Aiguades Beach

Les Aiguades is a small cove on the western side of the bay of Bejaia, a curve of pebbles and coarse sand enclosed by wooded limestone slopes with the cliffs of Cap Carbon rising beyond, and it is the swimming beach the city uses when it wants clear water rather than the long sandy strands east of town. The water is deep close in and unusually clear for a beach so near a port, and the name refers to springs that once supplied ships here. A few seasonal cafes operate in summer. The road down is steep and narrow and the cove fills completely on July and August weekends, when parking becomes the main problem.

What's there

• Clear deep water close to shore - the reason the cove is used.
• Wooded limestone slopes - the enclosure around the beach.
• Cap Carbon cliffs beyond - the headland seen from the water.
• Seasonal beach cafes - the summer operation above the pebbles.

When to go

June to September for swimming; the sea is cold outside that. Half a day. Weekday mornings are the only quiet times in high summer. Bring water and shade.

Before you go

It is pebbles, not sand, and shoes for the water help. It is packed in summer and litter builds up badly. The access road is steep, narrow and jammed at peak times. Facilities are seasonal and basic.

Nearby

Cap Carbon is above; Bejaia city lies east.