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Playa de Valdelagrana, El Puerto de Santa Maria: Cadiz and Costa de la Luz beach guide
An undiscovered gem of a beach in the southwest of Spain
The beach of Valdelagrana is a long, sandy beach located in the Bahía de Cadiz in Spain. Valdelagrana belongs to the municipality of El Puerto de Santa María, though it is basically a small town in its own right.
Valdelagrana beach faces onto the Bay of Cadiz, not the open sea, so there are not very big waves and the water does not get deep very quickly. This also means the water is slightly warmer than at the beaches in Cadiz city, which face onto the Atlantic Ocean. All of this makes Valdelagrana the perfect beach for swimming and bathing with children.
It is also occasionally used for kitesurfing or surf foiling, but these activities are more common at the Cadiz beaches with more waves on the Atlantic ocean, such as in Tarifa and Sancti Petri.
Running parallel to the beach is a paseo marítimo seafront promenade that is dotted with beautiful palm trees and goes the full length of the beach.
There is plenty of parking right next to the prom, just a few short metres from the beach, and there are loads of bars, restaurants, chiringuitos (beach bars on the sand) and even a couple of supermarkets near the seafront.
Behind these are countless apartment blocks, many of which are rented by the week and used as tourist rental accommodation, so there are plenty of places to stay. There are also a couple of hotels in Vadelagrana.
In the tourist high season in summertime, there are lifeguards on duty on the beach during the day. There are also itinerant salespeople who walk up and down the beach all day selling cold drinks, snacks and souvenirs.
Valdelagrana is popular among Spaniards – especially gaditanos from the province of Cadiz – but it is little known outside the local community, which makes it a quiet destination free from large international tourist crowds.
The beach itself consists of a sandy stretch of beach 2 kilometres long, and it has Blue Flag status for its cleanliness and quality services. You can walk all the way along it to the Parque de los Turuños nature reserve and wetland park, which itself is a lovely place to walk and rent bicycles – another great afternoon activity to do with family and friends around Cadiz.
Along the shore where the water meets the sand there are quite a lot of small, broken shells, so it can sometimes be spiky and uncomfortable for bare feet, especially when going in and out of the sea.
Every 200 metres or so there are wooden walkways which lead you down from the prom, over the hot part of the sand, down closer to the water. These are lengthened in summer so you can walk almost to the high-tide mark.
There are also toilets, showers and footwashing stations which are available to use in summer. One of the best things about Valdelagrana beach is its ample area of wooden pallets suitable for those in wheelchairs to come down to the beach. This large disabled area has a huge sunshade to protect you from the sun, and waterproof wheelchairs specially designed for going in the sea are available to borrow.
Dogs are not allowed on the beach. It is generally kept very clean.
How to get to the Playa de Valdelagrana
By car
It is located between El Puerto de Santa María and Puerto Real, just off the CA-32 main road.
By train
Valdelagrana train station is on the Cádiz Cercanías train line, about halfway between Jerez de la Frontera and Cadiz capital city. The train station is a 15-minute walk from the beach.
By bus
The buses that pass by Valdelagrana are numbers M-040, M-041, M-051, M-052, M-060, M-061, M-062, M-360, M-960, M-961, M-962 and M-967, although they all only stop on the main road near the train station and you still have to walk for 15 minutes to get to the beach.
By plane
The closest Spanish airport to Valdelagrana is Jerez de la Frontera airport, which has a direct connection via Cercanías train, although there are only about four trains per day going in each direction that go all the way to the airport, which is at the end of the line.
Other tourists who choose to visit the province of Cadiz often fly to Seville airport as it is larger and has more connections, and is only about an hour away from Cadiz by train or car.
For British tourists, flying to Gibraltar airport from the UK is also a popular option when visiting Cadiz as there are lots of flight connections and it is also only about an hour away.
Image 1: Cádiz Turismo
Image 2: Junta de Andalucía
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