Spots | Upwind Kitesurfing Lessons Barbados

Silver Rock Beach – Silver Rock Beach is the main beach for kite surfing and kite surfing lessons in Barbados. It is located on the South Coast of the island in the parish of Christ Church. With the beach being 350m long it is not the longest beach but offers some of the best conditions for kite-surfing and wind-surfing. The North Eastern trade winds blow at 15 – 22 kts on average but can go up to 30kts at times. The direction in the winter months is predominantly side to side off-shore and side to side on-shore in the summer months. There are shore-break waves on the inside which range in size depending on the tides and an outer reef break approximately 250m out with clean waves ranging from 1 – 3 m on average making this a sanctuary for wave-riders. In between the reef and shore-break is a generally flat area with moderate chop but no breaking waves. The difference between high tide and low tide is only about 50cm which allows for a minimum of approximately 1.5m in depth on the reef, so there are no dangers of hitting the reef while kiting. The beach is generally not crowded with ordinary beach users so this makes it mainly a spot for kite-surfing and wind-surfing. Silver Rock Beach is also very easy to access, being only 10 minutes away from the airport. The locals are very friendly and welcoming to tourists and it is generally a safe place. The main hazards are the rocks at the bottom end of the beach separating Silver Rock Beach from Silver Sands Beach and the current traveling down-wind.

Long Beach – Long Beach is one of the longer beaches on the Island of Barbados stretching 1.5 km in length. It is also located on the South Eastern part of Christ Church. The wind blows consistently side to side on-shore in the winter and side-on to on-shore in the summer. Long Beach is a pretty deserted beach with not much tourist activity and consequently offers a very remote and spacious environment for beginners learning to fly the kite and learning the water basics. Most of our kitesurf group lessons are held here and for advanced riders there are nice kickers for jumping. The shore-break can get perfect for wave-riding as well. The main hazards here are the cliffs at the bottom end of the beach and the shore-break can get a little aggressive at high-tide.

Sandy Beach – Sandy Beach is located just below the main nightlife/restaurant street called St. Laurence Gap. It is also on the South Coast of Barbados in the parish of Christ Church. This spot is one of the only flat-water spots on the island with a bay and a shallow outer reef sheltering the inside from breaking waves and currents. It’s perfect for freestyle kitesurfing and for those riders who are not a big fan of choppy waters. Since it is a bay, the wind has to be blowing from a more Southern direction in order for this spot to work. On the outside one can find very clean waves for wave riding once the swell is on. It is also a more popular beach for picnickers and sun bathers so precaution for other beach users is important here. The main hazards are the boats which are anchored downwind and the shallow outer reef at low-tide which can be only 50cm under the water. Generally Sandy Beach works best in the summer months. It can be an ideal location for kitesurf lessons at south-easterly winds.

Silver Rock Spot