Hatainville

Les Moitiers-d'Allonne · Normandie · France

Today’s forecast: the current surf forecast for Hatainville (wave height, swell, wind, tide and a 0–10 rating for every hour of the next 16 days) are only shown on SurfCams. They change every hour, so this text doesn’t contain them. To check today’s surf, open https://surf-cams.com/spot/hatainville.

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Hatainville is the wild beach below the Hatainville (Baubigny) dunes, a protected site of about 400 hectares with dunes up to around 80 m, a few minutes north of Barneville-Carteret. It is an easy sandy beach break with short lefts and rights, good for learning, usually uncrowded, and a mobile surf school works here from a van. It takes westerly swell well, but Jersey starts to block the south-west, so straight west is the best angle, with north-west also working.

Level
Beginners
Break
Beach break, sand
Waves
Lefts and rights
Crowd
Quiet
Season
autumn, winter, spring
Boards
Foamies, longboards and mid-lengths.

When it works

✓ A W to WNW swell of 1–2 m with a light east wind, around mid tide.

When it doesn't

✕ A south-westerly swell, which Jersey blocks, onshore wind, or a small summer swell.

Watch out for

  • rips
  • currents

Best months

January, February, March, April, September, October, November, December

Local tips

Expect a soft, sometimes messy wave that works only some of the time; a solid west to north-west swell with offshore wind is what makes it worthwhile. Currents can be strong towards the Cap de Carteret, where a right breaks near the end of the road on swells of over a metre. Bring everything you need: there are no permanent beach buildings.

Getting there

Reach it from Les Moitiers-d'Allonne, about five minutes' drive north of Barneville-Carteret, then walk several minutes over the dunes to the beach; the GR223 coastal path crosses the dunes. VanaSurf, a mobile school, teaches and rents boards from its truck between March and November.

Travel notes

How often it works
Unreliable. Wannasurf says nearby Baubigny only 'sometimes breaks', because Jersey blocks swell from the south-west. It needs a solid west to north-west swell from far away and an offshore wind, so keep it for autumn and winter.
Crowd and vibe
Almost always empty. Wannasurf lists no crowd at weekends or on weekdays, and one commenter joked it is 'locals only' because nobody else surfs there. Apart from VanaSurf's lesson groups, you will usually have it to yourself.
Camping and vans
Camping Les Ronds Duval is in the dunes at the hamlet of Hatainville, about a 1 km walk from the beach. It has no pool but is well rated and dog-friendly. Barneville-Carteret, five minutes' drive south, has more choice. Nearest campsite about 1.5 km away.
Facilities
There are no buildings: just a car park about 100 m from the sand, no lifeguards, and VanaSurf teaching and renting boards from its van from March to November. Shops, cafés and restaurants are in Barneville-Carteret.
Water quality
Hatainville beach is not listed on its own in the ARS Normandie 2025 report. The nearest monitored sites, Baubigny to the north and the Carteret beaches to the south, were all rated excellent.

Ideal conditions

Swell
W–WNW best, SW–NW works
Size
1.1–2.2 m offshore swell; starts at 0.7 m, holds to 3 m
Period
7 s minimum, best from 11 s
Wind
Offshore ENE–ESE; handles onshore up to 12 km/h
Tide
mid best
Faces
W (262°)

Live cam

No cam at this spot yet: the forecast and the guide are on the map.

Nearby spots

All spots in Normandie · All spots

Sources