Laida beach

Laida is on the east bank of the estuary, in Ibarrangelu, right opposite Mundaka. At low tide the sand opens out to the estuary and at high tide the water is sheltered, which makes it comfortable with children. It has parking next to the Atxarre bar, and the Laida Kanoak canoes and boards set out from there. At low tide, the mouth of the estuary has currents: swim where the lifeguards indicate in summer.

What the beach is like

It is a fine-sand beach on the right bank of the Oka estuary, near its mouth. According to the bathing water profile from the Basque Water Agency, it is about 812 m long and 166 m wide on average, although its shape changes from year to year with the tides and currents. The difference between low and high tide is large: at low tide the sand surface is about 59,000 m² and at high tide it falls to about 38,000 m². The tidal range reaches almost five metres on spring tides, so it is worth checking the tide table before putting up the parasol.

The beach has two faces. The north part faces the open sea and takes the swell and the north-westerly wind; the south part is sheltered, inside the estuary, and there the tide rules. That inner area is the one families look for because of its calm water. In the channel between Laida and the Mundaka shore the tide creates strong currents, especially when it is rising, so it is not a good idea to swim across to the other side.

Services and rules

It is a semi-urban beach, with services run by the Bizkaia provincial council and with quality and environmental certificates. It is very busy in summer, and during the bathing season dogs are not allowed. The dunes at the back were regenerated from 1999 after losing a good part of their surface, and form part of the protected areas of the Urdaibai marshes: walk on the marked accesses and do not trample the vegetation.

The car park is next to the Atxarre café-bar, in the Antzora district, and fills early on hot days. The beach has cameras that the provincial council uses, among other things, to detect dangerous currents. Lifeguard cover is limited to the bathing season: outside it, swim with caution.

What to do at Laida

Besides swimming, Laida is the arrival point for the canoe descents down the estuary that start from Gautegiz Arteaga, and from its base you can hire paddleboards, canoes and kayaks by the hour or by the day. The Mundaka Barra Surf school gives its beginners' lessons there. For eating, the Atxarre bar is in the same car park, and on the other side of the estuary, in Mundaka, you have the walk to Santa Katalina and the Portuondo restaurant.

Getting there

By car, from Gernika follow the road on the east bank of the estuary towards Ibarrangelu and Elantxobe. From Mundaka, although the beach looks a step away, by car you have to go round the estuary via Gernika.