El Médano, Tenerife, Spain

About El Médano, Tenerife

El Médano is not the Tenerife of the resort brochures. It is a small, wind-scoured town on the island's southern tip beneath the red cone of Montaña Roja, and it has been a windsurfing and kitesurfing town for decades — which is to say the cafés fill with people watching the water rather than avoiding it.

The north-east trades blow side-onshore for something in the order of 250 windy days a year, at 15 to 35 knots depending on the season, and 20 to 30 knots consistently from June to September. There is no single season here: May to September and November to March both work. The bay in front of town is wide, onshore and forgiving enough for a first week. El Cabezo, just along the shore, is a wave spot that hosts international competition and is for experienced riders only. La Tejita, the long open beach beneath Montaña Roja, is the roomiest and least crowded of the three.

The water sits at 20 to 25°C from May to October. Tenerife itself supplies everything El Médano does not — the black-sand beaches of the north, the western cliffs, and Teide standing 3,718 metres above all of it.

When to go

Best months: January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December.

Kite areas

3 distinct riding areas documented within this destination.

• El Cabezo

  Best months: January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December.

• El Médano / Los Balos

  Best months: January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December.

• La Tejita

  Best months: January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December.