Tardinghen – Le Châtelet

Tardinghen · Hauts-de-France · France

Today’s forecast: the current surf forecast for Tardinghen – Le Châtelet (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/tardinghen.

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Tardinghen's beach, below the hamlet of Le Châtelet and the Dunes du Châtelet, is the quiet south-western end of Wissant Bay, with Cap Gris-Nez to the west. It is a sandy beach break with several peaks of lefts and rights. The waves are usually soft and a bit sloppy, but they can line up well when a low-pressure system sends in a westerly swell. It is much quieter than Wissant, with almost nobody in the water and a fine view of the cliffs.

Level
Beginners
Break
Beach break, sand
Waves
Lefts and rights
Crowd
Quiet
Season
autumn, winter
Boards
Longboards and mid-lengths; a shortboard on the better westerly swells.

When it works

✓ A W swell from a passing low with a light S to SSE wind, from high tide down to mid tide.

When it doesn't

✕ Strong onshore westerlies or north-westerlies, flat summer high pressure, or a small swell that Cap Gris-Nez blocks.

Watch out for

  • currents

Best months

January, February, March, October, November, December

Local tips

Surf the falling tide: a local report says it works from high tide down towards low. Check the different peaks along the beach, because the banks vary. If it is too small, Wissant, further up the bay, usually has a little more swell. The tidal current along the bay is strong in a big swell.

Getting there

From Wissant follow the D940 coast road towards Boulogne. In Tardinghen turn right into the dead-end road to Le Châtelet and follow it to the end, then cross the dunes on the marked path. The dunes are protected, so stay on the paths.

Travel notes

How often it works
One of the more reliable spots on this coast in winter. Surf-forecast calls it fairly consistent and picks December as the best month, with clean waves about one day in twenty and blown-out seas far more often. Summer is mostly flat.
Crowd and vibe
Empty on weekdays and at weekends, according to wannasurf. It is a calm, scenic place to surf away from the Wissant crowd.
Camping and vans
There is no campsite at Le Châtelet. Camping Municipal La Source in Wissant is the nearest, and the small Camping Municipal du Gris-Nez in Audinghen is a few kilometres west. Nearest campsite about 1.5 km away.
Facilities
No services at the beach. Shops, cafés and the École de Surf du Nord are in Wissant, a few minutes away by car.
Water quality
Some of the cleanest water on this coast. The ARS rated Tardinghen Le Châtelet excellent for 2025, as it was every year from 2015 to 2020, and good from 2021 to 2024.

Ideal conditions

Swell
W–NW best, WSW–N works
Size
1.3–2.5 m offshore swell; starts at 1 m, holds to 3.5 m
Period
6 s minimum, best from 9 s
Wind
Offshore SE–S; handles onshore up to 12 km/h
Tide
mid best, on the falling tide
Faces
NNW (335°)

Live cam

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

Nearby spots

All spots in Hauts-de-France · All spots

Sources