Overview

Gulf Shores Beach is Alabama's premier beach destination, located on the Gulf of Mexico coast. It's Alabama's number one tourist destination with white sand and turquoise Gulf waters. The beach faces south and receives Gulf swells. The spot is popular for kitesurfing, surfing and water sports. Gulf Shores is a lively tourist town with hotels, restaurants, and the adjacent Gulf State Park. Kitesurfing is practiced mainly outside of regulated swimming zones. Wind conditions come primarily from the south and southeast.

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Spot forecast for Gulf Shores Beach

Sunrise 06:56 · Sunset 18:14

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< 7 kn7–12 kn13–20 kn21–30 kn31–40 kn41+ kn Gusts Your minimum: 7 kn

Forecasts provided by Open-Meteo

Swell and waves

Swell and tides over 8 days. Premium members see the swell and tides over 8 days. Without a subscription: 5 days.

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Wave height: < 0.5 m 0.5–1 m 1–2 m 2–3 m ≥ 3 m

Swell data by Open-Meteo Marine

Tides

Heights above lowest astronomical tide, in the spot's local time. Computed 0.4 km from the spot.

Tuesday 20 October High tide 02:57 · 0.6 m Low tide 03:50 · 0.6 m High tide 04:51 · 0.6 m Low tide 14:47 · 0.3 m
Wednesday 21 October High tide 06:17 · 0.5 m Low tide 13:45 · 0.3 m High tide 22:21 · 0.4 m
Thursday 22 October Low tide 00:51 · 0.4 m High tide 07:28 · 0.5 m Low tide 13:58 · 0.4 m High tide 20:09 · 0.5 m
Friday 23 October Low tide 02:09 · 0.4 m High tide 08:43 · 0.5 m Low tide 14:11 · 0.4 m High tide 20:11 · 0.5 m
Saturday 24 October Low tide 03:14 · 0.3 m High tide 12:52 · 0.5 m Low tide 14:08 · 0.5 m High tide 20:12 · 0.6 m

Gulf Shores Beach: when to go?

Rideable days and hours computed for a minimum wind of 7 knots · log in to set your own (foil, twin-tip…)

Season · peak

282h

in May · 29 rideable days

The season runs from March to July, peaking in May: 25 rideable days a month and 282 hours of usable wind, at 27 °C. The low point is December, at 11.5 days.

Rideable days per month

Wind strength when it is rideable

7-12 knots · 84%13-20 knots · 15%21-30 knots · 1%

When the spot works, wind sits mostly between 7 and 12 knots — 84% of rideable hours. Big-kite territory. The coldest month is January, at 14 °C. The wettest month is July, with 435 mm.

Monthly averages: Gulf Shores Beach

Monthly averages — Gulf Shores Beach — averaged over 2 years of records — Weather data by Open-Meteo.com — How it is calculated
Month	Rideable days	Usable wind	Temperature	Rain
January	13.5	115 h	14 °C	112 mm
February	13.5	110 h	18 °C	102 mm
March	20.5	184 h	21 °C	150 mm
April	27.0	272 h	24 °C	147 mm
May	29.0	282 h	28 °C	116 mm
June	27.5	229 h	30 °C	173 mm
July	19.0	135 h	31 °C	435 mm
August	17.0	109 h	31 °C	207 mm
September	18.5	123 h	29 °C	195 mm
October	14.5	113 h	26 °C	221 mm
November	14.0	116 h	22 °C	48 mm
December	11.5	80 h	17 °C	113 mm

Photo gallery of Gulf Shores Beach

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Technical details of Gulf Shores Beach spot

The spot works with winds from ENE, E, ESE, SE, SSE, S, SSW, SW, WSW, W.

Rideable Not rideable

Spot opening date · Required level

Spot opening date: Open all year round
Required level: Intermediate

On the water

Small Gulf of Mexico waves — generally less powerful than Atlantic swells. Light to moderate shore break. Sandy bottom (white quartz sand). Best conditions are in SE to SW side-shore to onshore winds. In calm weather, water can be very flat. Winter cold fronts bring strong north winds but offshore. Water is very warm in summer (82-86°F).

Hazards

Very busy swimming zone in summer — strictly respect regulated kite zones. Rip currents possible. Stingrays frequent — do the stingray shuffle. Jellyfish (including occasional Portuguese man-of-war). Bull sharks and hammerheads present in Gulf waters. Violent afternoon thunderstorms frequent in summer with lightning. Hurricanes possible June through November — monitor forecasts.

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Jack Edwards Airport5.1 kmsource noaa

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Additional stations

GW2193 GULF SHORES2.8 km

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BONSECOUR11.8 km

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Webcams near Gulf Shores Beach

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Nearby spots

All spots: Alabama

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Gulf Shores Beach kitesurf, wingfoil and windsurf spot