MapMadagascarAnakaoMadagascar

Anakao

Atsimo-Andrefana · Nosy Ve island area, south of Toliara (Tuléar) · Toliary-II

also known as Nosy Ve

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

beginner-friendlylow crowds

On this page

The spot
Wind
Forecast
Month by month
Water
Level
The scene
Launch
- Hazards
- Rules & access
Schools
Tips
Getting there
Photos
FAQ

Riding essentials

Season

Jun–Oct

Months riders and schools name

How windy

15-25

Character: trade

Room to launch

access rules on record, below

Water

mixed

29–30 °C in summer

Hazards

Reported by riders

Level

Beginner to advanced

With a caveat: see Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

Crowds

low crowds · busy Jun Jul Aug Sep

Schools

none named here

From the airport

60 min

Toliara Airport (TLE)

When it fills in

Around midday for the Anakao reef/lagoon area.

Anakao has no other spot on this map within 40 km of it. straight-line distance

Backup spotsWhere riders go when the wind doesn't work here.

Flame Bowlsno page yet
Jelly Babiesno page yet
Ifaty
Nosy Vealso a name for this spot
Nosy Satranano page yet

The spot

Anakao is a fishing village on Madagascar's southwest coast, with Nosy Ve sitting offshore and a lagoon and reef system in between.

Wind and waves

The trade wind is south and side-onshore, 15-25 knots, best months June to November, usually filling in around midday and sometimes building to 30 knots. In front of the village the lagoon is flat enough to learn on and to work freestyle. Outside it the reef throws clean hollow lefts, Flame Bowls and Jelly Babies among them, over sharp coral, and there is no rescue cover for any of it.

Getting there

You arrive by fast boat from Toliara; the road exists but it is long, sandy and 4x4 only. There are hotels and boat trips here, more than at Lavanono, but no working kite school sits at Anakao itself, so bring your own gear and your own judgement.

The wind

locals call it alizés

Direction

cross-oncross-offwind blows away from land — rescue cover matters here

Direction to shore

South wind is side-onshore at Anakao. On the outer reef breaks it runs closer to cross-offshore southeast, coming from the left. The two descriptions have not been reconciled.

Character

trade

When it fills in: see above ↑

Thermal or synoptic

synoptic (trade winds)

Typical strength

15-25

Trade-wind driven. The ranges given run from 15-25 knots up to 30-knot builds around midday.

June to November is the window given for Anakao, with August the strongest month by windy-day count. A broader Madagascar figure gives May to October.

Forecast

Live forecast

Windguru Windfinder Windy

Month by month

Jan74
Feb59
Mar76
Apr72
May63
Jun, riders' month72
Jul, riders' month65
Aug, riders' month77
Sep, riders' month73
Oct, riders' month75
Nov81
Dec72

per cent of the month at force 4 or more

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

14 ktJan30°
13 ktFeb30°
14 ktMar29°
14 ktApr27°
12 ktMay26°
13 ktJun25°
12 ktJul24°
14 ktAug24°
14 ktSep25°
14 ktOct26°
14 ktNov28°
14 ktDec29°

avg knots per month · water °C below · season highlighted

Modelled from weather reanalysis on a 10–25 km grid (2022-2024), not a ground station: reliable for trade and synoptic winds, understates thermal sea breezes and valley winds.

Every figure, month by monthForce 4+ · Knots · Wind from · Air · Water

Month	Force 4+	Knots	Wind from	Air	Water
Jan	74%	14.1 kt	S	28.5 °C	29.7 °C
Feb	59%	12.7 kt	SE	28.1 °C	29.9 °C
Mar	76%	13.5 kt	S	27.4 °C	29.1 °C
Apr	72%	13.6 kt	S	26.1 °C	27.1 °C
May	63%	12.2 kt	SSE	23.8 °C	25.6 °C
Jun	72%	12.5 kt	SE	22.5 °C	25 °C
Jul	65%	12.3 kt	SSE	21.7 °C	24.1 °C
Aug	77%	13.7 kt	S	22.3 °C	23.6 °C
Sep	73%	13.8 kt	S	24.2 °C	24.9 °C
Oct	75%	13.6 kt	S	25.4 °C	26 °C
Nov	81%	14.2 kt	SSW	26.7 °C	27.5 °C
Dec	72%	13.8 kt	S	27.9 °C	28.5 °C

How this is modelledmodelled · 2022-2024

A weather model's cell over this place, not a station on it. Good for comparing places, weaker for one beach.

The typical daily max and the direction are columns of the table above, month by month. Highlighted months are the riding season from the spot record.

ERA5 reanalysis grid point (modelled) · Open-Meteo historical weather API — ECMWF ERA5/ERA5-Land reanalysis, not a ground station · 2022-2024

The water

Type

mixed

Standing depth

Parts of the lagoon are shallow, but no depth figures are confirmed.

Tides

Tide changes the lagoon depth and can dry out sandbanks and reef patches. How tide-dependent the riding really is has not been pinned down.

Temperature

29–30 °C summer · 23–24 °C winter

Modelled monthly average: 24–30 °C

Wetsuit

No wetsuit usually needed; shorts generally, with a shorty possible in cooler months.

Conditions

Flat or sheltered lagoon water near Anakao/Nosy Ve, with wave riding outside the reef, including sharp reef waves named Flame Bowls and Jelly Babies.

Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

The flat lagoon is where beginners and freestyle riders go. The reef outside is not for them.

The scene

What riders come here for

freeridewave ridingdownwindersfreestyle

Fishing village and lagoon, with hotels and boat excursions. Far less built up than the kite bases in the north.

Launch and rules

three ways on to the water, and what each one asks of you

With a school or a boat

No school names this spot

Nobody has been recorded teaching or running a boat here.

On your own

Room to launch: ok

Read the access rules

Somewhere else

No neighbour on record

No other spot in the atlas sits within reach of this one.

Launch

Beach and lagoon launches around the village. You get there by boat from Toliara or along a long sandy 4x4 track.

Rules & access

1 min read

No rules were found for 2026. Check on the ground: access along this stretch of the southwest coast can come down to local arrangements.

Access rules drift faster than anything else we hold — check locally, and propose an edit if this has changed.

Schools that ride here

Rider tips

Check the tide before a lagoon session: low water uncovers reef patches and sandbanks.
Ask the village boatmen before you plan a Nosy Ve crossing or a downwinder. They know where the reef sits.
Do not ride the outer reef until you have confirmed the depth, an exit and who comes to get you.
Bring your own kit. Hotels sometimes arrange a private lesson, but there is no confirmed school.

Getting there

Airport

Toliara Airport (TLE)

Route

Fast boat from Toliara, about one hour to 1h15. The road works but is hard going: around 270 km and 8 hours in a 4x4.

Transfer

60 min

Cost level

medium

Staying

Hotels and lodges in Anakao. Boats and rooms are easiest to arrange through local operators.

No-wind days

Nosy Ve day trip · Nosy Satrana · snorkeling/diving · Tsimanampetsotsa National Park · whale watching in austral winter

Photos

FAQ

When is the best time to kite at Anakao?

June to November is given as the best window, with August standing out as the strongest month by windy-day count.

Is Anakao suitable for beginners?

Yes in the lagoon, which is flat and freestyle-friendly, while the outer reef waves need more experience because of coral and sharp reef hazards.

What is the wind like at Anakao?

The trade wind (alizés) blows side-onshore from the south at 15-25 knots, typically starting around midday and sometimes building to 30 knots.

How do you get to Anakao?

The usual route is a fast boat from Toliara taking about one hour to 1h15; the road route is roughly 270 km and about 8 hours by 4x4.

Last updated: August 2026