Hyères — La Capte / Presqu'île de Giens21h · 6 kt
0NOT RECOMMENDEDPick your slot
Min. level
Beginner
Optimal wind
14-32 kts
Season
April, May, September
Live · now
What to check
Discover the spot
The spot
Discover Hyères
La Capte is the gentle flip side of the Giens peninsula: the eastern arm of the double tombolo, facing Hyères bay and the Golden Isles. Fine sand, clear shallow water, palm trees and a harbour — a quiet corner to learn or ride easy, more wing and school than big kiting. But keep one thing in mind, because it’s the exact reverse of l’Almanarre: here the easterly is what makes the spot work, and it’s the westerly, the mistral, that pours off the land out to sea.
All of La Capte makes sense against its neighbour: it’s l’Almanarre in reverse. Same peninsula, the eastern side this time, facing Hyères bay and the Golden Isles — fine sand, clear water, palm trees, a quiet village. Calmer, more laid-back, it’s a corner to learn or unwind, leaning towards wing and school. And its whole identity rests on a reversed symmetry. The easterly, onshore here, makes the spot work — the very direction that sucks you out to sea at l’Almanarre. The westerly mistral, which beautifully smooths the water on the east side, comes off the land: offshore, disturbed by the peninsula, with boats moored out front. The framework is strict: no kite channel at La Capte (only the Mérou and l’Almanarre are recognised), riding off the beach tolerated off-season and closed in summer; in a summer easterly the official fallback is Le Mérou, at L’Ayguade — not to be confused with this eastern tombolo. A gorgeous postcard reverse, to be ridden with method: a school, a sea launch in season, and absolute caution the moment the wind comes off the west.
Who & when
Level and best time
Who it's for
A dual profile. The shallow water and the mistral-sheltered bay make a sound place to learn — with a school, and in season by boat drop-off, since the official framework requires launching out at sea. But in a firm easterly the neighbouring La Badine sector kicks up waves that sources reserve for advanced riders. Riding solo off the beach: off-season only, under a tolerance, and never in a westerly, which here is offshore and turbulent.
source : letskite.ch ↗Best time
The reference wind is the easterly (E/ENE): it blows onshore on this side of the tombolo and makes the spot work — “the easterly is ideal here and creates perfect conditions”. In spring the wind tends to come from the east over Hyères. In a mistral / westerly, the eastern side is well sheltered and the water turns flat, great for speed — but the wind is then offshore and disturbed by the peninsula. Note: in an easterly during the summer season, Hyères’ official kite zone is Le Mérou (at L’Ayguade), not the eastern tombolo.
source : campingportpothuau.com ↗On site
Arrival guide
Access & facilities
The village of La Capte with its harbour and palm-lined beach; an easy entry into the water despite a few small pebbles before the sand. Free car parks at La Capte (by the shops) and at La Badine, to the south on the same tombolo. Two outfits are based at La Capte: The Ridery (kite & wing shop) and the Kraken Sports Nautiques watersports base. Beach patrolled in summer under the local beach-marking plan.
source : campingportpothuau.com ↗One tombolo, two coasts
La Capte is the eastern side of the Giens double tombolo, a formation that is nearly unique in the world: l’Almanarre sits on the western side, the other shore. Between the two lies a protected wetland, the Pesquiers salt marshes (Conservatoire du littoral) — flamingos and nesting birds, a protected area, not a playground. The two coasts work in exact opposition: flat in a mistral (westerly) on the eastern side, choppy in an easterly; the reverse at l’Almanarre.
source : conservatoire-du-littoral.fr ↗Before you go
Safety
Westerly / mistral: offshore
Hazard number one is the westerly / mistral — and mind you, it’s the opposite of l’Almanarre. La Capte is on the eastern coast of the peninsula: in a westerly the wind pours off the land, pushes you towards the bay and the open sea, and arrives disturbed by the peninsula. The water turns flat and tempting, but it’s a lure. The sources are clear: “wind disturbed by the peninsula — do not launch from the beach in a westerly”. To be avoided when riding solo off the shore; at the slightest westerly component, caution, a margin, and never alone.
source : letskite.ch ↗Submerged obstacles & moorings
Off the mouth of La Capte harbour, anti-swell booms sit just below the surface: a real hazard, especially on a foil. The Ridery warns that on a foil you must move at least 100 m off the beach to have enough depth. In a westerly, boats lie at anchor in front of the spot, and the neighbouring La Badine sector has a few mooring buoys. Scout these obstacles before riding.
source : theridery.com ↗No kite channel: the rule
The town provides only two channels for beach craft — the Mérou channel and the l’Almanarre channel — and bans navigation within the 300-metre coastal strip outside those channels (municipal order of 9 June 2021, prefectural order no. 019/2018). There would therefore be no kite channel at La Capte. The Badine / Capte sector is reportedly tolerated off-season and closed in summer; in a summer easterly, the official fallback is Le Mérou, at L’Ayguade. Launching should then be done at sea, through the schools. Emergencies: fire 18, CROSS Med 196 or VHF channel 16, police 17.
source : hyeres.fr ↗Community
Soon, by the riders
These spaces will fill up with the community’s feedback.
Session reports (eastern side: flat in a westerly, waves in an easterly, state of the moorings)
Is the Badine / Capte sector rideable right now, or should you fall back on Le Mérou?