Kiteboarding in Curaçao: The Ultimate Guide for Visitors
Curaçao is a beautiful island in the Caribbean Sea that is known for it's stunning beaches, clear waters, and friendly people. Watersports are a popular pastime on the island. But did you know that Curaçao is also a great place to go Kiteboarding?
The island has perfect wind conditions for Kitesurfing during the windy season from January till July. Steady trade winds that blow from the northeast. You can expect winds ranging between 14 up to 22 knots during this period. Also, during the low wind season from August to December there are a lot of days with winds above 16 knots. This makes for smooth, predictable sailing, which is ideal for beginners and experienced riders alike.
Best Kiting Spot on Curacao: Kitebeach
Definitely the most popular location for Kitesurfing is Sint Joris Bay. On days with wind it is a pleasant coming and going of people who practice this sport. It is never too crowded as there is enough room to gear up your kite and the bay is spacious. In this safe predictable environment you can launch your kite in a relaxed way and sail around in this bay. The place where the kiters meet and hangout is called Kitebeach. You get there by driving to the Ostrich farm and then driving past the entrance towards the coast down a dirt road. The gate for Kitebeach can be found on the left (look for white gate). There is a "private" sign because the site is private property.
On days with enough wind, the gate is opened by the caretaker from 9am. Then the local kiteboard schools will be active with teaching. On days with no wind, the gate is locked. You can then walk to Kitespot via the coastline and go kiting if you want. There are no entrance fees for kiting at Kitebeach. There are some basic facilities such as beach beds, shaded areas and toilet. Your kite can be placed on the big artificial grass mats and you can walk on fine gravel placed on the shorefront. It's a good idea to bring water-shoes if you have sensitive feet.
What makes this spot special? Foreign visitors indicate that they feel safe in this spacious bay. Especially when they don't have much experience kiting. The wind is onshore and shoreline is sandy. The scenery over the hills is captivating and the water is warm. For more information visit: Kitebeachcuracao.com
Kiting on Klein Curacao
This uninhabited island named "Little Curacao" is located about 10 kilometers off the coast of Curaçao. It is a great place for medium to advanced kiteboarders who are looking adventure. You need to be able to kite upwind as the wind is off-shore. The water is crystal clear and turquoise blue, and the scenery is absolutely stunning. It's like a little tropical paradise on earth.
There is a long white sandy beach on the south side of the island. Also there are enough palapas where you can hide from the sun at noon. In front of the beach the water is pretty flat. On the east side there are waves. At times the waves there can get pretty high (when swells come from the ocean). This fun and play-full wavy part is for more advanced kitesurfers and especially the ones that like to experiment kiting on surfboards.
To get to the island you need to book a day-tour with one of the touroperators with daily trips to Klein Curacao. Most of those tours also include food and drinks in their package. We advise these packages because it's much more convenient than bringing your own food and drinks. The larger boats also have dinghys that bring the visitors to shore and these can come in handy when you would find yourself in trouble on the open sea. It's a good thing to communicate about the possibility of a pickup by the crew before you start kiting. They have experience with kiters and can keep an eye out for you. The wind is off shore so it's always best to have a backup plan. Local kiter Emanual who works on one of the charters going to Klein Curacao offers professional Kitesurfing Lessons at Klein Curacao.
Other spots and trips
Willibrordus at Banda Abou the west side of the island was a popular spot up to few years ago. There was someone there giving lessons (Captain Tjapko) who created his own kite club. Because of construction plans at this location the owners closed the gate to this area. At times you can spot Kitersurfers in the Spanish Water Bay. It's not a very popular spot for kitesurfing as there are a lot of motor boats in this bay. But still more advanced kite-surfers that like new experiences like to explore this big inland bay. Still it's a challenge to find good launching spots around its shoreline.
More in general, actually it's possible to kitesurf all along Curacao's southern coastline in its warm blue waters. But this is only something more advanced kite-boarders would take on as its challenging. Occasionally kite trips are organized by the local kite-schools that cover more distance. Last year an event was organized for kiters supporting a good cause. They kited from Klein Curacao to Mambo Beach. The event was a big succes as all the kiters came home safe. This kind of open water kiteboarding is always accompanied by a motor boat for rescues.
Kite Lessons
Curaçao is a great place to learn kiteboarding. The island has perfect wind conditions year-round, with steady trade winds that blow from the east. This makes for smooth, predictable sailing, which is ideal for beginners and experienced riders alike. There are several great kiteboarding schools on Curaçao that offer lessons for all levels. These schools have experienced instructors who can teach you the basics of kiteboarding in a safe and fun environment.
If you're a beginner, I recommend starting with lessons at a kiteboarding school. This is the best way to learn the basics of kiteboarding and to avoid any potential injuries. Once you have a good understanding of the basics, you can start practicing on your own. You can choose between 3 kiteboarding schools on the Island all located at Kitebeach in Sint Joris Bay: Nix Kiteschool, Gusty Kiting and Awa Salu Kiteboarding. These school offers lessons for beginners, intermediate, and advanced riders. Sint Joris Bay was perfect conditions for learning how to kite. You can walk upwind along its shoreline in safety. Just remember to wear water-shoes as broken seashells can be pointy.
Renting Gear or Bringing Your Own
Most airlines will charge something extra for luggage that exceeds normal dimensions. It would be best to check what the airline specifies in their communication when buying tickets. Wheater you can take along your gear without extra costs depends on the airline and ground opperator who checks you in from our experience. If you have yoyr stuff neatly packed in a kitebag you are more likely to pass without any extra payment. If you however choose to rent gear you can contact one of the kiteschools mentioned above. They rent out gear at affordable prices to visitors. A whole set (bar, board, pump, kite and vest) will cost you between $120 and $170 for a half days rent.
Safety
If you stick to the 3 more known sports you'll be all right as there's people around that know kiting and can help when you need it. Then you wander off into unknown and less safe spots take good care and study the conditions before launching your kite. The wind can de unpredictable because of hills around. Also most places have an offshore wind so it's best to have someone with a boat on watch. It's best for beginners to just stick to Kitebeach as their spot till they learn better control. Take a look at out general safety guidelines for more info about parking your car and "large fish".
Conclusion
In general kiters who visit the island are amazed at how great Curacao is for this sport. the conditions for learning how to kite are great. Curacao has warm sea water and e great steady wind flow. Also for more advanced riders the island has much to offer. A trip to Klein Curacao will become a memorable experience for sure. Be sure to check the wind before you book a trip to this small island. there's nothing more sour than arriving at this small paradise and not having any wind.
TIP
For those we are really into this sport and like to get to know different spots, we recommend an ABC tour. The islands Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao are located very close to each other. The average distance between the islands is about 90km. All 3 islands are part of the Dutch Kingdom and have their own unique kiting spots. A great adventure would be to explore all the spots on these island on your holiday in the sun. You can take a look at the flights rates of easy Air and Divi Divi Air to lookup prices for ravel between the island. Aruba has Grand Bay and ...spot, Bonaire has Kite beach and Curacao has Klein Curacao and Sint Joris bay as the best spots.
