Taking into account this etymological nuance we can now understand much better why in Spain we have Blue Flag beaches in Jaen, Extremadura, Alava or Madrid when none of these provinces and regions have a sea coast, but they do have water, rivers and reservoirs. In the case of Madrid, we are talking about the San Juan Reservoir where the Virgen de la Nueva beach is located in the municipality of San Martín de Valdeiglesias.
What is the Blue Flag?
There are still bathers who consider the blue flag as a state of the water, like the green or red, but no, the Blue Flag is a distinction that It emerged almost 40 years ago in France under the umbrella of the FEE (Foundation for Environmental Education).
Initially, it was an award for marinas and boats that distinguished “those who love and protect the marine environment”, which arrived in Spain in 1987 as an educational programme, also for beaches. It was this year that the European Commission supported the extension of the Blue Flag to the rest of European countries with the title: “Europe’s clean beaches and ports”.
In this sense, the intention of the European Commission at that time was to encourage compliance with the Community Bathing Water Quality Directive, creating in Spain for this purpose the ADEACthe Association for Environmental and Consumer Education.
Currently, there are almost 50 countries that develop the Blue Flag program, from Mexico to Japan. But Spain remains the Queen of the Blue Flags with 747 in 2024, including 638 beaches, including the San Juan Reservoir in Madrid.
The beaches of San Juan, the most refreshing blue of the Madrid summer
In the midst of Franco’s fever for swamps, the San Juan reservoir was created in 1955 between the Madrid municipalities of San Martín de Valdeiglesias and Pelayos de la Presa and the Avila municipalities of El Tiemblo and Cebreros. It collects the waters of the Alberche Rivera tributary of the Tagus that flows into the same at Talavera de la Reina, and the Cofio, a tributary of the Alberche.
With a surface area of 650 hectares and a storage capacity of 138 hm³, two important historical buildings are hidden beneath its waters, which were hidden by its construction: a medieval bridge of eight eyes that joined the two banks of the Alberche and the ruins of the original hermitage of the Virgen de la Nueva that gives its name to the main beach of San Juan, which has had the Blue Flag since 2018.
And it is that the 14 kilometers of beaches of the reservoir give a lot, especially considering that it is one of the few natural areas where bathing is permitted throughout the Community of Madrid: next to El Muro, the Alberche beach and the Virgen de la Nueva itself in San Juan, Las Presillas in Rascafría and Los Villares in the southeast of the Community.
El Muro Beach
It is the first leisure area you find once you cross the bridge over the Alberche River if you come from the capital on the M-501, which, in addition to having a name like a pair of jeans, is known as the Carretera de los Pantanos (Road to the Swamps) because it ends here. Here you will find the main port of the reservoir (yes, ports are not only maritime either) where the Royal Yacht Club of Madrid in 1961.
In reality, El Muro beach is two, one on each side of the wall of the reservoir from which it takes its name: due to the presence of boats and their size and characteristics, it cannot be said to be a beach paradise… but it is a beach. Well, two.
Shark Cove
If we continue along the 501 heading west we reach Cala Tiburón, the nudist of the reservoir, of small dimensions, but very loved by the people of Madrid who frequent it since there are not many more options for nudism in the Community. It is protected by the San Esteban Hilla suitable place for the hiking from which we will have good views of the entire reservoir.
The Helm Boat
On the northern shore of the reservoir there is a succession of coves that are less frequented due to their relative difficulty of access compared to those on the south. They originate in the area where The Cofio pours its waters into the reservoir. We can also access them by following a pathIn this case they are protected by the hill of the same name which is also frequented by fans of climbing.
Beach of the Virgin of the New
And now we come to the Blue Flag of the San Juan Reservoir, located at the western end of the reservoir. And it has this distinction because it meets, in the opinion of the ADEAC, the following: criteria necessary to receive it, particularly in relation to water quality, environmental management, the presence of services such as public toilets, easy and safe access, as well as information about the beach itself and its services, as well as nearby natural spaces.
In addition to typical beach activities such as swimming or relaxing, there are also sports and leisure activities such as wakeboard, flyboardwater skiing, etc. In principle you can go with your pets if they are well educated. And as for the parkingyou will have to get up early if you go during the high season: there will be beaches in Madrid, but there are few and there are many Madrilenians…
