Playa Lebeche in La Manga del Mar Menor

A 1.7-kilometre-long Mar Menor beach with soft golden sand

Playa Lebeche is one of a series of narrow beaches fringing the central area of La Manga on the Mar Menor side and runs for 1,700 meters between kilometres 5 and 6.5 .

As is typical of many of the Mar Menor beaches in this section of La Manga, it’s narrow - an average of only 10 metres wide - and as a result of this and the proximity of built-up areas it has high occupancy levels. However, the beach consists of fine sand and there is a pleasant view out to Isla Grosa, making it very popular in summer.

Services include toilets, telephones, beach cleaning, bins, wooden walkways, beach bars ("chiringuitos"), lounger and sunshade hire and disabled access. There are also plenty of bars, shops and restaurants nearby.

Access: a bus service runs right along the length of La Manga del Mar Menor throughout the day, and several stops give access to Playa Lebeche. Parking is available in the urban areas which back onto the beach but it can be more difficult than for other beaches in La Manga.

Safety precautions for bathers

Most Mar Menor beaches have very gently sloping shelves, enabling bathers to walk a considerable distance from the shore and still only be waist high in the water. These shore fringes are also very warm, noticeably more so than the deeper waters on the Mediterranean coastline.

Many are protected by netting to exclude jellyfish. This creates safe bathing areas for families but also leads to a situation which can be life threatening: elderly bathers should be wary of bathing alone as every year there are unnecessary deaths when bathers suffer a heart attack, stroke, faint or have a dizzy spell of some sort while nobody else is aware that this has happened.

If you have a medical condition, are taking medication, or are of advanced age, don´t bathe alone no matter how shallow and calm the water is.

And for all ages, a red flag means DO NOT BATHE.

Click to see an overview of the beaches in San Javier, or to go to the home page of San Javier Today for more local news, events and other information.