The Biggest Mistake People Are Making When Choosing Where to Watch the 12 August Eclipse
- contact7910901
- Aug 6
- 10 min read
An astronomer’s guide to observing the eclipse from Costa Blanca and Costa Cálida
On the evening of 12 August 2026, the Moon will cover almost the entire Sun as seen from Costa Blanca and Costa Cálida.
It will be spectacular.
It will also be very easy to miss the most important part.
The reason is simple, but surprisingly many event organisers, hotels and tourism businesses are getting it wrong:
The Mediterranean coast faces east. The eclipse will happen low in the west.
That means the obvious choice — heading to a beach with a beautiful open view of the sea — may actually place you facing in completely the wrong direction.
From much of Costa Blanca and Costa Cálida, the sea lies to the east or south-east. But during maximum eclipse, the Sun will be extremely low above the western to north-western horizon, over the land, behind towns, buildings, hills and mountains.
A beautiful sea view does not necessarily mean a good eclipse view.
In fact, some apparently perfect coastal locations may be among the worst places to choose.
The Instituto Geográfico Nacional confirms that the eclipse will take place close to sunset and specifically warns observers to find a location with good visibility towards the west.
What Will Be Visible from Costa Blanca and Costa Cálida?
This region lies outside the narrow path of totality. The Sun will therefore not be completely covered here.
However, the eclipse will still be extraordinarily deep:
approximately 98% in the Cartagena area
more than 98% around Mar Menor
close to 99% around Torrevieja and southern Costa Blanca
approximately 99.1% around Alicante
The exact figure depends on your location.
In Cartagena, the partial eclipse begins at approximately 19:41, reaches maximum at around 20:36, and continues until sunset shortly after 21:00. At maximum, the Sun will be only around 4 degrees above the horizon.
Around Alicante, the eclipse begins at approximately 19:40 and reaches maximum at around 20:35, with about 99.1% of the solar disc covered.
Local timings vary slightly, but throughout the region the basic situation is the same:
Maximum eclipse happens when the Sun is only a few degrees above the western horizon.
Four degrees is extremely low.
For comparison, your fist held at arm’s length covers roughly ten degrees of sky. At maximum eclipse, the Sun may therefore be less than half a fist above the apparent horizon.
A modest hill, a row of apartments, trees, port equipment or even a nearby building can hide it completely.
Why “Go to the Beach” Is Bad Advice
For many astronomical events, a beach is an excellent observing location.
Not automatically for this one.
On an east-facing Mediterranean beach, the open sea is behind the wrong horizon. When you turn towards the eclipse, you may instead find:
apartment blocks;
hotels;
hills and mountains;
palm trees;
street lighting;
beach bars;
port infrastructure;
crowds standing directly in your line of sight.
This is particularly important in places such as:
La Zenia;
Cabo Roig;
Guardamar;
La Mata;
the eastern beaches of Torrevieja;
much of the Mar Menor shoreline;
many beaches around Cartagena.
These places are not necessarily impossible. But they are not good merely because they overlook the sea.
You must turn around and inspect what lies to the west.
That is the real test.
The Three-Minute Location Test
Before choosing your eclipse location, visit it in advance — ideally at approximately 20:30.
Then:
Face west to west-north-west.
Use a compass app to check the direction.
Look at the lowest five degrees above the horizon.
Identify every building, hill, tree or structure in that direction.
Ask whether the Sun could disappear behind those obstacles before maximum eclipse.
Do not merely check whether you can “see the sky”.
You need visibility right down to the horizon.
The official IGN eclipse visualiser can provide the eclipse time, solar altitude and solar azimuth for a chosen location. IGN has also added terrain-visibility information intended to show whether the Sun may be blocked by local topography.
A normal compass app is also useful. Augmented-reality sky apps can show where the Sun will appear from the exact point where you are standing.
Technology occasionally does something more useful than suggesting another dance video.
Locations Around Cartagena
Castillo de la Concepción
The elevated position makes Castillo de la Concepción one of the more promising locations in central Cartagena.
Its advantage is not simply the panorama. Height helps observers see over nearby buildings and some lower obstructions.
However, capacity will be limited, access may become crowded and not every point around the castle will offer the same western view. Arrive early and check the exact observation position rather than assuming that every terrace is suitable.
Plaza de las Fiestas de Carthagineses y Romanos
This is one of the strongest practical options in the city.
The large, open area offers more space than many narrow promenades and viewpoints, and it can accommodate larger numbers of people without everyone blocking one another.
The correct observation position within the plaza still matters. Choose the area with the clearest line of sight towards the western horizon and avoid placing yourself behind temporary structures, stages, trees or buildings.
La Azohía
La Azohía may offer good possibilities, particularly from open or elevated positions.
But this is exactly where people must avoid the “coast equals clear horizon” assumption. Depending on your precise position, the western view may intersect the surrounding terrain rather than open water.
Inspect the location beforehand. A difference of a few hundred metres can completely change whether the Sun remains visible until maximum eclipse.
Elevated countryside west of Cartagena
Open inland areas may outperform the coast, provided they offer:
a wide western view;
no nearby mountain ridge;
legal and safe access;
adequate parking without obstructing roads;
no fire risk or entry into protected or private land.
Do not stop on road shoulders or occupy agricultural access tracks. An excellent astronomical location becomes substantially less excellent when the Guardia Civil asks everyone to move halfway through the eclipse.
Locations Around Mar Menor
Mar Menor is geographically complicated for this eclipse.
Many popular beaches face east across the lagoon or east towards the Mediterranean. That can create a beautiful waterside atmosphere while providing no guarantee whatsoever of a clear western horizon.
Northern and initial sections of La Manga
The beginning of La Manga may offer some of the region’s strongest possibilities because observers can potentially find locations with greater openness and fewer immediate urban obstacles.
However, traffic is likely to be a major problem.
La Manga has limited road access, and huge numbers of visitors may attempt to enter or leave at similar times. Even an excellent viewing location is useless when you are still sitting in traffic at 20:30.
Anyone choosing La Manga should:
arrive several hours early;
carry water;
plan parking in advance;
avoid blocking emergency access;
expect a very slow departure after sunset.
Western edges and open areas around the lagoon
A view across water can help only when the water lies between you and the western horizon.
That means the side of the lagoon matters.
An east-facing beach with water in front of you may be pointing away from the eclipse. A location on the opposite side, looking west across part of the lagoon, may be much better.
Do not rely on the beach name. Check the actual direction.
Santiago de la Ribera and San Javier
Some open waterfront areas may provide partial lines of sight, but buildings, vegetation and the orientation of the shoreline can interfere.
The safest approach is to identify a spacious location and physically check the western view before eclipse day.
Locations Around Torrevieja and Southern Costa Blanca
This is where the orientation problem becomes especially important.
Many of the region’s best-known beaches face east or south-east. Watching from the promenade may mean that the sea is in front of you while the eclipsed Sun is behind the town.
Laguna Rosa de Torrevieja
The Pink Lake is potentially one of the most interesting options — but only from the correct side.
The lagoon can provide an open foreground towards the west from certain locations. From other points, the town, vegetation, terrain or restricted-access areas may interfere.
Important considerations:
access around the lagoon is not unrestricted;
some tracks may be unsuitable or prohibited;
parking may be extremely limited;
the best photographic location may not be the best astronomical location;
saltworks and protected areas must be respected.
Do not enter restricted areas or assume that every lakeside path is public.
A legally accessible point with the lagoon extending towards the west could be excellent. A point looking east across the pink water could be visually beautiful and astronomically useless.
Elevated areas west or north-west of Torrevieja
Open inland viewpoints may offer better western visibility than the city beaches.
Potentially useful areas include elevated, legally accessible locations towards the interior, away from dense coastal development.
The disadvantage is that distant hills become more important. A location may appear open but still lose the Sun early behind terrain on the western horizon.
Use the IGN eclipse visualiser and inspect the site in person.
Torrevieja harbour and open urban spaces
Some areas near the harbour may provide more space than the beaches, but their suitability will depend on whether buildings and port structures obstruct the western view.
The harbour should not be recommended as a blanket solution. The precise position is critical.
La Mata, La Zenia, Cabo Roig and Guardamar
These are attractive coastal locations, but they should not be advertised automatically as ideal eclipse sites.
At many points, the most open view is towards the eastern sea, while the eclipse takes place behind the developed coastline.
They may still work from:
elevated headlands;
open car parks;
wide plazas;
carefully selected inland-facing sections;
locations where the western horizon is visible between or above buildings.
But the standard beach itself may not.
Santa Pola
Santa Pola has a mixture of coastal, port and elevated terrain.
Some higher positions may offer better western views than the waterfront. However, surrounding relief and urban structures must be checked carefully.
Again, the correct question is not:
“Can I see the sea?”
It is:
“Can I see the western horizon at an altitude of only a few degrees?”
Places and Plans That May Fail
A beach chosen only because it is scenic
A magnificent sunrise beach may be facing in exactly the wrong direction.
A narrow street or promenade
Even when the Sun is initially visible, it may move behind buildings before maximum eclipse.
The bottom of a valley
The western ridge may cause an artificial sunset many minutes too early.
A viewpoint with mountains in the distance
Distance does not automatically solve the problem. A distant ridge can still block a Sun sitting only four degrees above the horizon.
Arriving at 20:00
By then, parking and roads may already be overwhelmed. The eclipse will have started, and you may have no time to assess whether the location works.
Relying on cloud cover alone
A perfectly clear sky is irrelevant when the Sun is behind a mountain.
Following an event description without checking its orientation
An organiser may advertise “open sea views”, “a beautiful sunset location” or “panoramic coastal observation”.
None of those phrases proves that the eclipse will be visible.
Ask specifically:
Is there a clear, unobstructed view towards the west-north-west at maximum eclipse?
How Early Should You Arrive?
For normal local locations, arrive at least two hours before maximum eclipse.
For popular places such as La Manga, major viewpoints, castles and central promenades, arriving three to four hours early may be sensible.
The partial phase begins around 19:40, so being settled before that allows you to experience the entire progression.
It also gives you time to move if your first location turns out to be unsuitable.
Do not count on changing location during the final 30 minutes. Traffic, crowds and parking restrictions may make that impossible.
How to Observe Safely
Because Costa Blanca and Costa Cálida are outside totality, certified solar protection must be used throughout the entire eclipse.
There is no moment here when it becomes safe to look directly at the Sun with the naked eye.
Use eclipse glasses compliant with ISO 12312-2.
Ordinary sunglasses are not safe, regardless of how dark they appear. Neither are:
smoked glass;
CDs;
photographic negatives;
welding glass of an unsuitable grade;
improvised plastic filters;
clouds.
Clouds are weather, not protective equipment.
The National Solar Observatory and IGN both emphasise that eye protection is required during all partial phases of a solar eclipse.
Check your glasses before use. Do not use them if the filter is scratched, punctured, detached or visibly damaged.
Children should be supervised closely.
Cameras, Phones, Binoculars and Telescopes
Never point binoculars, a telescope or a camera with an optical viewfinder at the Sun unless a proper solar filter is securely fitted over the front aperture.
Eclipse glasses worn over your eyes do not make it safe to look through unfiltered magnifying equipment.
The instrument concentrates sunlight and can cause immediate eye damage.
For phone photography:
place certified eclipse-filter material in front of the camera lens;
do not stare at the screen while accidentally looking past the phone at the Sun;
avoid long, continuous exposure that may overheat or damage the sensor;
take a few photographs, then watch the event properly.
A phone image will not reproduce what your eyes and brain experience as the light changes across the landscape.
What Changes Should You Look For?
Even without totality, an eclipse this deep should produce noticeable environmental changes.
As maximum approaches, watch for:
a gradual reduction in daylight;
unusual, silvery or muted colours;
sharper and stranger-looking shadows;
crescent-shaped projections beneath trees;
a possible drop in temperature;
changes in animal behaviour;
an atmosphere resembling neither normal daylight nor ordinary sunset.
Do not expect the middle of the night.
At 98–99% coverage, a narrow but intensely bright part of the Sun remains visible. The human eye adapts remarkably well, which is why the environment may remain brighter than people imagine.
Nevertheless, the quality of the light can become deeply unusual.
The difference between 99% and totality is physically enormous, but 99% is still a magnificent astronomical event. Refusing to observe it because it is not 100% would be rather like refusing a flight over the Alps because it does not land on Everest.
Why Watching from a Boat Can Solve the Problem
A boat is not automatically good merely because it is at sea.
The advantage comes from mobility.
A properly planned eclipse cruise can position the vessel so that observers have a clear line of sight towards the actual western horizon, away from:
apartment blocks;
hills;
port cranes;
trees;
crowded promenades;
fixed coastal obstacles.
The captain and astronomical team can select the vessel’s position and orientation according to the Sun’s location.
That is fundamentally different from standing on an east-facing beach and assuming the open Mediterranean must be where the eclipse occurs.
Our Solar Eclipse Cruises depart from:
Cartagena
Santiago de la Ribera
Torrevieja
They include live astronomical commentary, certified eclipse glasses, safe observing equipment, a welcome pack and a three-hour sunset cruise.
Most importantly, the observation plan has been designed around the actual geometry of the eclipse — not around the vague assumption that every beach must be suitable.
Our Final Advice
Do not choose your viewing location from photographs.
Do not choose it simply because it is famous, elevated or beside the sea.
Do not trust the phrase “perfect sunset view” without checking which sunset and which direction.
Instead:
check the west-north-west horizon;
verify the location in advance;
use the IGN eclipse visualiser;
arrive early;
bring certified eclipse glasses;
prepare a backup location;
avoid restricted land and unsafe parking;
keep watching the terrain, not only the weather forecast.
The eclipse itself is predictable to the second.
Whether a building, mountain or traffic jam blocks it is the part you must plan for.
On 12 August, thousands of people may gather on east-facing beaches and only then realise that the eclipsed Sun is behind them.
Make sure you are not one of them.
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