01Atlantic lagoon
Dakhla
A large lagoon, strong trade winds and a choice of very different launch areas.
Go where
the wind is.
A practical guide to kitesurfing, from your first lesson to your next trip. With the riders and competitions worth getting to know.
Where to ride
The
wind board
Pick a month to see which trips are in their stronger season. Each row opens a full guide to launches, schools and safety.
Stronger seasons
Dakhla
Atlantic lagoon
Fuerteventura
Canary Islands
Mauritius
Indian OceanStronger seasonVariable
From the sources in each destination guide. Wind is never guaranteed.Learn & progress
Your rider's card
Four steps between your first lesson and riding on your own. Each stamp opens a guide. Most people go left to right.
Places with a reason to go
Postcards from
the lagoon
Different water, different seasons, different ways to ride. Find a place that suits where you are with your kiting.
01
02Canary Islands
Fuerteventura
Atlantic beaches and the tidal lagoon at Sotavento. Pick your spot carefully.
03Indian Ocean
Mauritius
Le Morne has a learning lagoon and serious reef breaks. They are not interchangeable.
Rider profile
JesseRichman
Maui waterman and big air pioneer, King of the Air winner in 2013 and 2020. A good place to start with one of the riders who shaped the sport.
- Home spot
- Maui
- Discipline
- Big air
- King of the Air
- 2×
The rest of the obsession
There's more
to it.
Get to know the equipment, the people and the competitions that make this sport so interesting.
01Equipment that suits your ridingGet the essentials straight before spending money.02Buying used? Look closely.Condition and compatibility matter more than a good-looking deal.03Make sense of the competitionBig air, freestyle, waves and racing aren't the same game.04What's on the calendarVerified event links and dates, without pretending the wind follows a schedule.
WHY KITESURFADDICT EXISTS
More useful time on the water
Kitesurfing gets interesting long before the first jump. There is the first lesson, the first proper ride, the day you stop walking back up the beach. Then you start looking at maps differently.
Kitesurfaddict helps you make the decisions around those moments: where to learn, what to practice, which equipment makes sense and where to go next. There is room for the riders and competitions that make you want another session, too.
Find your starting point
| Your next decision | Start here |
|---|---|
| I want to try kitesurfing | Understand the learning path |
| I am comparing schools | Choose your first lessons |
| I can get up, but it is inconsistent | Understand the waterstart |
| I keep losing ground | Work on riding upwind |
| I want to plan a trip | Explore spots and destinations |
| I am thinking about buying equipment | Build a sensible first setup |
Learn properly, then keep going
A first ride feels great. It is also one part of a bigger skill set. Kite control, recovery, stopping and reading a spot deserve the same attention as standing on the board.
The beginner guide explains that sequence. The progression guide helps you choose the next useful skill. Both support practical instruction. Reading a guide cannot assess the conditions in front of you or teach you how your exact safety system behaves.
Choose a trip for the riding you want
A famous destination can still be the wrong place for your level, your dates or the people travelling with you. Start with the kind of session you want, then look at the individual spots.
Dakhla, Fuerteventura and Mauritius are the first destinations in this guide. Each has its own planning questions. Within Fuerteventura, Sotavento shows why local wind, tides and access matter more than the postcard.
Follow the people and the sport
Different disciplines reward different abilities. A wave rider, a freestyle champion and a kite racer are doing very different things with a kite.
Meet riders worth knowing, understand how competitions work and check the event calendar. Results need a discipline and a season attached to them. So does any sensible discussion about the best riders.
What to expect from this guide
Practical explanations, named sources and clear limits. Equipment advice should explain suitability and compatibility. Spot advice should tell you what to check locally. Prices and event dates need a date of their own.
For a useful foundation, read the RNLI’s kitesurfing guidance and the IKO learning curriculum. Then find qualified instruction for the place you actually want to ride.