What's on in Tarifa, Spain through the year

Busy — Christmas holidays in Spain, school holidays in 6 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in January.

Still on: Out of season on the strait (1 Nov – 28 Feb)

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

• Nature

  Spring raptor migration

  15 Feb – 15 May · usuallyBirdlife season

  Millions of birds cross here because it is the narrowest point of the strait. Storks and honey buzzards come north from late February, and on a good morning the sky above Cazalla is full of them.

Still on: Out of season on the strait (1 Nov – 28 Feb)

Busy — Semana Santa (Easter) holidays in Spain, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in March.

Still on: Spring raptor migration (15 Feb – 15 May (usually))

Busy — Semana Santa (Easter) holidays in Spain, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

• Nature

  Whale and dolphin season

  1 Apr – 15 Oct · usuallyWhale season

  Pilot whales and three dolphin species are resident in the strait through the season, with sperm whales passing. Boats go from the harbour and turn back when the levante is up.

Still on: Spring raptor migration (15 Feb – 15 May (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

• Season

  Levante season

  15 May – 30 Sep · usuallyWind seasonRisk

  The easterly funnels through the strait for days at a time and is why every kite and windsurf school in Spain is here. It also makes the beach unusable for anyone lying on it.

Still on: Spring raptor migration (15 Feb – 15 May (usually)), Whale and dolphin season (1 Apr – 15 Oct (usually))

Busy — Summer holidays in Spain, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in June.

Still on: Whale and dolphin season (1 Apr – 15 Oct (usually)), Levante season (15 May – 30 Sep (usually))

Peak crowds — travelers describe it as peak season, Summer holidays in Spain

• Nature

  Orcas follow the tuna

  1 Jul – 31 AugWhale season

  Iberian orcas come into the strait in July and August behind the bluefin tuna migration and work alongside the hand-line boats. Two months only, and the reason the summer trips book out.

Still on: Whale and dolphin season (1 Apr – 15 Oct (usually)), Levante season (15 May – 30 Sep (usually))

Busy — Summer holidays in Spain, school holidays in 6 of the markets that fill it

• Nature

  Autumn raptor migration

  15 Aug – 31 Oct · usuallyBirdlife season

  The bigger of the two passages: honey buzzards in late August, then booted eagles, black kites and storks streaming south through September from the observatories above town.

Still on: Whale and dolphin season (1 Apr – 15 Oct (usually)), Levante season (15 May – 30 Sep (usually)), Orcas follow the tuna (1 Jul – 31 Aug)

Peak crowds — Feria de Nuestra Senora de la Luz, Summer holidays in Spain

• Festival

  Feria de Nuestra Senora de la Luz

  1–10 Sep · usuallyMajor festivalCrowded

  The town's own week at the start of September: a fairground, horses through the old walls and a week when Tarifa belongs to Tarifenos rather than to the kite crowd. Source ↗

Still on: Whale and dolphin season (1 Apr – 15 Oct (usually)), Levante season (15 May – 30 Sep (usually)), Autumn raptor migration (15 Aug – 31 Oct (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in October.

Still on: Whale and dolphin season (1 Apr – 15 Oct (usually)), Autumn raptor migration (15 Aug – 31 Oct (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

• Season

  Out of season on the strait

  1 Nov – 28 FebOff-season shutdownClosures

  Most of the beach camps and half the town close, and Atlantic fronts push through with the poniente. The Morocco ferry keeps going and the old town stays open for the people who live in it.

Busy — Christmas holidays in Spain, school holidays in 6 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in December.

Still on: Out of season on the strait (1 Nov – 28 Feb)