Overview
Les Culs Nuls is a long stretch of scalloped golden sand in Hossegor, known for world-class beachbreak tubes when it is on. It breaks over sand with lefts and rights, and the offshore trench helps focus swell onto this part of the coast.
Expect thick, heavy shorebreak barrels on solid days. When it is pumping, paddling is a lot of work.
When It Works
The spot is usable from 1.5 m / 5 ft to 3.7 m / 12 ft and likes west to northwest swell. The main season is October to February, covering autumn and winter.
It can also go flat during Atlantic flat spells, and the extreme French tides can change the sandbank quickly through the day.
Wind and Tide
The cleanest offshore wind direction is east-southeast. A workable wind window runs from east to southeast.
Low to mid tide works, and a rising tide is better. The tides can be extreme, so the same bank can change fast between morning and lunch.
Local Tips
This is an intermediate to expert spot, best suited to shortboards and guns. It gets busy, with a cosmopolitan crowd, though the size of the beachbreak can spread people out.
Bring humility and respect in the lineup. The locals surf well and know each other.
Watch out for heavy poundings and strong sideshore currents. Environmental quality can be very poor.
Access
Use the parking lot at Les Estagnots or park on the road in front of the peak you choose. Stick to the marked access trails, because the dunes are fragile ecosystems.
