Santander, Spain: weather statistics and wind history

Weather forecast

10 day weather forecast for Santander, Spain, contains useful information about local wind speed, direction, and gusts, temperature, cloud coverage and precipitation based on the global GFS weathel model. All data updates four times a day with a forecast step of 3 hours. There is also a real-time wind forecast for Santander, Spain, from the nearest weather station to the spot, and a live Wind Map of the region and the world.

Get the weather forecast for other best kitesurfing, windsurfing and surfing spots in Spain on this website and in the Windy.app with more weather parameters.

Climate, weather, and seasons in Santander

The weather in Santander is defined as subpolar oceanic with few temperature oscillations, it is characterized by being rainy all year round, even in summer months, it also has abundant rainfall, with an annual average of 1200 mm. Its average humidity is 72%. The wind blows frequently from the ocean and thanks to the breezes from the Cantabrian mountains, sudden temperature increases are possible. Fog is common even on summer nights.

Winter

Winter in Santander runs from the end of December to the end of March. Winters are mild and rainy. The average maximum temperature is 12.5 °C and the minimum is 8.6 °C. It has 39 days of rain in this period (104 mm).

• The best season for surfing is winter with its northwesterly swells that can also surprise those from the north.
• The south wind comes down the mountains and brings sudden increases in temperature thanks to the föhn effect. Days of up to 20 °C can occur during the winter.
• The weather in Santander during the winter brings strong winds that can increase the wind chill.
• Rarely there is snow on the coast, it is a little more frequent in the mountainous areas of the interior of the province.

Spring

Spring in Santander starts at the end of March and lasts until the end of June. Temperatures during this period range between 12 °C and 21 °C and there are an average of 33 days of rain (78 mm) in the total season.

• Swells are consistent but not very big, perfect for beginners, beaches with little affluence.
• El Sardinero beach is a perfect spot for spring with the first winds from the east and northeast.

Summer

Summer in Santander starts at the end of June and goes towards the end of September, the average temperature of the season is 22 °C as maximum temperature and 17 °C as a minimum. The month of August reaches a temperature of up to 25 °C (77 °F). The weather in Santander during the summer has a maximum of 29 days of rainfall (49 mm) for the entire season.

• The water is warm in summer and it is possible to surf in swimming trunks.
• The most common summer wind is the northeast, bringing tidy waves given the thermal wind, perfect conditions for windsurfing.
• In summer it is not an ideal time for surfers, beaches with high crowds.
• Föhn wind is rarely seen during the summer but can generate temperatures exceeding 30 °C.

Autumn

Autumn in Santander runs from late September to mid-December. It is the second wettest period of the year with 105 mm and 32 days of precipitation in the total season. With temperatures that drop progressively from 20 °C to 10 °C as a minimum.

• The beginning of autumn in Santander is synonymous with surf season with winds coming from the Atlantic to the Bay of Biscay and being the windiest season of the year with average speeds of over 17 km/h.
• At night, fog may form.

Santander weather forecast for kitesurfing, windsurfing, and surfing in Spain on the Windy.app for iOS. Photo: Willian-justen-de-vasconcellos / Unsplash

Best time to travel

The best time to visit Santander for surfers will depend on the level of experience and the style you want to practice. It is a windy area, but the windiest time of the year is from October to April. Thus, for beginners, the ideal period would be spring-summer, while for intermediate or expert level, autumn-winter, when the swells and the diversity of winds create ideal scenarios with sandy bottoms.

For windsurfers, the summer is an ideal season.

General and travel information

Santander is the capital of the region of Cantabria, located on the northern coast of Spain. This has been one of the pioneering areas of surfing in Spain, so it has years of experience in this sport and beaches for all levels. It even has the so-called Natural Surfing Reserve.

For windsurfers, the recommendation is not to miss the beach of Valdearenas.

Somo, Sardinero, Liencres, and Langre are the beaches with the easiest access from Santander, perfect for surfing with waves up to 2 meters during the year.

Official website: Tuirsmo.santander.es.