A kayak has one advantage over any boat: it is silent and it sits low. You are thirty centimetres above the water with no engine, so nothing down there notices you. With polarised sunglasses and a calm sea, the bottom looks like an aquarium.

Here is what you genuinely see around here, without the sales pitch.

What you will almost certainly see

Salema and bogue. Shoals of silvery fish crossing underneath you constantly, especially over the seagrass. Bread and butter.

Damselfish. Those clouds of small dark fish hovering above the rocks. At Tío Ximo and La Almadrava they are proper clouds.

Starfish and sea urchins on shallow rocky bottoms. Urchins are better looked at than stepped on — another reason for water shoes.

Posidonia seagrass. Not an animal, a plant — and the reason the water here is so clear. Those waving meadows are a protected habitat: try not to jab your paddle into them or anchor on top.

What you will see if you look properly

Cuttlefish and squid, mostly at dawn and dusk, along the edge between sand and rock. Their camouflage is ridiculous; look for movement, not colour.

Octopus, in cracks in the rock. The giveaway is the little pile of broken shells they leave at the front door.

Red mullet rooting in the sand, kicking up small clouds.

Rays and electric rays, buried in the sand of the coves. If you swim, shuffle your feet instead of stamping and they simply leave.

What you see now and then (the lottery)

Bottlenose dolphins. They are here, but further out and mostly early. The water around Benidorm Island is where most sightings happen. If you see them: do not chase, stop paddling and let them come.

Loggerhead turtle. Rare, but it happens. Usually resting on the surface.

Cormorants and Audouin's gulls on the cliffs of Serra Gelada. The Audouin's, with its red bill, is one of the most threatened gulls in the Mediterranean and it breeds here.

And what you do not want: jellyfish

In late summer, with an easterly wind, jellyfish can come inshore. The usual one is Pelagia noctiluca, small and purple. Quick advice:

  • Check the beach flag and warnings before you get in.
  • From the kayak there is no risk; swimming is where it matters.
  • If you get stung: seawater (never fresh), remove any remains without rubbing, then cold. No urine, and no vinegar by default.

To see more

Go out early, when the sea is flat and the sun is still low. Bring polarised sunglasses — they completely change what you see underwater — and a snorkel mask for the stops: here are the best snorkelling spots you can reach by paddle.

And go slowly. People who paddle hard arrive sooner and see half as much.

Fancy trying? We bring the kayak to wherever you say and collect it afterwards — tell us which day on the rental page.