Kite,first.
The discipline we've put the most saltwater into. Honest reviews of kites, boards, bars and harnesses; slow-cooked spot guides; the occasional opinion about wind you can't schedule.
200+
days on the water
42
pieces of kit reviewed
24
spots on the atlas
2026
gear year covered
18 kts NW,
glassy inside.
Kite.
First.
Because it's the discipline that taught us patience. You can't schedule a kite session — the wind decides.
Everything else, including this site, follows the same rhythm. Thermals arrive when they arrive; we write what lands when it lands.
200+
Days on the water last season
42
Pieces of kit reviewed in 2025
24
Global spots mapped in detail
09
Countries in the kite atlas
“The first time the bar lit up and the kite pulled me onto a plane, I forgot to be terrified for about four seconds. Then I remembered. Then I went back the next day.”
— Field log, May 2024
Tell us about you.
We'll tell you what to buy.
Seven questions. A ranked quiver, top kite matches from our 211-product database, a board recommendation. Forty-five seconds of your time.
Every board, bar,
bladder & buckle.
Forty-two pieces of kit under review right now. Organised by category, each with a buying guide, pros, cons and a link to the retailers we trust.
- № 0112 reviewed
Kites
Freeride all-rounders, big-air bombers, foil specialists, beginner-friendly delta hybrids. Reviewed honestly and re-tested each season.
Explore category - № 028 reviewed
Boards
Explore category - № 035 reviewed
Bars
Explore category - № 046 reviewed
Harnesses
Explore category - № 0511 reviewed
Accessories
Explore category
The world,
from a launching beach.
Our running atlas of the best places on earth to fly a kite. Ridden, fact-checked and written with seasons, wind windows, local etiquette and the one patch of reef you do not want to land on.
- Nº 0102°47′S · 40°30′W🇧🇷Flat-water meccaBrazil · Ceará
Jericoacoara
E · 18–28Wind18–28 ktsSeasonJul — FebLevelAll levelsThe place every kiter should ride once. Bulletproof trade winds, warm water, flat lagoons and a donkey walking past your unrigged kite.
- Nº 0233°48′S · 18°28′E🇿🇦Big-air capitalSouth Africa · Blouberg / Table Bay
Cape Town
SE · 20–40Wind20–40 ktsSeasonNov — FebLevelAdvancedThe Cape Doctor is not a joke. Thirty-knot averages, big-air capital of the sport, Table Mountain watching you like a referee.
- Nº 0336°00′N · 05°36′W🇪🇸Europe's windiestSpain · Andalucía
Tarifa
E/W · 18–35Wind18–35 ktsSeasonApr — OctLevelIntermediate → AdvancedEurope's windiest town. Two dominant winds — Levante (east) and Poniente (west) — and a culture that genuinely schedules life around the forecast.
- Nº 0423°42′N · 15°56′W🇲🇦Desert-lagoonMorocco · Western Sahara
Dakhla
N/NE · 15–25Wind15–25 ktsSeasonMar — NovLevelAll levelsA 40-kilometre lagoon pinned between desert and Atlantic. Steady thermals from morning to dusk, impossibly flat water, zero crowds.
- Nº 0552°50′N · 05°15′E🇳🇱Freshwater flatNetherlands · Friesland
IJsselmeer
SW · 12–28Wind12–28 ktsSeasonApr — SepLevelBeginner → IntermediateThe world's biggest flat-water playground. Freshwater, waist-deep, fifteen schools sharing it — and the cleanest downwinders in Northern Europe.
- Nº 0637°06′N · 25°22′E🇬🇷Meltemi bullseyeGreece · Cyclades
Naxos
N · 18–32Wind18–32 ktsSeasonJun — SepLevelIntermediateThe Meltemi earns its reputation. Laser-north winds, crystalline Aegean water and a beach culture that still closes at 3pm for a proper lunch.
Eighteen more spots in the atlas — from Cumbuco to Le Morne, Mui Né to Tarifa's neighbouring Los Lances. And a detailed guide to our home break in Cyprus, where most of this writing is rigged.
Reviews, diaries,
the occasional argument.
Best-of · 2026The five kites worth learning on
We taught three people on two of these. Here's what stuck, what we sold, and what we'd buy again.
- 01Guide
How to choose your first kite size
An essay on weight, wind, conservatism and the temptation to overbuy.
11 Apr 20267 min read - 02Review · Kites
Duotone Evo D/Lab — a full season, honestly
Forty-one sessions. One pinhole patched. What the D/Lab treatment changes, honestly.
02 Apr 202610 min read - 03Spot guide
Tarifa — the spot guide
Europe's windiest town, honestly written. Two winds, three beaches, the one thing every first-timer gets wrong.
04 Apr 202612 min read - 04Guide · Travel
The travel kite kit, packed honestly
What actually fits under 23kg, plus the cheap item I replace after every trip.
19 Mar 20269 min read
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