Map › Germany › Ellenbogen (Sylt)
North Sea / Baltic Europe: Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Denmark, Poland, Baltics (Lithuania/Latvia/Estonia), Sweden, Norway · Sylt · Northern Friesland · List
Ellenbogen (Sylt)
also known as Ostellenbogen, Lister Ellenbogen, Kitebeach Ellenbogen, Königshafen
Nearby Rømø 14 km · Sylt Hoernum Moewennest 29 km · Westerland / K4 (Sylt) 29 km · Foehr Nieblum 38 km · Amrum Norddorf 39 km · straight-line distance
When it fills in
Frontal wind, so it runs day and night and there is no thermal hour to wait for. The tide sets the schedule instead. High water at List moves roughly 45 minutes later each day and the riding window travels with it, which is why the schools shift their start times daily: a mid-morning session this week is an early-afternoon one the next.
The wind
Direction
Kite sizes
metres · typical quiver highlighted
Character
synoptic
fills in: Frontal wind, so it runs day and night and there is no thermal hour to wait for. The tide sets the schedule instead. High water at List moves roughly 45 minutes later each day and the riding window travels with it, which is why the schools shift their start times daily: a mid-morning session this week is an early-afternoon one the next.
Typical strength
About 14 knots year-round at the List station with gusts around 20, from observations running 2002 to 2026, prevailing WSW. That is an all-hours average across every calm morning of the year, so read it as the climate rather than as a session figure; the days that make the bay worth the toll road are the frontal westerlies well above it.
Also on record
14
The quiver, in words
No local chart is published. Indicative for a 75-85 kg rider on flat, standing-depth water, derived from weight and wind rather than measured here: 12-14 m around the 14-knot station average, 9-10 m at 20 knots, 7-8 m when a front pushes past 25. Flat water and a bottom you can stand on let you hold a size longer than you would in chop, and there is no shore break to punish a slightly big kite.
Direction to shore
The riding area is inside a bay, so most directions work; northern sectors come over the dunes gusty and offshore, NW worst of all.
Dominant direction
WSW to W. The List station average is WSW, and the near-constant WNW is the wind Königshafen works best in.
Forecast
Month by month
- Jan97
- Feb99
- Mar, riders' month93
- Apr, riders' month98
- May, riders' month93
- Jun, riders' month93
- Jul, riders' month94
- Aug, riders' month94
- Sep, riders' month91
- Oct, riders' month97
- Nov, riders' month97
- Dec99
per cent of the month at force 4 or more
Ringed months are the ones riders and schools name: Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov.
- 24Jan4°
- 25Feb4°
- 20Mar5°
- 20Apr9°
- 19May13°
- 17Jun17°
- 20Jul19°
- 18Aug19°
- 19Sep19°
- 22Oct13°
- 22Nov9°
- 22Dec5°
avg knots per month · water °C below · season highlighted
| Month | Force 4+ | Knots | From | Air | Water |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 97% | 23.7 kt | WSW | 4.4°C | 3.6°C |
| Feb | 99% | 24.5 kt | WNW | 4.5°C | 4.4°C |
| Mar | 93% | 19.7 kt | SW | 5°C | 5.2°C |
| Apr | 98% | 19.7 kt | WNW | 7.4°C | 8.6°C |
| May | 93% | 18.9 kt | NW | 11.3°C | 13.3°C |
| Jun | 93% | 17.1 kt | NW | 15.3°C | 17.3°C |
| Jul | 94% | 19.9 kt | WSW | 16.8°C | 18.9°C |
| Aug | 94% | 17.8 kt | WNW | 18°C | 19.2°C |
| Sep | 91% | 18.5 kt | W | 16.1°C | 18.5°C |
| Oct | 97% | 22 kt | SSW | 12.4°C | 13.4°C |
| Nov | 97% | 22.4 kt | SW | 8.3°C | 9.3°C |
| Dec | 99% | 21.9 kt | SE | 4.7°C | 5.4°C |
modelled
A weather model's cell over this place, not a station on it. Good for comparing places, weaker for one beach.
Modelled from weather reanalysis on a 10–25 km grid (2020-2024), not a ground station: reliable for trade and synoptic winds, understates thermal sea breezes and valley winds. 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 · 2020-2024
The water
Type
flat
Standing depth
Large shallow area across Koenigshafen, hip-deep at most for an adult around high water, which is why every school on the island teaches here. A spring tide with strong west wind can deepen it enough that lessons move closer to shore. At low tide it drains too shallow to ride at all.
Tides
Strongly tide dependent. Kite around high water: the window is given as plus/minus 2.5 hours or plus/minus 3 hours around high tide.
Temperature
17°C summer · 4°C winter
Wetsuit
Wetsuit nearly all year: at least 4-5 mm neoprene and shoes, because the water is cold and the bottom is sharp shells and oysters.
Currents
Current in the deep tidal creek near the white-buoy boundary; dangerous Trekker currents occur on the north, northwest and east outer coasts where bathing is prohibited.
Your level
The scene
What riders come here for
Launch and rules
three ways on to the water, and what each one asks of you
With a school or a boat
5 schools name this spot
On your own
Room to launch: Plenty of rigging room on the grass; the sandy beach itself is small but big enough to launch and land. Busy with schools and riders in summer.
Somewhere else
Rømø, 14 km
Every spot within 40 km is on the map at the top of this page, with its distance under it.
Rescue
VHF 16+49 421 53687-0
Launch
Designated sandy kite beach with grassy rigging area on the Königshafen side of the Ellenbogen; build, launch and land only on the Kitebeach, not in dunes or meadows.
Space
Plenty of rigging room on the grass; the sandy beach itself is small but big enough to launch and land. Busy with schools and riders in summer.
Rules & access
Access rules drift faster than anything else we hold — check locally, and propose an edit if this has changed.
Rider tips
- Cars pay at the Ellenbogen toll gate; on a bike or on foot you reportedly get in free.
- Set your session by the List high-water time: 2 hours either side is the rule, about 3 hours the tolerated limit.
- Stay inside the white buoy chain; beyond it is seal and bird ground, and the tidal creek there runs current.
- Wear booties; the bottom is oyster shell, and 4-5 mm neoprene is the local minimum.
- Never kite or swim off the outer north beach; the Trekker currents there pull people out to sea.
- From June to August expect lesson traffic on the water and leave lessons a wide margin.
- Park only in the marked areas and walk only on the marked paths; cutting through the dunes is banned.
- Cars and motorbikes pay 8 euros at the Ellenbogen toll gate in 2026; on a bike or on foot you get in free.
- High water shifts about 45 minutes later every day, so a session time that worked yesterday will not work tomorrow.
- Never kite or swim off the outer north beach; the currents there pull people out to sea and no one is watching.
- There is no lifeguard on the peninsula. Save 112 and the sea rescue number, and treat a northerly offshore day as a two-person session.
Getting there
Airport
Sylt Airport (GWT), with Hamburg Airport (HAM) as a larger mainland option
Route
Reach Sylt by train to Westerland, by car train from Niebüll, by ferry from Rømø to List, or by plane. From Westerland drive north toward Kampen/List, follow signs to Ellenbogen before or from List, pass the toll gate, then continue to the kite parking area near the south/east Königshafen side.
Transfer
25 min
Cost level
high
Staying
Apartments and hotels in List plus broader Sylt lodging options; local school pages also list island hostels and campsites.
No-wind days
Ellenbogen walks and lighthouses, List harbor, guided Wadden Sea walks, Erlebniszentrum Naturgewalten, cycling, SUP when suitable, beaches and restaurants around Sylt.
Photos
FAQ
Is Ellenbogen suitable for beginners?
Yes, the sheltered, flat, standing-depth Königshafen bay is repeatedly described as an ideal beginner and training area, alongside use by advanced riders for freestyle and kitefoil.
What is the wind like?
West-southwest to west wind is most common, and because the riding area sits inside a bay it is workable in most directions, though northern sectors turn gustier after crossing the dunes.
How does the tide affect sessions?
The bay is strongly tide dependent, with a usable riding window of roughly 2.5 to 3 hours either side of high water; it can become too shallow to ride around low tide.
Are there rules or restricted zones?
Yes, kiting is limited to the designated Kitebeach inside the white buoy chain in Königshafen, with building, launching and landing only permitted there and not in the dunes.
What are the main hazards?
Dangerous "Trekker" currents affect the outer north, northwest and east coasts of the Ellenbogen where swimming is prohibited, and sharp oysters and shells make booties advisable in Königshafen.
Last updated: August 2026