With early summer and the onset of long, bright days, come thoughts of the sea, big blue skies and the sounds, scents and sensory impressions of the ocean. This is an awakening of the spirit, a time of year when many travel across the continent to feel the sun on their skin and those of us lucky enough to live here enjoy the freedom of an outdoor lifestyle.
Lucky to have a beautiful stretch of sandy beach on our doorstep in Sotogrande, we head to the sea’s edge, beach clubs, the sunny marina and other outdoor activities, but sooner or later the lure of the region’s surfer’s paradise will also prove too strong to resist. In actual fact Tarifa, a little over half an hour from Sotogrande, is one of the leading international centres of surfing and kite-surfing, but many come here just to soak up the sun and the hippy chic atmosphere that pervades its beaches and quaint old town.
Situated just past Algeciras, where the Atlantic is about to meet the Mediterranean, this once sleepy little fishing village has become a favoured tourist spot 
with a laid-back surfer’s atmosphere all of its own. It is an ambience that you feel even in the pretty historic centre of town, with its cool eateries, nightspots and trendy boutique hotels, but head off to the newer part just west of the centre and the streets are lined with shops featuring brightly coloured walls and iconic hand-painted designs.
This local hippy’s strip features shops selling surfer’s gear, vegetarian cafés and cake shops, as well as typical Tarifa style boutiques that stock the town’s own brand of summer wear. Many of the fashion brands in question have grown up locally and now become international phenomena that you spot on the beaches of Spain, Brazil, Italy and even Australia. Home to kindred spirits from across Spain, Europe and beyond, Tarifa’s beautiful golden beaches and fantastic views to Morocco across clear blue seas, also draw a special kind of tourist.
Usually surprisingly well-heeled, the trendy chic surfers, hipsters and even celebrities that frequent its beach and kite-surfing scene like to spend their days at the laid-back, low-rise hotels bordering the beaches and their nights at groovy beach clubs-cum-open air bars where the atmosphere is as chilled as the ambient music. It’s the kind of place where you drink mojitos or caipirinhas while snacking on a vegetarian burger, where the hippy spirit lives on in a mix of Ibiza cool and the earthiness of the Moroccan Kasbahs. In short, Tarifa is a wonderful change of ambience just half an hour’s drive away.
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