Spain · coast guide
Understanding the coast of Spain
This guide explains the coast of Spain on the Atlantic, the Mediterranean; calculations, observations and product limits remain distinct.
Read a local tide
Times and heights depend on the port, datum and station timezone. Spain includes Atlantic, Cantabrian and Mediterranean coasts as well as archipelagos. The Navy Hydrographic Institute’s predictions are read by port: a time for A Coruña cannot be moved to Cádiz, the Balearics or the Canaries. Keep the port and datum attached to the table you read. A value from another place cannot be carried to a nearby beach. Mareloa preserves the source and timestamp of its data but does not replace the national hydrographic reference.
Tidal range and coast
Tidal range changes among rías, estuaries, open coasts and islands. A national comparison erases those differences and does not show when a particular stretch is uncovered. To understand a beach, start with the prediction for the nearby port and local mapping or signs. Tidal range is the vertical difference between low and high water. Bays, depth and coastal shape change it, so one astronomical cycle does not create the same range everywhere. Mareloa creates no national coefficient for Spain and infers no access from one number.
Prediction, model and observation
An astronomical prediction is not a water-level observation. Swell, wind and pressure can change the actual situation, especially on exposed shore. Keep the port table, any measurement and official marine notices separate; the absence of data is not a favourable condition. An astronomical prediction calculates a periodic component. A model adds assumptions; an observation is a measurement at a station and time. Wind, pressure, waves and geography can change actual level. These categories remain separate and missing evidence never becomes reassuring.
Plan a coast visit
Rules for bathing, access, recreational fishing and shellfish harvesting are published by community, municipality or the competent authority. Before visiting a ría, cove or urban beach, consult those publications and information on site. This guide gives provenance and context, not permission for an activity. Use this guide to understand provenance, not to decide an activity. Restrictions, health notices, access and signage are local and can change. Consult the competent authority and on-site information; Mareloa is not a navigation tool.
Reviewed source
This page cites and links to this public reference; it does not reproduce its tables.
Reviewed 2026-09-11.