# Estepona - Guadalmansa — Estepona, Spain

Playa de Guadalmansa, in Estepona, about 150 m east of the mouth of the river Guadalmansa. It is a long beach (about 2.5 km) of sand, pebbles and gravel, 5 to 35 m wide depending on the section, with a promenade, showers and unsupervised parking with more than 100 spaces. The launch area is the stretch of open sand east of the river mouth: that is where the kites are set up and where riders launch from, according to the Strava heat map. It works with Poniente (west-southwest), the most frequent wind, and with Levante (east-northeast), both side-on to the beach, which faces south-southeast. Avoid launching right next to the river mouth: there is a current and murky water, and the environment is a protected wetland (LIC río Guadalmansa). According to the InSpain beach guide, the beach has a designated area for kite-surf; in summer it shares the shore with swimmers and buoys, so always launch upwind and check the signage. There is a kitesurf school on the beach (Karma Watersports) and beach bars and hotels nearby.

Photos: "Torre de Guadalmanza, en Estepona, Málaga" by ZC.Marbella (CC BY-SA 4.0), via Wikimedia Commons; "Torre de Guadalmansa 02" by Schminnte (CC BY-SA 4.0), via Wikimedia Commons.

- **Sports:** Kitesurf, Wingfoil, Windsurf
- **Difficulty:** Intermediate
- **Location:** Estepona, Spain (36.45196, -5.05589)
- **Favourable wind directions (where the wind blows from):** WSW (248°), ENE (68°)
- **Wind range (knots):** 12–32
- **Best months:** January, February, March, April, December

## Wind by month (% of days per strength)

| Month | <7 kn | 7–13 kn | 13–20 kn | 20–35 kn | >35 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 33 | 53 | 13 | 1 | 0 |
| February | 30 | 57 | 11 | 2 | 0 |
| March | 26 | 54 | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| April | 23 | 64 | 13 | 0 | 0 |
| May | 26 | 72 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| June | 37 | 59 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| July | 36 | 60 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| August | 34 | 63 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| September | 36 | 58 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| October | 32 | 62 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| November | 35 | 62 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| December | 41 | 48 | 10 | 1 | 0 |

## Local winds

- **Poniente** — WSW (248°), 12–32 kn. West-southwest wind, the most frequent on this coast. It comes in side-on to the beach, which faces south-southeast.. With strong Poniente the drift pushes east, towards the swimming area and the breakwaters of the housing estate: launch upwind.
- **Levante** — ENE (68°), 12–30 kn. East-northeast wind, less frequent but gustier due to the housing estates. It comes in side-on, with the drift towards the river mouth.. The drift carries you towards the mouth of the river Guadalmansa, with current and murky water: keep an upwind margin from it.

## Zones

- **Launch** — Launch zone
- **Guadalmansa** — Navigation zone
- **Parking** — Parking

## Points of interest

- **Mouth of the Guadalmansa**: Current and murky water next to the river mouth, about 60 m west of the start of the launch area.
- **Beach parking**: Unsupervised parking, about 130 m from the launch area.
- **Río Guadalmansa (LIC)**: Wetland of community interest: respect the vegetation and birds.
- **Barraca Beach**: Beach bar about 600 m east of the launch area.

## Hazards

- Current next to the river mouth
- Swimmers and buoyage in summer
- Gravel and pebble beach at the shoreline

## Obstacles

- Mouth of the river Guadalmansa (current, murky water)
- Swimmers in summer

## Facilities

- Showers
- Restaurant
- Parking
- School

[See it on Ventus Surf (3D map, zones and live forecast)](https://ventus.surf/spots/estepona-guadalmansa-4mrRyH5JaekaNAOOF6jc?lang=en)