El Niño,...).

4 large supermarkets (Mercadona, Lidl, Día, Supersol) are open all day long. But the choice to buy fresh fish, meat or vegetables is the market in the center of old town. 

Day-trips from Tarifa

Vejer de la Frontera is a perfect base for many interesting nearby destinations reachable within short time. 

Here are just a few day-trip destinations, not more than 1 hour away from Vejer de la Frontera:

Sports offers in Tarifa

There's plenty of sports offers in Tarifa. Windsurfing, kitesurfing, surfing, horseback riding, golf, mountainbiking, hiking, paintball and fitness are just a few examples. 

Tarifa also provides a well equipped fitness studio for all those of you, who want to work out in their in their holidays, too.

Thanks to the warm climate all year arround, you can practize your favourite sport in Tarifa at any time.

Windsurfing in Tarifa - spots, beaches and conditions

Tarifa is the wind capitol of Europe. It attracts windsurfers from all over the world thanks to the perfect conditions and the special spirit, which you only find in this end of the world. 

Between May and September Tarifa is considered to be the spot with the most windy days in all of Europe.

The two different winds, Levante and Poniente, provide variety concerning the conditions: flat water comes with strong Levante, and a decent swell with Poniente or 2 meters of beach break with tubes in the wintertime make Tarifa one of the most interesting spots in Europe.

Kitesurfing in Tarifa - beaches, winds, kitesurf schools

It only took a few years for kitesurfing to take Tarifa completely over. In summer the sky above the beach is colored with up to 600 kites. Thanks to the many kilometres of beach there is plenty of room for everyone. 

Beginners will find excellent learning conditions since the beach is wide enough to start and land the kite.

Just a stones throw from town, kitesurfers can choose from eight kilometres of beaches until the end of the bay where a huge sand dune is located.

Depending on wind conditions, the perfect spot changes daily. For this reason we highly recommend a rental car.

Golf in Tarifa - golf courses, golf lessons, greenfee

One of the finest golf resorts in Europe is the Dehesa Montenmedio Golf & Country Club. This beautiful golf course is not situated right by the sea, so you might prefer to reside in one of the comfortable holiday accommodations in Tarifa and drive the 40km to Montenmedio for playing golf.

Besides this one there are many more superb golf clubs around Tarifa. Combine the best of these clubs to the Andalusian golf vacation of your life time!

Thanks to the climate, the golf season never ends in Andalusia and even in January you can play in thin clothing.

Here some more recommendations for golf clubs in Andalusia:
 

1. Costa Ballena Golf
2. Sancti Petri Golf
3. Benalup Golf
4. Dehesa Montenmedio Golf

The beaches of Tarifa

The beaches of Tarifa are amongst the nicest in all Andalusia. The fine, white sand will satisfy even the most demanding visitors. 

We recommend to use enough sun screen at any time of the day, because the Andalusian sun can cause sun burns quicker than you think.

To cool down from the heat there is nothing more refreshing than the cristal-blue water of the Atlantic ocean. It won't be any warmer than 20°C in the summer, but neither any colder than 16°C in the winter. It is recommendable to wear a neoprene suit for water sports.

The water here is very clean and there's no strong currents to be aware of. Jelly fish and other unpleasant marine animals are not to be found.

Playa de los Lances 

The main beach of Tarifa, facing the Atlantic side, is called Playa Los Lances. It extends from Isla La Palomas all the way to the soccer field at the end of town. 

This beach is reserved for swimmers and sun bathers in the summer months, and practicing water sports here involves the risk of being fined by the beach patrol. In the worst case they might confiscate your material. 

Outside of the main season (July and August) nobody bothers about surfing or kitesurfing at this beach either as the beach is not going to be crowded.t.

Playa Chica 

The most southern beach of the Mediterranean sea is situated right opposite of the Isla Las Palomas and on the right hand side of the harbour entrance - the Playa Chica. 

This is your beach on stronger Poniente days, if you look for a sheltered spot with calm water.  The water here is quite cold, but super clear and clean. Windsurfing is only allowed in the winter time and for kitesirfers this little beach is not wide enough. 

Playa Valdevaqueros

Between the Camping Torre de la Peña and the large sand dune at the end of the bay the beach is called Playa Valdevaqueros. 

The second Club Mistral (besides the one at the Hurricane Hotel) and the windsurf/kitesurf center Spinout have settled here. Valdevaqueros provides the most consistent conditions for kitesurfing and windsurfing as the wind will always be sideshore and gets inforced by the mountains around it. 

The ambience at the beach bar Tangana is fantastic!

Climate & weather in Tarifa

While temperatures in the summer at the Andalusian coast are comfortably warm, it may be unbearably hot just 20km further in the country. Seville, for example, is used to have above 40°C every day while on the coast you only feel 25°C.

In winter time it hardly gets any colder than 16°C, except for the nights which could end up being around 10°C. The temperatures also depend on the wind direction: Levante brings warmer air from the land, Poniente brings cool air form the sea.

The average humidity in summer is around 30%, in the winter it is above 50%.

The probability of rain is very low apart from January til April. Statistically the Costa de la Luz provides more than 300 days of sunshine per year. In fact, rain is always welcome to assure the water supply in summer. 
 

Arrival to Tarifa

Useful informations about Tarifa