Spain’s Atlantic coast · Huelva and Cádiz, Andalusia
Costa de la Luz, Spain: beaches, towns, sherry and map
Long Atlantic beaches from Portugal to the Strait, Doñana’s marshes, Phoenician Cádiz, the sherry towns and the hill town of Vejer.
La Caleta, Cádiz · Photo: Ymblanter, CC BY-SA 4.0
The Costa de la Luz is Spain’s Atlantic coast on the Gulf of Cádiz, running through the provinces of Huelva and Cádiz from the mouth of the Guadiana on the Portuguese border to Tarifa, about 210 km away in a straight line. In the west are long Huelva beaches and the marshes of Doñana; in the middle, Sanlúcar and the sherry towns around the Bay of Cádiz; further south, the open beaches of Conil and Vejer, Roman Baelo Claudia and the Strait of Gibraltar.
At a glance
- Where Spain’s Atlantic coast on the Gulf of Cádiz, in the provinces of Huelva and Cádiz, from the mouth of the Guadiana on the Portuguese border to Tarifa. Sometimes written Costa de Luz; Costa da Luz in Portuguese.
- Length about 210 km in a straight line from Ayamonte to Tarifa; Huelva’s tourist board alone counts more than 120 km of beaches.
- Doñana a national park since 1969 and UNESCO World Heritage since 1994, with 33 km of open beach between Sanlúcar and Matalascañas.
- On CostaMap 25 coastal town guides, 15 beach guides (listed under Best beaches) and four campsites on the coast (two inland).
- Airports Jerez (XRY) about 32 km from Cádiz, Seville (SVQ) about 95 km from Huelva, Faro (FAO) about 55 km from Ayamonte and Gibraltar (GIB) about 28 km from Tarifa, all in a straight line.
- Climate Cádiz averages 18.6 °C over the year, from 12.7 °C in January to 25.0 °C in August (AEMET, 1981–2010).
Map of the Costa de la Luz
The map shows the places on the Costa de la Luz that have a CostaMap page, from Ayamonte in the west to Tarifa and La Línea on the Strait, with the campsites and the inland towns. Tick a place type to filter it, and click a marker to open the page. The full-screen version is the Costa de la Luz map.
Place type
Area · next level
Coast guideCosta de la Luz
Click a marker to see the place here. Four areas from Ayamonte on the Portuguese border to Tarifa and the Strait, with Jerez and Doñana inland.
Choose your areaOpen the full Costa de la Luz map →
Choose your area
Huelva’s tourist board lists eight beach municipalities on its coast: Ayamonte, Isla Cristina, Lepe, Cartaya, Punta Umbría, Palos de la Frontera, Moguer and Almonte (Turismo de Huelva). Cádiz province adds the sherry coast, the bay, La Janda and the Strait. We group the coast in four areas, from west to east. The choice is between quiet Huelva beaches, the cities and wine of the bay, and the wide, windy beaches of the south.
Huelva coast: Ayamonte to Moguer
Long, low beaches of fine sand from the Portuguese border to the Huelva estuary, with marshes, pine woods and the places where Columbus prepared his voyage.
- Ayamonte – the border town at the mouth of the Guadiana, with the 6 km beach of Isla Canela.
- Isla Cristina – a fishing port with one of Spain’s most important fish markets and just over 13 km of beaches.
- Lepe – one of the beach municipalities listed by Huelva’s tourist board, between Isla Cristina and Cartaya, near the 1,400 m beach of Islantilla.
- Cartaya – just over 4 km of beach at El Rompido, ending at the unspoilt sand spit of the Flecha del Rompido.
- Punta Umbría – a resort first made popular by English mining families in the late 19th century, with the 4 km beach of El Portil nearby.
- Aljaraque – the municipality between Punta Umbría and the Huelva estuary, close to the Odiel marshes.
- Huelva – the provincial capital beside the Marismas del Odiel, with El Espigón, 2.5 km of sand along the breakwater.
- Palos de la Frontera – the port Columbus sailed from on 3 August 1492, with La Rábida and the replica ships nearby.
- Moguer – the town of the Santa Clara monastery and of the poet Juan Ramón Jiménez, sharing the 6 km beach of Mazagón.
Sherry coast and the Bay of Cádiz
The mouth of the Guadalquivir facing Doñana, the manzanilla bodegas of Sanlúcar, and the bay with Cádiz on its peninsula, a city founded by the Phoenicians.
- Sanlúcar de Barrameda – home of manzanilla, with the fried fish of Bajo de Guía and the boat to Doñana.
- Chipiona – a lighthouse town with tidal fish traps still in use and its own moscatel wine.
- Rota – 16 km of beaches and the 13th-century Castillo de Luna, with Costa Ballena shared with Chipiona.
- El Puerto de Santa María – the ‘city of a hundred palaces’ at the mouth of the Guadalete, where the Santa María was fitted out.
- Puerto Real – founded by the Catholic Monarchs in 1483, with the beaches of Río San Pedro and La Cachucha.
- Cádiz – the Phoenician Gadir, with La Caleta between two castles and the gold-tiled cathedral dome.
- San Fernando – the former Isla de León, home of Camarón de la Isla, with Camposoto beach in the natural park.
La Janda: Chiclana, Conil, Vejer and Barbate
Wide, open beaches facing the Atlantic, a protected hill town above them, cliffs and pine woods in La Breña, and the tuna traps off Barbate.
- Chiclana de la Frontera – the long beach of La Barrosa (4 to 5.35 km in the official listings) and the 18th-century castle of Sancti Petri on its islet.
- Conil de la Frontera – 14 km of coast, with Los Bateles in town and a tuna and almadraba centre in La Chanca.
- Vejer de la Frontera – a protected historic hill town since 1976, about 9 km from the beach of El Palmar.
- Barbate – the tuna port inside La Breña natural park, with Zahara de los Atunes and Los Caños de Meca nearby.
Full guide to La Janda: Chiclana, Conil, Vejer and Barbate →
Tarifa and the Strait of Gibraltar
The southern tip of mainland Europe: wind-swept beaches for kitesurfing, the Roman town of Baelo Claudia, whales in the Strait and ferries to Morocco.
- Tarifa – the kitesurfing town at Punta de Tarifa, with Los Lances, Valdevaqueros and Bolonia along its coast.
- Algeciras – the ferry port for Ceuta and Tanger Med, and the birthplace of Paco de Lucía.
- Los Barrios – a town about 7.6 km from the shore of the Bay of Algeciras, between the port and the hills inland.
- San Roque – the bay town with the ruins of the Roman city of Carteia.
- La Línea de la Concepción – the Spanish town on the border with Gibraltar, about 2 km from Gibraltar airport.
Inland day trips
These towns are inland, so they are not in the lists above. Three that combine well with the coast:
- Jerez de la Frontera – sherry bodegas, the Royal Andalusian School of Equestrian Art and the Alcázar, about 22 km from Cádiz in a straight line.
- Almonte – the municipality of El Rocío, 15 km to the south on the edge of Doñana, where more than a million pilgrims arrive at Pentecost.
- Bollullos Par del Condado – a stop on the Condado de Huelva wine route, which links the bodegas inland of the Huelva coast.
Explore by interest
Six ways into the coast. Each tile opens the part of this guide that covers it.
Best beaches and coves
This is the Atlantic: long, straight beaches of fine sand, often backed by dunes or pine woods, with the wind as the main thing to watch. The levante, the easterly, sweeps the long beaches of Tarifa and draws kitesurfers and windsurfers. The selection below is ours, from west to east.
El Rompido and the Flecha
Cartaya has just over 4 km of beach, ending at the Flecha del Rompido, an unspoilt sand spit in the estuary of the Piedras (Turismo de Huelva). Further west, Islantilla is 1,400 m long (Spain.info) and Isla Canela in Ayamonte about 6 km.
Matalascañas and the Doñana shore
Matalascañas runs for more than 4 km, with a ruined watchtower, ‘el tapón’, on the sand. To the south, you may walk freely along the 33 km of Doñana beach to Sanlúcar (Doñana National Park).
La Victoria and La Caleta, Cádiz
The city’s beaches cover about 3 km: La Caleta between the castles of San Sebastián and Santa Catalina, then Santa María del Mar, La Victoria and Cortadura (Cádiz Turismo).
La Barrosa
A long golden beach in Chiclana, 4,000 m on Spain’s tourism site (Spain.info) and 5,350 m on the Andalusian tourist board’s (Andalucía.org), near the 18th-century castle of Sancti Petri on its islet; boats to the islet leave from the Sancti Petri marina (Turismo de Chiclana).
El Palmar
Vejer’s beach, about 9 km from the town, holds the Q mark for tourism quality and has lifeguards, first-aid posts and ambulances in season (Turismo de Vejer).
Los Caños de Meca and Trafalgar
The beach runs from Cape Trafalgar, the only double tombolo in Andalusia, to the foot of the Breña cliffs, which rise to about 100 m (Turismo de Barbate).
Bolonia and its dune
A bay with the Roman ruins of Baelo Claudia behind the beach and, at its north-west end, a protected dune more than 30 m high (Cádiz Turismo, Tarifa).
Los Lances and Valdevaqueros
Long beaches swept by the levante, the reason Tarifa is called the kingdom of kitesurfing. Playa Chica sits right by the town.
All Costa de la Luz beaches with a CostaMap guide
West to east, from the Portuguese border to Tarifa. Each guide has access, parking and services.
- Flecha del Rompido (Cartaya): a sand spit of more than 12 km, reached by the small ferry from El Rompido.
- Playa de Islantilla (Lepe and Isla Cristina): a resort beach shared by two towns, with a long promenade.
- Playa de la Bota (Punta Umbría): 3.8 km of sand backed by pine woods and dunes.
- Playa de Mazagón (Mazagón): about 9 km of fine sand beside the village and its marina.
- Playa de Matalascañas (Almonte): the resort beach next to Doñana, with a ruined 16th-century tower on the sand.
- La Caleta (Cádiz): the 495 m old-town beach between two castles.
- Playa de la Victoria (Cádiz): the city beach, about 2.9 km along the Paseo Marítimo.
- Playa de la Barrosa (Chiclana de la Frontera): long Atlantic sand near the islet of Sancti Petri.
- Playa de la Fontanilla (Conil de la Frontera): about 800 m, a walk from the town centre.
- Playa El Palmar (Vejer de la Frontera): a long, straight surf beach.
- Los Caños de Meca (Barbate): about 3 km of beaches from Cape Trafalgar to the Breña cliffs.
- Playa de Zahara de los Atunes (Barbate): the 1,600 m village beach.
- Playa de Bolonia (Tarifa): white sand, a dune over 30 m high and Roman Baelo Claudia.
- Playa de Valdevaqueros (Tarifa): the kitesurf bay below a large dune.
- Playa de los Lances (Tarifa): about 7 km of kite and windsurf beach at the edge of town.
Where to stay by town
Choose Cádiz or El Puerto for a city with trains and no car, Huelva’s coast for quiet family beaches, and Conil, Vejer or Tarifa for the wide southern beaches, where a car helps.
Isla Cristina
A working fishing port, settled for good after the 1755 Lisbon earthquake, with just over 13 km of beaches.
Families, fish restaurants
Punta Umbría
The resort between the Odiel marshes and the sea, with El Portil and the undeveloped Enebrales shore nearby.
Beach week, birdwatching
Sanlúcar de Barrameda
Manzanilla bodegas, fried fish in Bajo de Guía, 6 km of beaches and the boat across the river to Doñana.
Food and wine, Doñana
El Puerto de Santa María
The ‘city of a hundred palaces’ on the bay, with the Castillo de San Marcos and easy reach of Cádiz and Jerez.
A base without a car
Cádiz
Considered the oldest city in the West, with city beaches, the Pópulo quarter and the end of the railway from Seville.
A first visit, city and beach
Chiclana de la Frontera
La Barrosa beach and the Novo Sancti Petri resort with its marina and golf courses, 24 km from Cádiz.
Resort holidays, golf
Conil de la Frontera
14 km of coast, with Los Bateles, the town beach with plenty of facilities, and La Fontanilla.
A beach town on foot
Vejer de la Frontera
A walled hill town with four gates and a castle at its highest point, one of the Most Beautiful Villages in Spain.
Couples, a slower week
Tarifa
The southern tip of Europe, the closest point to Africa, with the castle of Guzmán el Bueno and ferries to Tangier.
Kitesurfing, whales, MoroccoCampsites
The campsites we list through Campcation on this coast are mostly motorhome parks. Two are near Chipiona, one near Sanlúcar and one near Isla Cristina; two are inland. Distances are by the nearest town.
Camper Park Buenavida
3.7 km from Chipiona on the sherry coast: stopover pitches for motorhomes, open all year.
See the campsite →
Camper Park Playas de Luz
2.5 km from Isla Cristina in the west: caravan and motorhome pitches, open from 1 March to 30 November.
See the campsite →
Camping El Madroñal
In the hills of northern Huelva, 26 km from El Campillo and far from the sea; a base for the sierra, not the beach. Open all year.
See the campsite →Also near Chipiona: La Siesta de La Gaviota, 2.8 km from the town. Near Sanlúcar: Sanlúcar AC Parking, 4.1 km from the town. Inland near Doñana: Camping Global Tribe, 4.6 km from Almonte, with glamping and cottages. All three are open all year.
Things to do
Phoenician and Roman Cádiz
Cádiz was founded by the Phoenicians as Gadir, around 1100 BC, and the provincial tourist board describes it as considered the oldest city in the West. Its Roman theatre, from the 1st century BC, in the Pópulo quarter was only found in 1980. The cathedral mixes Baroque and Neoclassical styles under a dome of golden tiles that is visible from the sea (Cádiz Turismo).
Spain’s first constitution, ‘La Pepa’, was drafted in Cádiz in 1812 at the Oratorio de San Felipe Neri. Torre Tavira, about 45 m above sea level and the tallest watchtower in the old town, houses Spain’s first camera obscura (Torre Tavira).
Baelo Claudia
A Roman town on the beach of Bolonia, founded in the 2nd century BC. It lived from salting fish and from trade with North Africa, and was the port for today’s Tangier (Junta de Andalucía).
Entry is free for EU citizens with ID and €1.50 for other visitors. It opens Tuesday to Saturday, 9:00–21:00 from 21 March to 20 June, 9:00–15:00 from 21 June to 20 September and 9:00–18:00 in autumn and winter; Sundays and holidays 9:00–15:00; closed on Mondays. Last entry is 30 minutes before closing (Baelo Claudia, checked Oct 2026).
Columbus country: La Rábida and Palos
Columbus planned his voyage at the Franciscan monastery of La Rábida, a Gothic-Mudéjar building of the 14th and 15th centuries with murals by Daniel Vázquez Díaz. Nearby, at the Muelle de las Carabelas on the Tinto estuary, you can board replicas of the Pinta, the Niña and the Santa María (Turismo de Huelva). The fleet sailed from Palos de la Frontera on 3 August 1492; in Moguer, the Monastery of Santa Clara has been a National Monument since 1931.
Sherry, manzanilla and almadraba tuna
Ten municipalities have vineyards in the Jerez designation of origin, among them Jerez, El Puerto, Sanlúcar, Chipiona, Rota and Puerto Real. Manzanilla, a dry white wine from Palomino grapes aged under a layer of yeast called flor, can only be aged in bodegas in Sanlúcar (Consejo Regulador). Eat it with langostinos in Bajo de Guía, tortillitas de camarones in San Fernando or pescaíto frito around Plaza de San Juan de Dios in Cádiz.
Further south, the almadraba is a fixed net set offshore to catch bluefin tuna as they pass through the Strait to spawn, a way of fishing older than the Romans. Barbate municipality has two of the four almadrabas in the province, Barbate and Zahara de los Atunes; try atún encebollado, tuna slow-cooked with onions (Turismo de Barbate). In Huelva, look for the white prawn, choco frito and mojama.
Doñana and the Odiel marshes
Doñana became a national park in 1969, a Biosphere Reserve in 1981 and UNESCO World Heritage in 1994; the park covers 54,252 ha and is home to the Spanish imperial eagle and the Iberian lynx (MITECO). The interior can only be visited on guided tours run by licensed companies: two by 4×4 and one by river boat from Sanlúcar. Book ahead, as places are limited; the park recommends autumn and winter, with fewer visitors and wintering birds.
Near Huelva city, the Marismas del Odiel are a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve with Europe’s largest breeding colony of spoonbills, around a third of the European population. Besides the free trails there are guided routes on foot, by train or by boat (Turismo de Huelva).
Wind, whales and the Strait at Tarifa
Punta de Tarifa, on Isla de las Palomas, is the southernmost point of mainland Europe and the line between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. The Tarifa coast is one of Europe’s main places for watching birds, whales and dolphins, and the provincial tourist board recommends the cetacean interpretation centre and a boat trip (Cádiz Turismo, Tarifa). Along the coast to the west, La Breña y Marismas del Barbate Natural Park covers 5,077 ha, 940 of them at sea, with juniper woods second in Europe only to Doñana’s.
When to go
AEMET climate normals for the Cádiz station, 1981–2010, with Huelva city (1984–2010) for comparison. Read them as a guide to the seasons, not a beach forecast.
Inland it is hotter: at Jerez airport the August mean maximum is 33.5 °C, against 27.9 °C in Cádiz (AEMET). In Huelva, July has about 366 hours of sunshine. For Doñana, the park itself recommends autumn and winter. Dates for the calendar: the Cádiz Carnival, the El Rocío pilgrimage at Pentecost with the smaller Rocío Chico in August, the horse races on Sanlúcar’s beach, and the almadraba season, when the nets can be seen from Playa del Carmen in Barbate from April to August.
Itineraries
Both plans use only places with their own CostaMap page.
Three days
Day 1
Cádiz
Cádiz: start in El Pópulo, the oldest quarter, where the Roman theatre was only discovered in 1980. Late morning, climb Torre Tavira, the tallest watchtower in the old town, for Spain’s first camera obscura, then walk to the cathedral, whose dome is covered in golden tiles. For lunch, pescaíto frito is the typical thing to eat around Plaza de San Juan de Dios. End the day at sunset on La Caleta, the beach between the castles of San Sebastián and Santa Catalina. Coming by train is easy: the Renfe line from Seville ends in Cádiz itself.
Day 2
Jerez and Sanlúcar
Spend the morning in Jerez de la Frontera, a station on the Seville–Cádiz railway: a bodega first, then the Alcázar, whose walls enclose a mosque and Arab baths. Horse lovers can book the show of the Real Escuela Andaluza del Arte Ecuestre instead. Walk through the Santiago quarter, the cradle of the bulería, before driving on to Sanlúcar on the Guadalquivir estuary, facing Doñana. Manzanilla can only be aged in bodegas there, so order a glass in Bajo de Guía, the old fishermen’s quarter lined with restaurants known for langostinos and fried fish.
Day 3
Vejer and El Palmar
Begin at the tourist office in Vejer de la Frontera, which hands out a town map. The old town keeps the four gates of its medieval walls, among them the Arco de la Segur, and the castle stands at its highest point. Below lies the Plaza de España, known as the Plaza de los Pescaítos, with a tiled fountain from 1957, and the Mercado gastronómico on Plaza San Francisco. In the afternoon, drive the 9 km down to El Palmar beach, which has lifeguards in season, or go to Conil, whose town beach is Los Bateles.
Seven days
Days 1–3: as above, based in Cádiz or El Puerto de Santa María.
Day 4
Bolonia and Baelo Claudia
Take the CA-P-8202 to Bolonia for Baelo Claudia, a Roman town founded in the 2nd century BC that grew on fish-salting and trade with North Africa. Entry is free for EU citizens with ID and 1.50 euros for others. The site is closed on Mondays, from 21 June to 20 September it closes at 15:00, and last entry is 30 minutes before closing. Afterwards, climb the Bolonia dune, more than 30 metres high, at the north-west end of the bay. In the evening, eat tuna in Zahara de los Atunes or Barbate, which each have an almadraba.
Day 5
Tarifa
Tarifa: in the morning, visit the Castillo de Guzmán el Bueno, built on the orders of Abd al-Rahman III, then look out over Isla de las Palomas, joined to the mainland by a road. Its tip is the southernmost point of mainland Europe and the dividing line between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. The Strait is one of Europe’s main places for watching whales and dolphins, and the provincial tourist board suggests a boat trip to see them. Spend the afternoon on Los Lances, where the levante wind draws kitesurfers. Ferries from the port also sail to Tangier.
Day 6
Doñana and El Rocío
The interior of Doñana can only be seen on guided tours run by licensed companies: two routes by 4×4, one from El Acebuche to La Plancha, and a river trip from Sanlúcar on the boat Real Fernando. Places are limited, so book in advance; the guides speak at least Spanish and English. El Acebuche visitor centre can only be reached by car. Afterwards, drive to the village of El Rocío, 15 km south of the town of Almonte. El Rocío is also served by bus, and from the village you can walk to La Rocina visitor centre.
Day 7
Columbus and the Odiel
Start at the monastery of La Rábida near Palos de la Frontera, where Columbus planned his voyage; it dates from the 14th–15th centuries and has murals by Daniel Vázquez Díaz. Nearby on the Tinto estuary, the Muelle de las Carabelas lets you board replicas of the Pinta, the Niña and the Santa María, the fleet that sailed from Palos on 3 August 1492. In the afternoon, head to the Odiel marshes outside Huelva, home to Europe’s largest breeding colony of spoonbills, with guided routes on foot, by train or by boat. Fly home from Seville or Faro.
Getting there and around
By air
Jerez (XRY) is the closest airport to the middle of the coast: about 32 km from Cádiz and 26 km from Sanlúcar. Seville (SVQ) is about 95 km from Huelva and 105 km from Cádiz, Faro (FAO) in Portugal about 55 km from Ayamonte, and Gibraltar (GIB) about 28 km from Tarifa. All in a straight line, from OurAirports coordinates; road distances are longer.
By train, tram and bus
Renfe’s Seville–Cádiz line ends in Cádiz and carries Media Distancia and Cercanías trains; the Trambahía tram-train links Cádiz and Chiclana in a little over half an hour (Renfe). Transportes Comes buses run from Seville’s Prado de San Sebastián station and along the coast to Conil, Vejer, Barbate, Zahara and Tarifa (Comes). Check times before you travel.
By car and ferry
A car helps for Bolonia, Los Caños de Meca and the Doñana visitor centres: El Acebuche and Palacio del Acebrón can only be reached by private vehicle. Ferries sail from Algeciras to Ceuta and Tanger Med, and from Tarifa to the city of Tangier (Port of Algeciras Bay).
Practical and safety
- Doñana: the interior is open only on licensed guided tours, which have limited places; book in advance. You may walk freely on the 33 km beach (Doñana, itineraries).
- Wind: the levante, the easterly, is the prevailing wind around Vejer, followed by the poniente from the west (Turismo de Vejer).
- Lifeguards: El Palmar has lifeguards, first-aid posts and ambulances in season. Swim where a beach is supervised.
- Military area: Playa de Pajares, near Barbate, lies inside the Sierra del Retín military training area.
- Closed on Mondays: Baelo Claudia, unless the Monday is the day before a public holiday. In summer it closes at 15:00.
FAQ
Where is the Costa de la Luz?
On Spain’s Atlantic coast in western Andalusia: the shores of Huelva and Cádiz provinces, from the Guadiana and the Portuguese border to Tarifa on the Strait of Gibraltar.
What are the best beaches on the Costa de la Luz?
For long, open sand: La Barrosa in Chiclana, El Palmar near Vejer, Bolonia with its dune and Los Lances in Tarifa. In Huelva, Isla Canela, Islantilla and El Rompido; in Cádiz city, La Caleta and La Victoria.
Is there a map of the Costa de la Luz?
Yes. The map above shows every place on the coast with a CostaMap page, and the full-screen version is on the Costa de la Luz map page.
What are the best things to do on the Costa de la Luz?
Old Cádiz, a bodega in Jerez or Sanlúcar, a guided tour of Doñana, the Roman town of Baelo Claudia, the white town of Vejer, whale watching off Tarifa and the Columbus sites at Palos and La Rábida.
Which airport is best for the Costa de la Luz?
Jerez (XRY) for Cádiz and the sherry towns, Seville (SVQ) or Faro (FAO) for the Huelva coast, and Gibraltar (GIB) or Málaga (AGP) for Tarifa and the Strait.
Is the Costa de la Luz in Spain or Portugal?
Spain. It starts at Ayamonte, at the mouth of the Guadiana, where the river forms the border with Portugal’s Algarve.
Neighbouring costas
Costa del Sol
The Mediterranean coast of Málaga province, east of Gibraltar, with Málaga airport.
Costa del Sol guide →Sources and freshness
Checked 5 October 2026 · 3 sources Show
- Corrected 9 November 2026: beach lengths aligned with the official beach sheets. La Barrosa was given as 6 km
- Spain.info lists 4,000 m and Andalucía.org 5,350 m. Islantilla was given as 1,600 m
- Spain.info lists 1,400 m
Checked 5 October 2026. New sections checked 6 November 2026. Official: Turismo de Huelva on beaches, nature, food and culture; Cádiz Turismo on Cádiz, Sanlúcar, Chipiona, Rota, El Puerto, Puerto Real, San Fernando, Jerez, Chiclana, Conil, Vejer, Barbate, Tarifa, Algeciras, San Roque and La Línea; the town tourist offices of Chiclana, Vejer and Barbate; MITECO on Doñana, access and guided tours; UNESCO; the Junta de Andalucía on Baelo Claudia; the Jerez-Xérès-Sherry and Manzanilla regulatory council; the Real Escuela Andaluza del Arte Ecuestre; Torre Tavira. Transport: Renfe, Transportes Comes, Turismo de Barbate on buses, the Port of Algeciras Bay, OurAirports for Jerez, Seville, Faro, Málaga and Gibraltar. Climate: AEMET Cádiz, Huelva and Jerez airport. Background facts: Spanish Wikipedia on the Costa de la Luz. Locations and straight-line distances: OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
Photo credits · 45 photos from Wikimedia Commons Show
Photos from Wikimedia Commons, not altered except for cropping: La Caleta, Cádiz by Ymblanter (CC BY-SA 4.0); Mazagón, Huelva by isol (CC BY-SA 3.0); Bahía de Cádiz by Josan Gómez (CC BY-SA 3.0); Playa de Conil by Jon Agüera (CC BY-SA 3.0); Tarifa, Strait of Gibraltar by Jelger Groeneveld (CC BY 2.0); Jerez de la Frontera by cesar.ruiz (CC BY-SA 3.0); Playa de Bolonia by Emilio J. Rodríguez Posada (CC BY-SA 2.0); Vejer de la Frontera by logopop (CC BY-SA 3.0); Mercado Central, Cádiz by Jorge Franganillo (CC BY 4.0); Doñana by Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz (CC BY-SA 4.0); Arcos de la Frontera by Jocelyn Erskine-Kellie from London, UK (CC BY-SA 2.0); Mazagón, Huelva by Concepcion AMAT ORTA… (CC BY 3.0); El Rompido by Tomás Fano (CC BY-SA 2.0); Matalascañas by joselito2311 (CC BY-SA 3.0); Playa de la Victoria, Cádiz by "Pablo Jones ( Peejayem )" (CC BY-SA 3.0); Playa de la Barrosa by Consuelo Fernandez (CC BY-SA 4.0); Playa de El Palmar by Andreas Ostheimer (CC BY-SA 4.0); Los Caños de Meca by Cear2002 (CC BY-SA 4.0); Playa de Bolonia by Gerardo Almeida (CC BY-SA 3.0); Playa de Los Lances, Tarifa by Juan Vladimir Paraschuk (CC BY-SA 4.0); Isla Cristina by Laila Jamai Hammi (PDM-owner); Punta Umbría by Concepcion AMAT ORTA… (CC BY 3.0); Bajo de Guía, Sanlúcar de Barrameda by Anual (CC BY-SA 4.0); El Puerto de Santa María by Emilio J. Rodríguez Posada (CC BY-SA 2.0); Cádiz by Emilio J. Rodríguez Posada (CC BY-SA 2.0); Chiclana de la Frontera by Xemenendura (CC BY-SA 4.0); Conil de la Frontera by rey perezoso (CC BY-SA 2.0); Vejer de la Frontera by logopop (CC BY-SA 3.0); Tarifa by Lamberto Zannotti (CC BY-SA 3.0); Chipiona by Fedoce1 (Fernando Domínguez Cerejido) (CC BY-SA 4.0); Isla Canela by ines marquez bravo (CC0); Aracena by Mike Krüger (CC BY-SA 4.0); Cádiz by Emilio J. Rodríguez Posada (CC BY-SA 2.0); Baelo Claudia by Jan Hazevoet (CC BY 3.0); Monasterio de La Rábida, Palos de la Frontera by José Luis Filpo Cabana (CC BY-SA 4.0); Bodega La Mezquita, Jerez by Jerónimo61 (CC BY-SA 4.0); Doñana National Park by Jose Luis Filpo Cabana (CC BY 3.0); Playa de Los Lances, Tarifa by Isiwal (CC BY-SA 4.0); La Caleta, Cádiz by Ymblanter (CC BY-SA 4.0); Alcázar de Jerez by Emilio J. Rodríguez Posada (CC BY-SA 2.0); Cabo de Trafalgar by Jon Agüera (CC BY-SA 3.0); Ensenada de Bolonia by Juan Vladimir Paraschuk (CC BY-SA 4.0); Port of Tarifa by Olivier Bruchez from Lausanne, Switzerland (CC BY-SA 2.0); El Rocío by isol (CC BY-SA 3.0); Marismas del Odiel by Felipe Moreno Baquero (CC BY-SA 3.0 es); Nerja, Costa del Sol by Tuxyso (CC BY-SA 3.0).