The Costa de la Luz from Tarriffa to Huelva offers you the opportunity to enjoy all the water sports you could ever imagine.

As a father of 3 addicted surfers I know very little of the actual thrill of surfing but plenty about watching with heart in mouth and eyes fixed, trance like trying to make out the three little dots that were once my terra firma based off spring. Ironically I’m often watching the wrong three and it’s only when I hand over watch duty to my wife do we get to find where they really are. Our favourite beach is that of El Palmar (4 Km from Vejer de la Frontera and 8KM from Conil de la Frontera) which provides all round surfing with a long sandy beach that can accommodate all comers even on the busiest of August days.

I am reliably informed (by my 9 year old) from a technical perspective El Pal Mar is an excellent wave generating area and importantly relatively safe. The reason for this is that the underwater topography consists of sandbars which are ideal for wave creation. But importantly these sandbars are well anchored between reefs and patches of subterranean rocks which stop them moving and in effect guarantee the consistency of the waves. There are several surf schools operating in El Palmar and numerous beachside shops happy to sell or rent boards and the associated surf gear. Be warned however designer shorts, bikinis, flip flops, scratch vests, sunglasses and caps can stretch a family holiday budget to breaking point.

And as I am constantly reminded wearing last years gear is totally de rigueur init. Surfing for all the posing and posturing that goes on is a great sport and one you should encourage your kids to take up. An afternoon surfing is a serious workout as not only do the colossal waves carry them to the shore at break neck speed they also push back with huge force as eager surfers paddle back out to catch the next rolling monster. In fact my 16 year old son has the muscles you’d expect of someone pumping iron a few hours every day. And unfortunately I can’t even claim it’s hereditary Depending upon where you want to buy or rent property in the Costa de la Luz you can be guaranteed that there will always be a surfing beach within a short driving distance. And as is the nature of the Atlantic along this coast you’re pretty much guaranteed some perfect waves throughout the year.