This is a pre-passage source and decision desk, not a current forecast or clearance to depart. The map is centred approximately on the area, not on your route or a forecast-zone boundary.
Separate the open-water leg from island lee and the arrival coast. Compare wind-sea direction with any longer-period swell; a sheltered departure harbour does not describe the next headland.
1. Primary sources
Open current bulletins and warnings for every sea area on the route. These links are starting points, not a promise that each covers the whole location; if unsure, identify the issuer through WMO–IMO.
2. Route and local effects
Check sea and swell for the inter-island leg and arrival bay.
Ibiza–Formentera day legs are short but pass open water and exposed anchorage approaches.
Compare the AEMET Balearic forecast with the arrival-side wind and swell; review the timing of any sea-breeze change rather than extrapolating a morning harbour reading.
How to use this source set
Start with the warning, then the marine text for the exact named area. If the route crosses a zone boundary, obtain both bulletins. Note issue and valid times, wind units and the meaning of wave height. Where a link opens an agency portal, navigate to its current marine product; a homepage is not itself a forecast.
Compare with an exposed station or buoy if available. Check its position and observation time: a sheltered station does not overturn a warning for an open channel. If a bulletin is missing or stale, identify the issuing service via WMO–IMO and defer the decision until current information is available.
Before-passage check
- Mark departure, exposed legs, arrival and feasible diversions; find the responsible named marine areas for each.
- Check warnings, issue and valid times; assess conditions when you expect to reach each leg, not only at departure.
- Compare wind and gusts, waves and swell, visibility, thunderstorms and local effects; do not infer a strait from a sheltered harbour.
- Compare recent observations where available, noting their time and exposure; a mismatch calls for another check.
- Set the next bulletin check, a reassessment trigger, an alternative and a backup communication channel.
Model map — optional
Windy is a third-party model display, not the issuer of official warnings. Choose a layer and check its valid hour and model run. Nothing loads until you click.
Without JavaScript, open the map separately.
If connectivity fails
Before departure, save the current official text bulletin and warning with issue time. Arrange another way to receive updates, such as an appropriate coastal broadcast, NAVTEX or satellite channel. A saved map cannot replace new warnings.
How to choose weather tools · All sailing areas
Scope: Source list assembled 25 September 2026; check its freshness and coverage before use. This public area guide is not a current personalised forecast, navigational notice service or safety verdict. Personalised forecasts with AI and experts are in closed testing; public booking is not open. The skipper makes the decision.
A short island hop still has three sea questions
Separate departure-side shelter on Ibiza, the open inter-island leg and the Formentera arrival coast. Use the AEMET Balearic marine product rather than a resort forecast, checking the named coastal area and any relevant offshore part. The route's short distance is not evidence that its wind and swell orientations remain unchanged throughout the day. Do not present a map centre as a navigational track through shallow or restricted waters.
- AEMET Balearic coastal forecast — Balearic coastal product; text and map validity differ
Compare the bay at arrival and overnight
For a planned visit or overnight stay, examine the direction from which swell reaches the coast at both arrival and the following valid hour. Reduced wind in a bay does not prove reduced swell at its entrance. Use a representative Portus record if available and label measured versus predicted data. Avoid importing a summer sea-breeze assumption into a day controlled by a different synoptic situation.
- Puertos del Estado oceanography / Portus — Buoy, gauge, radar and model services; select representative available station Direct product verification is limited; obtain the current issue from the issuer.
- AEMET Balearic coastal forecast
The return is an explicit option
Before extending time ashore, recompute the Ibiza return ETA and review the current bulletin. Compare returning as planned, shortening the visit and an independently verified overnight alternative. A destination that was sheltered on arrival may be less suitable for leaving after a shift. Harbour, reserve and anchoring rules are separate current checks; this page does not establish a permissive anchorage or guarantee access.
Editorial review of this material: 27 September 2026. This date concerns the page content; check current forecast issue times and validity at the original sources.
- Spain
Balearics, mainland coasts and Canary ocean departures need different source sets.