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BEST KITES Cape Verde! |
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Our kite school is situated on eastern side of Sal Island. You will find us direct in kite beach, called as a "Shark bay". Or we are teaching infront of Novorizonte hotel in Santa Maria which is situated at the southern part of Sal Island.
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Main season at Cape Verde begins from 1st of December and lasts till 30th of April. (but you can find nice wind conditions here already from October till end of May) |
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BEST KITE SPOTS
BEST KITES is equiped with the latest equipment and a highly qualified team to assist you with any requests about kitesurfing.
Our motto is to offer customers the BEST service. Our team is highly qualified and the heart of the company and we take pride in what we do. Yo can be sure, you will be in the BEST hands with us! Highest level of knowledge, many years of experience and certification licence make us the BEST KITES company you can choose!
Our kite school specializes in teaching of all levels Kitesurfing from beginners to advanced.
To ensure that we continue to provide our clients with top quality equipment we get the latest equipment Every year. Equipment, which uses durable and safe materials.
Location of our kite school:
Sal which has been for many years called as one of the best Kite, Wind, and Surfing locations in the world is the place, where you'll find us! BEST KITES school is daily on kite beach (Shark bay). The island is home to varying conditions and spots which ensures that all levels of surfers will find what they want!
Bay of the kite beach is more than 3km long, with clear water and pure sandy beach without rocks or reefs. Wind is here partially on-shore to side on-shore at the end of the beach. So you will be safe, even if you are not a great kiter, or surfer!
Water temperature:21° – 24° during winter time.
BEST KITES SPOTS:
Bay of Santa Maria – infront of the hotels
Wind: partially off-shore, side on-shore (at the end of the bay), stable wind near the kite beach, more gusty at the end of the beach, wind is not so strong as on kite beach
Water: flat, chopy, great spot where to learn new kite tricks! No rocks and reefs. Good spot for beginners.
Attention: To ensure safety of people on the beach please do not walk with the kite in the air across the beach!
Kite beach - shark bay
Wind: more on-shore to side on-shore, stable strongest wind
Water: flat, chopy, wavy – depends on wind speed, kite beach is 3km long with no people around on the beach, perfect spot where to learn, enought space! Reefs are further in water – where waves are created.
Attention: please don't kite there alone at any time! Ensure that you have always somebody watching over you in case ove any trouble. Here are always higher waves than in Santa Maria beach.
Usefull informations: there is nothing on the beach except a small bar with drinks, so take some snack with you. Also there isn't any toilet. To get there, you will need a taxi which takes 10 to 15 minutes from Santa Maria center.
If you've got a kite course in our school, all the transfers from your hotel to kite beach are for free!
Extra informations regarding all spots:
- during winter time bring a short wetsuit. If you haven't got one you can rent it in our school!
- Wind from December to May: 9 to 15m/s, 18 to 30knots
- Wind forecast: www.windguru.cz
KITE SPOTS – perhaps the most important thing...
Cape Verde is a paradise for wind based sports. Everyone can find their top spot there. There are still waters, slightly choppy waves or wave territories. Whether you are a beginner, advanced, or an expert, everyone is welcome here...
The main kitesurfing season on the Cape Verde Islands is from November to April, when the wind speed is 10-15 km per second, unlike in the summertime. The wind is the strongest in February and March, April and May are excellent months, because there is a steady wind and a calm water surface.
The recommended kite size is between 9m and 12 m for a rider with an average weight.
On the eastern, windward coast you can find spots such as: Kite Beach (Shark bay), Cabessa (Dubel) and also some so far undiscovered spots in northern part of the east coast. The wind direction is mostly onshore to side onshore.
The South Coast offers pretty nice places for kitesurfing lovers and includes spots by the town of Santa Maria, where the wind turns to side - offshore wind, Lembje and the beach by the hotel Riu.
The West Coast is for all adrenalin lovers, there may be and usually are very high waves here. The direction of the wind is particularly offshore and main spots include: Fontona, Cural Joul, Ali Baba, Secret Spot, Monte Leo, Canoa, Calheta Funda, La Esquerda and the famous Ponta Preta!
Now we will describe the individual spots:
EAST COAST
The wind on the east coast is usually onshore to side - onshore, it turns to side - offshore by the Santa Maria town. The spots on this coast are generally safe and there aren´t same waves here as on the west side.
Kite Beach (Shark bay)
This place will probably never get rid of this name, but don´t worry, Shark Bay is the former name and it´s really just more of a name, then the presence of sharks. Here you can meet most of the kiters, who came to Cape Verde. It is a relatively safe kitesurfing spot, where the beginners, as well as advanced and experienced riders all find their little spot. This spot, depending on the wind strength, offers choppy to smaller waves. When the low tide comes, it´s not very deep here, so be careful. On the other hand, when the high tide comes, the waves are beautifully clean and you can really have some fun here.
Cabessa ( Dubel)
If you are looking for a little kitesurfing spot, with not that many kiters around, then head north of the Kite Beach to Cabesa. This place is protected by a mountain and therefore the wind is not so strong here, it is little more broken. However the waves here are smaller and cleaner. So you just need to decide...
SOUTH COAST
The Beaches of Lembje
The water at this beach is relatively flat with the shore side winds. However it´s little more complicated to launch and land a kite, because there are gusty winds at the beach and there are rocks at the entrance to the water. It is better to launch at the end of the beach in Santa Maria town and to rise up against the wind at this spot (possibly leave the Kite Beach).
Santa Maria
The beaches by the Santa Maria Town are nice and spacious. There are mainly side-offshore winds at the beginning of the beach and at the end (towards Pontao) there are side-onshore winds. The water is perfectly calm here, however the wind, because it´s blowing across the land, is rather gust and not as strong as on the Kite Beach. Please note you must watch out for swimmers and sunbathers here.
The Beach by the Riu hotel
Kiting on this beach is for rather advanced riders, who feel comfortable with the offshore winds, when kiting. The conditions for kitesurfing here are anywhere from calm surface to small waves. This spot is located near Ponta Preta. The winds are generally stronger here, then anywhere else on the island. It is good to launch the kite near the sand dunes (in front of the hotel). There is nothing around, so take some refreshments with you and also somebody, who can assist you with the kite´s launching and landing. Kiting zone is to the right of the yellow buoys (the zone to the left of the buoys is for ships only).
Other Spots on East Coast
There are also other places on the east coast, closer to the northern side of the island, still waiting to be discovered. If you´ll go further north along the beach, you will get to Serra Negra. There is a small island there and the starting point for entry into the water. Unfortunately, it is little far from the civilization. The upper part of the east coast isn´t yet occupied by kiters on grounds that 1) there is no civilization 2) there is a greater presence of sharks 3) not everyone feels like driving so far from the hotel every day... However if you want to go kitesurfing with no one around, you´ll have to drive to Pedra de Lume and then go south. Here you can find the deserted place, that´s right for you.
WEST COAST
This is a kitesurfing paradise for experienced riders, experts and the adrenaline lovers. The waves 2 to 6 m tall are bound to awaken the adrenalin in everyone! This place isn´t suitable for learning kitesurfing, there are mostly offshore winds here. You need to be careful here. Large sets of waves can come in at an unexpected moment!
Fontona
Fontona is a small bay, almost safe and it is a good starting point for exploring other places on the west coast. This is the only place in the area, where you can board the kite on the beach. Nevertheless you should head to Cural Joul from here, which is to the left downwind and that way Fontona will become a good starting point for you.
Cural Joul
When the great swell comes, the Cural Joul probably becomes the scariest place on the island for the inexperienced riders. You´ll rarely see anyone riding, unless they need to shoot some video, or obtain a few extreme shots! But when the waves are smaller, then this is the first place, where you can ride them. The safe direction is coming from northwest. If you want to ride at this place, you can come either from the windward side of Ali Baba, or downwind from a safe Fontona Bay. If you head over there, you better bring some spare gear, because you never know.
Ali Baba
Ali Baba, along with Ponta Preta is one of the best spots for waves on Cape Verde. If you´re lucky enough, you will experience the best ride of your life! The waves are very long here and if you you´re not sure you can handle it, you´d better just enjoy the view and pick a different spot.
The Secret Spot
This is one of those spots, same as the Cural Joul, where you can ride the waves, when the swell comes from northwest. However unlike the Cural Joul, this place is safe. There are regular waves here and this place serves as a backup location for the PWA competition in case the Ponta Preta location doesn´t work. And many people don´t even know this spot yet.
Monte Leo
First and foremost be prepared to sahre this spot with the surfers. However this place is a great place for a free ride on flat, crystal clear water. There are beautiful beaches, empty and protected from the wind and it´s also a good place for snorkeling.
Canoa
Since people discovered this spot, more and more experienced riders come here to start riding the big waves. What makes this spot so interesting is the fact, that the wind is usually stronger here than in other locations and the waves aren´t so strong (although they are high sometimes). However the waves are relatively safe here. The waves are long and come from the left and don´t break too quickly. There´s also a small beach, where you can start, which you´ll surely appreciate.
Calheta Funda
You can catch really good waves here and moreover this spot is not so crowded. Oftentimes people go to Canoa, where there´s an easier access to the water. You get in from a nice sandy beach, far enough from the waves. The waves are fast here, so this is a good place for jumping.
La Esquerda
La Esquerda is one of the places with the most powerful waves and is generally regarded as the Pipeline of the Atlantic. As far as riding at La Esquerda, you´ll need to catch a big wave and the southeast wind, which is pretty rare here. To ride this wave, you´ll need to start at Ponta Preta and ride against the wind.
Ponta Preta
Ponta Preta is one of the most acclaimed and most famous wave spots in the world and it is located right on Cape Verde. The waves here are perfect compared to Ali Baba, or Cural Joul and it´s only a 10 minute drive from Santa Maria. This is a beautiful kite surfing territory, but this place also provokes a great respect.
