Playa del Confital: The best kept Surf Secret on Gran Canaria

Summer is in full swing. This week I’ll take you away with me into the land of powerful, right-breaking waves, but also afternoons full of bliss and laughter. Ready for a Thrill? Let’s get to Playa del Confital!

As you might already know from my last article about the most popular surf spot there, Gran Canaria is one of the most underrated surf destinations in Europe. But even though it hasn’t developed a surf infrastructure to speak of, yet, you will indeed find an international surf crowd, especially on the beaches round Las Palmas. And if you really wanna watch some pro-stuff, you don’t even have to go far from there: Pretty close to the island’s capital you’ll find the best kept surf secret on the island, Playa de Confital!

Hop on and enjoy the Ride – to Gran Canarias Surf Secret!

The road down to beach already is a small adventure for itself and you’ll really need nerves in case you’re only used to drive on pavement. The gravel road leading to the beach in serpentines is windy and narrow and in some sections you start to wonder whether two cars could actually pass. Also, there is a respectable amount of serious potholes you don’t wanna hit in high gear. But when you finally get a full view of this natural beach on La Isletta Peninsula you’ll know: It’s totally worth it, even when you’re not a surfer! Playa del Confital is a great place to just hang out, meet family and friends, get tanned on the smooth and flat rocks or do a work out on your yoga mat along the nice boardwalk by the beach. And at low tide you’ll be able to simply hop in the water to go for a swim – great view towards Las Palmas and its city beach Playa de las Canteras included!

Also, del Confital is even a great spot for snorkeling and diving – but again only at low tide: With the tide coming in you don’t want to be in the water – other than on top of your surf board! Towards high tide the water keeps pushing in with intimidating force and even watching those rollers crush on the rocks is a fun and thrilling thing to do. For those of you who come here as skilled surfers, however, you might have the ride of your life. Just sitting by the water for about two hours, I watched a long row of smaller barrel rides spanning the whole distance of the bay. The sheer strength of this right-break will push you up over the lip and straight to heaven – when you know what to do with it.

My piece of advice for surfing la Confital

Before you hop on and into your adventure, make sure you get to know this spot really well: Just like anywhere on the Canaries there is always hidden rocks underneath the surface and del Confital is no exception. You’ll find several huge ones right in the middle of everything, where the wave is breaking, looming beneath the surface. Also, there are some really serious currents sucking you out and underneath. To get in and paddle out you start from the left side of the left part of la Confital. Make sure you’re not getting pushed towards the cliffs on your left and do a couple of swift strokes so that you end up left of the break. Then you can get behind the waves and into the lineup on the right. Also, make sure you’re not in the way of any of the local guys there and that you’ll be able to catch the wave you’re aiming for: Surfing here is nothing like at West Coast and can be extremely competitive. Your best bet is anyways to get friendly with the locals: They simply know best!