Savoie

Lac du Bourget - Cap des CeseletsLake Bourget | Aix Beach

1. 

   Lac du Bourget - Cap des Ceselets

   freshwater lake

   Cap des Séselets is a grassed artificial point at Viviers-du-Lac on the southwest shore of Lac du Bourget, and it is where the local club, KCB, launches when the Bise blows from the north sector.

   advanced

   In seasonMay to Jul

   1. JanJ11
   2. FebF7
   3. MarM8
   4. AprA12
   5. May, riders' monthM8
   6. Jun, riders' monthJ7
   7. Jul, riders' monthJ0
   8. AugA5
   9. SepS10
   10. OctO5
   11. NovN15
   12. DecD5

   modelled: days with three hours in a row at 12 kt or more, between 06:00 and 19:00 local

   Ringed months are the ones riders and schools name: May, Jun, Jul.

   Lac du Bourget - Cap des Ceselets: the long version, the launch and the rules

   More on Lac du Bourget - Cap des Ceselets

   The lake is 18 km long and 2-3 km wide, so a proper Bise day gives you runs you will not find on many coasts. That day is rare. The statistics: 616 rideable hours a year above 16 knots, with May, June, July the best months, and July-August sometimes down to about four days above 15 knots; the average is 12.3 kt, which tells you how often it is not blowing. The wind is technical and shuts off without warning over deep water, which is why you need fins and a self-rescue plan rather than a lesson; nobody teaches here anyway. On the water: faster than 5 knots and any jumping only beyond the yellow 200 m buoy line, kite kept low near the airport runway, and never walk the road home with a kite flying after a drop. The point is small, the 30 or so free parking places opposite the beach fill in summer, the entry is slippery pebbles with reeds and weed along the edge, and the water is 20-25 C in July-August and 5-8 C in January-March. Beginners: this is not your lake.

   Getting on the water

   Main north-wind departure from the grassed artificial point at Cap des Séselets on the southwest shore of Lac du Bourget.

   If it goes wrong

   No rescue service on the spot and no club safety boat. Ride autonomously, carry fins and plan a long swim. Emergency calls go to 112.

   Room to rig

   Small grassed point with a free parking area of about 30 places opposite the beach; parking is often full in summer.

   Rules and access

   2026: the spot is open all year. KCB conduct: clear lines and wings quickly, minimize kite-in-air time on the launch, ride faster than 5 knots and jump only beyond the yellow 200 m buoy line.

   Everything on Lac du Bourget - Cap des Ceselets

2. 

   Lake Bourget | Aix Beach

   freshwater lake

   Aix Beach is the Grand Port waterfront of Aix-les-Bains on Lac du Bourget, and the only reason to kite here is the Traverse.

   advanced

   In seasonApr to Sep

   1. JanJ13
   2. FebF4
   3. MarM10
   4. Apr, riders' monthA8
   5. May, riders' monthM8
   6. Jun, riders' monthJ3
   7. Jul, riders' monthJ0
   8. Aug, riders' monthA3
   9. Sep, riders' monthS8
   10. OctO5
   11. NovN13
   12. DecD2

   modelled: days with three hours in a row at 12 kt or more, between 06:00 and 19:00 local

   Ringed months are the ones riders and schools name: Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep.

   The model is wrong here

   The modelled series peaks at 13% of days and never reaches 15% in any month, at a place that is ridden all season. The figures are drawn rather than dropped, and they are not the answer — the months riders name are.

   Lake Bourget | Aix Beach: the long version, the launch and the rules

   More on Lake Bourget | Aix Beach

   It is a thermal that runs west to east over the southern half of the lake, usually 8-20 knots with gusts to 25, and it shows up late, 17:00-21:00 on a normal evening and sometimes later, for 1-4 hours before it quits, often with no warning. May and June are the best months on the statistics, April close behind, each with around 60-70 kiteable hours; from June to September it fires most often. The water is deep, up to 145 m, so when the wind drops you swim, and there is no safety boat. That makes it an advanced spot even though the water is flat, and foilers get the most out of it. Summer means beach crowds around Grand Port and a tight launch; the club wants you launched and gone, then landed and packed, with the kite in the air on the beach for as short a time as possible. Anything faster than 5 knots, and any jump, belongs beyond the yellow 200 m buoy line. South wind is a different animal: unstable, and not the Traverse; learners should go to Lake Monteynard instead.

   Getting on the water

   Urban lakefront launch at the Grand Port / Aix-les-Bains sector used when the Traverse sets up over the southern part of Lac du Bourget.

   If it goes wrong

   No safety boat on the spot; autonomous riding required.

   Room to rig

   Limited and technical launch area near Grand Port parking; summer beach crowds make parking and setup harder.

   Rules and access

   2026: open all year. Club conduct at the Grand Port launch: clear your lines and wings fast, keep the kite in the air on the beach as little as possible, put foils down outside the traffic, and keep anything faster than 5 knots, and any jump, beyond the yellow 200 m buoy line.

   Everything on Lake Bourget | Aix Beach

• Chambery-Savoie (CMF), about 5 km / 10 minutes from Aix-les-Bains
• Geneva, about 74 km
• Lyon-Saint Exupery (LYS), about 92 km / 59 minutes

Kite bag rules for your airline

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

Known for France:easyJetRyanairAir FranceTransavia

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

1. The wind here quits without warning mid-session, so fins are standard kit and swimming back is a normal outcome, not a disaster story.

   consensus×3 riders

2. Locals steer beginners off this lake rather than selling them lessons on it — the read is that it is a technical spot that punishes bad condition-reading.

   consensus×3 riders

3. The wind that actually works is an evening thermal off the shaded slope, roughly 17:00 to 21:00, and the standard forecast models do not show it — riders check a local sensor or ask in the group instead.

   majority×3 riders

4. Most of what is on the water is foil, and the twin-tip sessions people film tend to be the windy meteo days rather than the thermal ones.

   majority×3 riders

5. There is a 200 m buoyed strip off the beach: inside it you keep it under five knots and you do not jump, and packing down straight after a session is expected because swimmers share the sand.

   majority×2 riders

6. The water stays cold long after the air warms up: sessions logged at 8-11 degrees in spring are treated as ordinary here.

   majority×2 riders

7. When the thermal does fill in, everyone is at the same place at the same time — the Grand Port side gets busy, and parking there in summer is its own problem.

   majority×2 riders

8. Visiting riders keep having to ask whether the lake is simply closed to kites in summer, and the answers they get do not match: one says nothing is banned outright but it depends how busy the beaches are, another says you join the local club to ride here.

   contested×2 riders

What we could not settle. Ride here? These are the gaps worth filling.

• Is 'Savoie' the name riders actually use for this area?
• Can you day-trip to Annecy or into the mountains from Savoie?
• No specific rider hangouts confirmed.
• No dated price examples found.