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Photo
Herzliya Marina, aerial view (the kite spot)Amos Meron, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

MapCountriesIsraelCountries

Country

Israel

Nine spots, and Eilat is the outlier that anchors the country's reputation: a desert-walled Red Sea gulf with flat, thermal-protected water inside a coral reserve, ridden almost year-round and often cited as an easy place to learn.

Read more

The rest is Mediterranean open coast — Tel Aviv's Dolfinarium zone, Herzliya Marina, Ashdod's Kshatot Beach, Netanya's Poleg, Bat Yam and Haifa's Bat Galim — chop-and-wave city beaches running April to October, threaded between bathers and breakwaters.

Inland, Lake Tiberias adds a freshwater summer option at Diamond Beach. It suits riders who want city sessions bookended by a desert detour to Eilat.

Seasonevery monthsomewhere in the country
How we count
Places
5 towns and 1 single spot
Beginners
where a spot record says a beginner can ride; the Beginners page also asks for a school there, so it lists fewer
Best forBeginners4Waves4

When to go

month by month, from the towns' own wind series

  1. Jan, no figure—
  2. Feb, no figure—
  3. Mar, no figure—
  4. Apr, no figure—
  5. May, no figure—
  6. Jun, no figure—
  7. Jul, no figure—
  8. Aug, no figure—
  9. Sep, no figure—
  10. Oct, no figure—
  11. Nov, no figure—
  12. Dec, no figure—

The windiest town in season each month: its share of windy days

Nothing has been measured or modelled for this place: twelve months and no figure in any of them.

Which place is yours

Grouped by region, the most spots first

How this list is ordered

The places are in the order of how many spots each place holds. None of them carries a wind score: the atlas scores wind reliability one spot at a time, against a named weather station and the distance to it, and a place that groups several spots has no single station to stand behind one number.For wind by month, see When to go above.

Tel-Aviv District

Herzliya Local favourite2 spots · 4 schools · April to Octoberchoppy waves beginner-friendly sociable car helps gear rental expensive Tel Aviv Local favourite2 spots · 3 schools · every monthchoppy waves beginner-friendly quiet no car needed gear rental expensive

Haifa District

Atlit / Neve Yam & Haifa / Bat Galim Under the radar2 spots · 4 schools · every monthflat water choppy waves advanced sociable car needed gear rental mid-range

South District

Eilat Established1 spot · 5 schools · April to Februarybeginner-friendly buzzing scene no car needed gear rental mid-range Ashdod Under the radar1 spot · 4 schools · May to Septemberbeginner-friendly sociable car needed gear rental mid-range

Standalone spots

Single spots with no town of their own

Tiberias / Sea of Galilee1 spot · June to Septemberflat water choppy advanced

By region

The country's regions, the most spots first

Tel-Aviv District3 spots · 2 placesHaifa District2 spots · 1 placeSouth District2 spots · 2 places

Best for

Pages that pick the places in Israel for one kind of riding

Beginners in Israel4 placesWaves in Israel4 places

Destinations

All 6 places, by name

Every place in the lists above, by name only, in the order the country guide keeps them.

AshdodEilatHerzliyaTel AvivAtlit / Neve Yam & Haifa / Bat GalimTiberias / Sea of Galilee

Visa & entry

EU passportVisa-free tourist entry for up to 90 days (also covers family visits and business meetings, not paid work/study), but since 2025 an approved ETA-IL (online travel authorization) is required before flying, linked to the passport. Passport must be valid at least 6 months beyond arrival.
US passportSame ETA-IL + 90-day visa-free terms as above.
UK passportSame ETA-IL + 90-day visa-free terms as above.
Tax residency daysCommonly 183 days; unconfirmed.
NotesETA-IL costs ~25 ILS (~US$7-8), processed in 24-72 hours; airlines check it electronically at check-in and will not issue a boarding pass without an approved ETA-IL. Visa-free/ETA-IL entry does not permit paid work or study.

Money

CurrencyIsraeli New Shekel (ILS)
Paying by phoneBit and Paybox are Israel's dominant P2P instant-payment apps, but both are generally tied to an Israeli bank account and local phone number, so foreign tourists typically cannot use them without local banking.

Insurance

Is kiting covered?Generally yes under standard travel policies as an adventure or extreme sport; unconfirmed for Israel specifically.
Healthcare and evacuationGiven the regional security situation (see the regulation note on Ashdod), check whether standard policies exclude war, terrorism and civil unrest as well as kitesurfing, and whether evacuation cover extends to conflict-related events. Unconfirmed.

Health

VaccinesNone mandatory beyond routine vaccinations for a developed country; unconfirmed.
Tap waterWidely reported as safe and high quality (Israel relies heavily on desalination).
Emergency numbers101 for ambulance (Magen David Adom - Israel's national EMS/ambulance/blood-bank service), 100 for police, 102 for fire and rescue.
Pharmacy notesPharmacies widely available; some operate 24/7 on a rotating basis.

Driving

International driving permitNot strictly required if the foreign license is in English, includes a photo, has been held for at least 2 years, and is valid for at least 1 year from the entry date - foreign licenses meeting this description are valid to drive for up to 1 year after entry.If the license is not in English, an International Driving Permit (IDP) must accompany the home license.Most rental agencies and authorities in practice expect visitors to carry an IDP alongside their home license even when not strictly mandatory.
Rental trapsYoung-driver fees apply for renters aged 18-23 (minimum 2 years licensed); standard minimum age to rent all vehicle categories at some major operators (e.g. Enterprise/Eldan at Ben Gurion) is 24, with under-24s restricted to smaller categories. Basic third-party insurance is compulsory by law and included in rental agreements.

Regulation

OtherAshdod sits close to the Gaza border and the 'Gaza envelope', which has seen periodic rocket fire, military closures and shifting travel-advisory status in recent years.Current safety status, beach and military-zone access restrictions, and advisory guidance for Ashdod are unconfirmed, and this materially affects whether a trip is feasible; Eilat, Herzliya and Tel Aviv sit further from the border.

Calendar & costs

Holidays that move prices
  • Jewish holidays follow the lunar Hebrew calendar and shift yearly (Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Passover, etc.), affecting transport, opening hours and prices nationally.
  • Weekly Shabbat (Friday sunset to Saturday sunset) generally closes shops, public transport and many businesses nationwide.
BeerDraft beer roughly 28-38 ILS (~US$7-10) (2026).
MealInexpensive one-course restaurant meal 70-100 ILS; mid-range 3-course dinner for two 280-380 ILS; street food (falafel/shawarma/sabich) 25-55 ILS; fast-food McMeal ~60 ILS (2026).
CoffeeCappuccino ~15-16 ILS; espresso ~11 ILS (2026, Tel Aviv figures cited specifically).
CurrencyILSSee Money
Year2026

Kite bag rules for your airline

Flying into Israel

Type the carrier you are flying: what it charges for a kite bag, and the year of the policy that says so.

Checked so far for Israel:Qatar AirwaysEmirates

Every carrier, with limits and what riders report at the counter →

Still being checked

We have not verified these yet — tell us if you know.

Show the 7 open questions
  • What is the current security and access situation at Ashdod, close to Gaza?
  • Whether Bit/Paybox instant-payment apps are accessible to foreign tourists.
  • SIM/eSIM operators and ID requirements.
  • Tap water confirmation, mosquito-borne disease seasonality (if any), hospital standards.
  • What do Israel's drone rules allow?
  • What does a one-bedroom rent cost in Israel?
  • Card acceptance and ATM fee/network specifics.

Not written yet

Nothing has been written about SIM & internet for Israel yet, so there is no section for it above. That is a gap in what we hold, not a sign that there is nothing to know.

Last updated September 2026