France
The Arpillon beach is located in Issambres, in the maritime district of Roquebrune-sur-Argens, on the Côte d'Azur. It is a brown sandy beach mixed with fine gravel, bordered by the Mediterranean Sea and close to the shops in the center of San Peïre.
On site, the friendly atmosphere is appreciated with its iconic boat-shaped bar-restaurant, ideal for a break after the session. The beach is supervised during the season and equipped for families, with an accessible handiplage.
The spot attracts locals for its exposed position to Mediterranean winds, in a typical setting of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur.
The wind data shown here comes from ERA5 (via Open-Meteo) over 4 years, reprocessed to reflect realistic conditions.
👉 Average wind has been calibrated to avoid the usual underestimation of models.
👉 Gusts have been corrected by a median ratio to avoid unrealistic extreme values.
👉 Each day is summarized by the median wind (P50) observed during useful hours (8am–8pm), then classified into wind ranges.
👉 The weighted mode mixes average wind and gusts to best reflect felt wind.
chopchopThe Arpillon beach is oriented southeast, making it ideal for mistral (northwest) winds in perfect side-on or south wind (south) in side-shore from the left. The water entry is directly from the sand-gravel, easy even for beginners, with a wide take-off area at the water's edge.
The navigation area extends offshore about 500 meters to 1 km, avoiding swimming areas marked by buoys in summer. The water surface is generally chop with some short waves under mistral, more flat with light south wind. Watch out for fishermen and boats leaving the nearby port of Issambres.
In high season, the beach is crowded, so prefer the east or west edges to launch the kite. There is no dedicated nautical center for kitesurfing on site, but the SPIC Multisports will open in 2025 for other water activities.
Ideal conditions are a mistral of 15-25 knots side-on from the northwest, for a smooth and manageable water surface.
The water state varies from flat with side-shore wind to moderate chop under mistral. Small waves of 50 cm to 1 m form with strong or south winds.
Currents are generally weak on this exposed beach. Mediterranean tides are minimal (20-30 cm), with no major impact on navigation.
Opt for sizes of 9 to 12 m² in medium wind, and 7 to 9 m² under strong mistral.
The wind regime is dominated by the powerful mistral from the northwest, which can blow strongly from September to April. The south wind (sirocco) arrives in summer, more thermal and regular in the afternoon.
The Mediterranean climate offers warm summers around 28-32°C and mild winters at 12-15°C. Rainfall is rare, concentrated in autumn, with more than 300 days of sunshine per year.
The depth increases gradually with a sandy and gravelly bottom. You can stand up to 30-50 meters from the shore.
The water is at 14-16°C in winter, rises to 20-22°C in spring and 24-26°C in summer, up to 22°C in autumn.
