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Rule Dramatic Seascapes

Donostia / San Sebastián - Dramatic Seascapes - Spanish Coast & Islands

Donostia / San Sebastian, Basque Country, Spain

Dramatic coastal photography conditions - powerful waves combined with atmospheric drama and good visibility for seascape shots.

Currently

Real-time conditions
Wave Height3.9m
Swell Height2.9m
Wind Speed0.6m/s (calm conditions)
Cloud Cover100%

Upcoming Opportunities

When all conditions match, PhotoWeather marks an opportunity window.

Times shown in Europe/Madrid
coastal-drama weather icon
Next opportunity
Powerful Seascape at Sunset
Donostia / San Sebastián
Today · 18:00–20:00 · 2h window
Medium confidence
67%
🌊Coastal Drama Score79.6%
Wave Height: 3.8m
Swell Height: 2.8m
Wind Speed: 0.6m/s (calm conditions)
Cloud Cover: 100%
coastal-drama weather icon
Powerful Seascape at Sunrise
Donostia / San Sebastián
Tomorrow · 07:00–09:00
🌊Coastal Drama Score:77-91%
Medium
coastal-drama weather icon
Powerful Seascape
Donostia / San Sebastián
Tomorrow · 09:00–10:00
🌊Coastal Drama Score:80.5%
Medium
coastal-drama weather icon
Powerful Seascape
Donostia / San Sebastián
Tomorrow · 14:00–15:00
🌊Coastal Drama Score:75.1%
Medium
coastal-drama weather icon
Powerful Seascape
Donostia / San Sebastián
Tomorrow · 16:00–18:00
🌊Coastal Drama Score:80.3-80.4%
Medium
coastal-drama weather icon
Spectacular Seascape at Sunset
Donostia / San Sebastián
Tomorrow · 18:00–20:00
🌊Coastal Drama Score:84.9-88%
Medium
coastal-drama weather icon
Powerful Seascape at Sunrise
Donostia / San Sebastián
Tue, Feb 24 · 08:00–09:00
🌊Coastal Drama Score:81.8%
Medium
+7 more windows in the next 10 days

What this forecast looks for

Plain-language explanation from the rule

Spain's coastline encompasses extraordinary diversity—from the wild Atlantic Basque coast with its jagged cliffs and powerful swells to the volcanic Canary Islands' otherworldly black sand beaches. Each region offers distinct coastal drama shaped by geology and ocean forces.

San Juan de Gaztelugatxe in the Basque Country features a dramatic hermitage perched on a rocky islet connected by a winding stone bridge—a location made famous globally but timelessly photogenic during Atlantic storms. The Canary Islands' volcanic origins create stark black lava formations meeting turquoise waters, particularly spectacular along Lanzarote's Los Hervideros coastline and Tenerife's northern shores.

What makes Spanish coastal drama exceptional:

  • Basque cliff formations - Flysch rock layers create dramatic striped patterns along the coast
  • Volcanic meets ocean - Canary Islands' recent lava flows create stark black formations against Atlantic blue
  • Mediterranean sea caves - Costa Brava hidden coves and Mallorca's cathedral-like caves
  • Tidal range variation - Atlantic coast massive tidal swings reveal hidden rock formations

Best conditions vary by region: Basque coast storms peak October-February with dramatic wave action. Canary Islands offer year-round coastal drama with reliable conditions. Mediterranean coast provides summer clarity but winter storm opportunities. Always check tide times for foreground rock access.

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72-hour requirements breakdown

What passed or failed, hour by hour
16matching hours in the next 95 hoursJump to next match
AND logic: all conditions required
Meets requirement
Misses requirement
Time
Europe/Madrid
Coastal Drama Score
≥ 75.0%
Significant Wave Height
≥ 1.5m
Visibility
≥ 5000.0m
Wind Gusts
≤ 22.0m/s
Precipitation Chance
≤ 30.0%
Sat, Feb 21
20:0030%3.6m24135m1.2m/s0%
21:0028%3.5m24134m1.3m/s0%
22:0024%3.5m24135m1.4m/s0%
23:0027%3.5m24135m1.5m/s0%
Sun, Feb 22
24:0024%3.5m24135m1.5m/s0%
01:0024%3.4m24135m1.6m/s0%
02:0025%3.5m24135m1.6m/s0%
03:0031%3.6m24134m1.5m/s0%
04:0026%3.7m24135m1.5m/s0%
05:0030%3.7m24134m1.6m/s0%
06:0030%3.8m24135m1.5m/s0%
07:0074%3.3m24134m1.5m/s0%
08:0084%3.4m24134m1.6m/s0%
09:0077%3.5m24134m1.4m/s0%
10:0061%3.6m24135m0.9m/s0%
11:0068%3.6m24135m0.7m/s0%
12:0052%3.7m24135m0.7m/s0%
13:0052%3.5m24134m0.8m/s0%
14:0052%3.5m24135m1m/s0%
15:0052%3.5m24135m0.82m/s0%
16:0065%3.6m24135m0.64m/s0%
17:0065%3.6m24135m1.1m/s0%
18:0078%3.6m24135m1.3m/s0%
19:0080%3.8m24135m0.72m/s0%
20:0025%3.9m24134m0.71m/s0%
21:0025%3.9m24134m0.81m/s0%
22:0025%4m24135m0.92m/s0%
23:0027%4m24135m1m/s0%
Mon, Feb 23
24:0027%4.1m24135m0.81m/s0%
01:0029%4.1m24135m0.7m/s0%
02:0027%4.2m24135m1m/s0%
03:0029%4.3m24135m1.5m/s0%
04:0034%4.4m24135m1.4m/s0%
05:0031%4.4m24134m1.3m/s0%
06:0027%4.5m24135m1.2m/s0%
07:0077%4.6m24134m1.1m/s0%
08:0091%4.6m24135m1.4m/s0%
09:0081%4.6m24134m1.1m/s0%
10:0067%4.7m24135m1m/s0%
11:0073%4.7m24134m0.91m/s0%
12:0065%4.7m24134m0.91m/s0%
13:0065%4.7m24135m1m/s0%
14:0075%4.7m24134m1.2m/s0%
15:0068%4.7m24135m1.6m/s0%
16:0080%4.7m24135m1.9m/s0%
17:0080%4.6m24134m2m/s0%
18:0088%4.5m24134m1.3m/s0%
19:0085%4.5m24134m1.3m/s0%
20:0026%4.4m24135m1.6m/s0%
21:0027%4.3m24135m1.8m/s0%
22:0031%4.2m24135m2.3m/s0%
23:0031%4.1m24135m2.5m/s0%
Tue, Feb 24
24:0026%4m24134m2.7m/s0%
01:0027%4m24135m2.8m/s0%
02:0023%3.9m24134m3.8m/s0%
03:0027%3.8m24135m4.1m/s0%
04:0029%3.7m24135m4.2m/s0%
05:0023%3.8m24135m4.3m/s0%
06:0022%3.8m24135m4.7m/s0%
07:0064%3.8m24135m5.2m/s0%
08:0082%4m24134m5.3m/s0%
09:0079%4.3m24134m5.9m/s0%
10:0061%4.5m24135m6.7m/s0%
11:0053%4.7m24135m8m/s0%
12:0046%4.9m24134m7m/s0%
13:0052%5.2m24135m6.9m/s0%
14:0046%5.2m24134m7.4m/s0%
15:0043%5.3m24135m8.1m/s0%
16:0054%5.3m24135m7.2m/s0%
17:0054%5.3m24134m6.9m/s0%
18:0058%5.3m24135m4.7m/s0%
19:0063%5.3m24135m4.3m/s0%
20:0021%5.4m24134m4.4m/s0%
21:0018%5.4m24134m4.6m/s0%
22:0017%5.5m24134m4.7m/s0%
23:0017%5.7m24134m5.8m/s0%
Wed, Feb 25
24:0017%5.8m24134m5.7m/s0%
01:0018%5.9m24135m5.9m/s0%
02:0027%5.8m24135m4.6m/s0%
03:0030%5.6m24135m3.2m/s0%
04:0025%5.5m24135m1.9m/s0%
05:0025%5.4m24135m1.8m/s0%
06:0025%5.3m24135m1.7m/s0%
07:0072%5.2m24135m1.6m/s0%
08:0078%5.1m24135m1.9m/s3.3%
09:0080%5.1m24135m2.2m/s6.7%
10:0063%5.1m24135m2.5m/s10%
11:0061%4.9m24135m2.2m/s40%
12:0048%4.7m24135m1.9m/s70%
13:0049%4.6m24135m1.6m/s100%
14:0050%4.5m24135m1.5m/s83%
15:0056%4.3m24135m1.4m/s67%
16:0062%4.2m24135m1.3m/s50%
17:0067%4.2m24135m2.3m/s50%
18:0081%4m24135m3.4m/s50%
How to read: colored cells show whether each predicate requirement is met; highlighted rows mean the full rule matched (an opportunity).

What does Coastal Drama Score mean?

Inputs that drive the score

This derived score summarizes multiple raw weather signals. The table below shows the supporting inputs hour by hour, so you can see what's pushing the score up or down.

Time
Europe/Madrid
High Clouds
%
Low Clouds
%
Mid-Level Clouds
%
Primary Swell Height
m
Primary Wave Direction
°
Sea Salt AOD (550nm)
Solar Elevation
°
Total Cloud Coverage
%
Wind Direction
°
Wind Speed
m/s
Wind Wave Height
m
Wind Wave Period
s
Sun, Feb 22 Sunrise 07:55 Sunset 18:47
20:00
100% 0% 100% 2.9m 229° 0.007 -14° 100% 198° 0.56m/s 2.4m 13s
21:00
100% 0% 100% 3m 228° 0.007 -25° 100% 191° 0.9m/s 2.4m 13s
22:00
100% 0% 98% 3.1m 227° 0.006 -35° 100% 188° 1.1m/s 2.4m 13s
23:00
100% 0% 100% 3.2m 227° 0.005 -45° 100% 189° 1.1m/s 2.4m 14s
Mon, Feb 23 Sunrise 07:55 Sunset 18:47
24:00
100% 0% 95% 3.3m 227° 0.006 -52° 100% 180° 0.86m/s 2.4m 14s
01:00
94% 0% 86% 3.4m 227° 0.007 -56° 94% 180° 0.8m/s 2.3m 14s
02:00
100% 0% 100% 3.5m 228° 0.008 -56° 100% 173° 1.2m/s 2.4m 14s
03:00
94% 0% 89% 3.6m 229° 0.01 -50° 94% 167° 1.9m/s 2.4m 15s
04:00
43% 0% 64% 3.7m 230° 0.01 -42° 64% 167° 1.7m/s 2.4m 15s
05:00
60% 0% 5% 3.7m 230° 0.008 -32° 60% 159° 1.6m/s 2.4m 15s
06:00
9% 0% 2% 3.8m 230° 0.006 -21° 9% 158° 1.4m/s 2.4m 15s
07:00
5% 0% 0% 3.9m 230° 0.006 -11° 5% 151° 1.3m/s 2.4m 15s
08:00
13% 0% 0% 4m 230° 0.005 0.67° 13% 157° 1.7m/s 2.3m 15s
09:00
5% 0% 0% 4m 230° 0.006 11° 5% 155° 1.2m/s 2.2m 16s
10:00
5% 0% 0% 4.1m 230° 0.006 20° 5% 155° 0.72m/s 2.1m 16s
11:00
5% 0% 0% 4.1m 230° 0.008 28° 5% 66° 0.52m/s 2m 16s
12:00
18% 0% 0% 4.2m 230° 0.01 34° 18% 22° 1.2m/s 1.8m 16s
13:00
16% 0% 0% 4.2m 230° 0.01 37° 16% 22° 1.5m/s 1.6m 16s
14:00
30% 0% 3% 4.2m 229° 0.01 36° 30% 25° 1.7m/s 1.6m 16s
15:00
80% 0% 5% 4.2m 229° 0.02 32° 80% 33° 1.8m/s 1.6m 15s
16:00
78% 0% 5% 4.2m 228° 0.02 26° 78% 39° 1.8m/s 1.6m 15s
17:00
76% 0% 2% 4.2m 228° 0.02 17° 76% 39° 1.6m/s 1.7m 15s
18:00
100% 0% 5% 4.1m 228° 0.02 7.8° 100% 74° 1.3m/s 1.7m 15s
19:00
100% 0% 5% 4m 228° 0.01 -2.7° 100% 142° 1.5m/s 1.7m 15s
20:00
100% 0% 5% 3.9m 228° 0.01 -14° 100% 166° 1.9m/s 1.7m 15s
21:00
89% 0% 5% 3.9m 228° 0.01 -24° 89% 167° 2.2m/s 1.7m 15s
22:00
63% 0% 5% 3.8m 228° 0.008 -35° 63% 169° 2.5m/s 1.8m 14s
23:00
63% 0% 21% 3.6m 229° 0.006 -44° 63% 168° 2.7m/s 1.8m 14s
Tue, Feb 24 Sunrise 07:54 Sunset 18:48
24:00
78% 0% 100% 3.5m 229° 0.005 -52° 100% 166° 2.9m/s 1.9m 14s
01:00
88% 0% 82% 3.4m 229° 0.005 -56° 91% 165° 3m/s 1.9m 14s
02:00
98% 0% 5% 3.3m 230° - -55° 98% 168° 3.1m/s 1.9m 14s
03:00
61% 0% 5% 3.3m 230° - -50° 61% 170° 3.3m/s 1.9m 14s
04:00
52% 0% 5% 3.2m 231° - -42° 52% 169° 3.3m/s 1.9m 13s
05:00
100% 0% 5% 3m 231° - -32° 100% 168° 3.4m/s 2.2m 13s
06:00
100% 0% 74% 2.7m 231° - -21° 100% 166° 3.6m/s 2.5m 13s
07:00
100% 0% 100% 2.5m 230° - -10° 100% 165° 3.6m/s 2.8m 13s
08:00
66% 0% 90% 2.4m 202° - 0.92° 90% 166° 3.8m/s 3.2m 11s
09:00
14% 0% 16% 2.2m 174° - 11° 24% 165° 3.8m/s 3.6m 9.7s
10:00
85% 0% 5% 2m 146° - 20° 85% 164° 3.6m/s 4m 7.9s
11:00
95% 0% 5% 1.9m 156° - 28° 95% 166° 3.6m/s 4.2m 8.5s
12:00
14% 0% 5% 1.9m 165° - 34° 14% 172° 3.5m/s 4.4m 9s
13:00
22% 0% 2% 1.8m 174° - 37° 22% 169° 3.7m/s 4.6m 9.5s
14:00
12% 0% 5% 1.8m 180° - 37° 12% 166° 4m/s 4.8m 9.7s
15:00
8% 0% 3% 1.7m 186° - 33° 8% 168° 3.8m/s 4.9m 9.9s
16:00
13% 0% 0% 1.7m 192° - 26° 13% 165° 3.4m/s 5.1m 10s
17:00
0% 0% 0% 1.7m 194° - 18° 0% 159° 3.4m/s 5.1m 10s
18:00
0% 0% 0% 1.7m 195° - 0% 166° 3m/s 5.1m 10s
19:00
0% 0% 0% 1.6m 197° - -2.4° 0% 168° 3.4m/s 5.1m 10s
20:00
0% 0% 0% 1.2m 200° - -13° 0% 169° 3.5m/s 5.2m 11s
21:00
0% 0% 0% 0.81m 204° - -24° 0% 165° 3.6m/s 5.3m 11s
22:00
0% 0% 0% 0.4m 208° - -35° 0% 164° 3.7m/s 5.5m 11s
23:00
0% 0% 0% 0.33m 208° - -44° 0% 162° 3.8m/s 5.6m 11s
Wed, Feb 25 Sunrise 07:52 Sunset 18:50
24:00
0% 0% 0% 0.27m 208° - -52° 0% 164° 3.9m/s 5.8m 11s
01:00
0% 0% 0% 0.2m 207° - -56° 0% 167° 3.8m/s 5.9m 12s
02:00
33% 0% 31% 1.8m 207° - -55° 33% 159° 3.2m/s 4.6m 12s
03:00
67% 0% 62% 3.4m 207° - -50° 67% 152° 2.5m/s 3.3m 12s
04:00
100% 0% 93% 5.1m 206° - -41° 100% 145° 1.8m/s 2m 12s
05:00
100% 0% 75% 4.8m 207° - -32° 100% 142° 1.7m/s 2.3m 12s
06:00
100% 0% 57% 4.5m 208° - -21° 100% 139° 1.6m/s 2.5m 12s
07:00
100% 0% 39% 4.3m 208° - -10° 100% 137° 1.4m/s 2.8m 12s
08:00
74% 0% 59% 4.1m 214° - 1.2° 100% 206° 1.8m/s 2.4m 12s
09:00
48% 0% 80% 3.9m 219° - 11° 100% 275° 2.1m/s 2.1m 12s
10:00
22% 0% 100% 3.7m 224° - 21° 100% 344° 2.5m/s 1.8m 12s
11:00
48% 0% 98% 3.5m 225° - 29° 100% 259° 2.2m/s 1.4m 12s
12:00
74% 0% 97% 3.3m 226° - 35° 100% 174° 1.9m/s 1.1m 12s
13:00
100% 0% 95% 3.1m 227° - 38° 100% 89° 1.6m/s 0.76m 12s
14:00
67% 0% 78% 3m 226° - 37° 81% 154° 1.5m/s 0.83m 12s
15:00
33% 0% 60% 2.9m 225° - 33° 62% 219° 1.4m/s 0.9m 12s
16:00
0% 0% 43% 2.8m 225° - 27° 43% 284° 1.3m/s 0.97m 12s
17:00
21% 0% 41% 2.7m 222° - 18° 50% 290° 2.1m/s 0.92m 12s
18:00
42% 0% 39% 2.6m 220° - 8.3° 56% 297° 3m/s 0.87m 12s
19:00
63% 0% 37% 2.5m 217° - -2.2° 63% 304° 3.9m/s 0.82m 12s
How to read: these inputs help produce the derived score; they are not requirements by themselves.

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