MapCape VerdeSanta Maria, SalKite Beach (Santa Maria)Santa Maria, Sal

Kite Beach (Santa Maria)

Santa Maria - Sal

also known as Kite Beach, Kite Beach Sal, Costa da Fragata, Shark Bay, Baia dos Tubaroes

Part of Santa Maria, Sal →

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

beginner-friendlyhigh crowds

On this page

The spot
Wind
Forecast
Month by month
Water
Level
The scene
Launch
Schools
Tips
Getting there
Photos
FAQ

Riding essentials

Season

Nov–Jun

Months riders and schools name

How windy

15-25 kt

Character: trade

Room to launch

huge

access rules on record, below

Water

mixed

25 °C in summer

Hazards

Reported by riders

Level

Beginner to advanced

With a caveat: see Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

Crowds

high crowds · busy Dec Jan Feb Mar

Schools

named at this spot

From the airport

Cabral International Airport (SID)

Transfer times under Getting there

On the clock

09:00 · 15:00

Often rideable most of the day in season, usually strongest from about 09:00 to 15:00.

The marks are the clock times the record names, laid on a 24-hour day. The bar between the first and the last covers those hours; it is not a promise of wind.

Nearbystraight-line distance

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

Santa Maria Bayno page yet
Leme Bedje / Ponta Leme
Serra Negrano page yet
Murdeira Bayno page yet
Shark Bay / Baia dos Tubaroesno page yet

The spot

Kite Beach is Sal's windward kite hub on the Costa da Fragata, a short taxi or shuttle from Santa Maria rather than the town beach itself. In season the Alisios trades blow NNE-NE and cross-onshore, which makes this a safer place to learn and to work upwind than the offshore wave spots on Sal's south and west coasts.

Water and conditions

The water is open Atlantic. Chop and shorebreak close in, shallow sections at low tide, cleaner waves further out, nothing lagoon-flat.

Lessons and best seasons

Schools teach every level here, but an absolute beginner should be with one, because crowds, waves and changing depth are a lot to manage at once. The best odds run from late October or November through April or May, with January to March the most established stretch and summer much less reliable.

Facilities and conservation

Facilities vary by centre: established schools, storage, bars and restaurants at some of them, hotel shuttles. The beach is also part of the Costa da Fragata reserve and its loggerhead nesting ground, so keep vehicles and beach traffic away from the protected dunes and from any conservation work.

The wind

locals call it Alisios / northeast trade winds

Direction

cross-onNNE to NE

Direction to shore

cross-on

Dominant direction

NNE to NE, sometimes E

Kite sizes

67891011121314151617

metres · typical quiver highlighted

The quiver, in words

9-12 m covers an average-weight rider across the main season: the small end for the 20-25 kt that January and February usually deliver, the top end for the 12-18 kt of November and the 15-18 kt of May.A 75-85 kg rider is on 8-9 m at the peak of the season and wants an 11 or 12 m in the shoulder months.

Character

trade

When it fills in: see above ↑

Average strength

Around 20 kt in season; a discontinued Kitebeach weather station recorded a 12 kt annual average and 17 kt gusts from 2017-02-01 to 2018-10-31, so annual averages understate the main winter season.

Typical strength

15-25 kt in the main season; local-school month estimates range from 12-18 kt in November to 20-25 kt in January-February and 15-18 kt in May.

Generally steady for Sal when the NE trades are established; Kite Beach is less turbulent than Santa Maria south-coast spots because it faces the wind.

The core season runs from late October or November through April/May, with some extending usable wind into June.

A 2003-2014 table from Kite Verde reports >=4 Bft wind-day percentages of Jan 89%, Feb 93%, Mar 91%, Apr 92%, May 97%, Jun 85%, Jul 55%, Aug 50%, Sep 65%, Oct 82%, Nov 88%, Dec 85%.

Summer wind is less reliable, though lessons or riding can still happen when forecasts cooperate.

Forecast

Live forecast

Windguru Windfinder Windy

Month by month

15 ktJan23°
14 ktFeb22°
14 ktMar22°
14 ktApr22°
14 ktMay23°
13 ktJun23°
10 ktJul24°
10 ktAug26°
11 ktSep27°
12 ktOct27°
13 ktNov26°
14 ktDec24°

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

Modelled monthly averages. Highlighted: the months riders and schools name (Nov, Dec, Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun).

Modelled from weather reanalysis on a 10–25 km grid (~1980-2016 satellite-era reanalysis (not a physical station)), not a ground station: reliable for trade and synoptic winds, understates thermal sea breezes and valley winds.

Every figure, month by monthKnots · Wind from · Air · Water

Month	Knots	Wind from	Air	Water
Jan	14.6 kt	N	21.7 °C	22.8 °C
Feb	14.4 kt	N	21.7 °C	22.2 °C
Mar	14 kt	N	21.7 °C	21.7 °C
Apr	14.3 kt	N	22.2 °C	22.2 °C
May	14.2 kt	N	23.3 °C	22.8 °C
Jun	12.7 kt	N	23.9 °C	22.8 °C
Jul	9.9 kt	N	25.6 °C	24.4 °C
Aug	9.5 kt	N	26.7 °C	25.6 °C
Sep	10.8 kt	N	27.2 °C	26.7 °C
Oct	12 kt	N	26.7 °C	26.7 °C
Nov	12.7 kt	N	25 °C	25.6 °C
Dec	13.7 kt	NE	23.3 °C	23.9 °C

How this is modelledmodelled · ~1980-2016 satellite-era reanalysis (not a physical station)

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.

Santa Maria, Sal · WeatherSpark (modeled climatology, MERRA-2 reanalysis) · ~1980-2016 satellite-era reanalysis (not a physical station)

The water

Type

mixed

Standing depth

Shallow close to the beach and in low-tide areas, with a sandy beginner/water-start zone reported by local schools; it is open ocean rather than a lagoon, so standing depth is not reliable across the whole riding area.

Tides

Low tide flattens the inside and shallows it right up to the sand; high tide brings more water, choppier conditions close in and cleaner waves on the reef about 300 m out. Rideable across the tide, but check the state before jumping or crashing freestyle near the beach.

Temperature

25 °C summer · 22 °C winter

Modelled monthly average: 22–27 °C

Wetsuit

Shorty or 3 mm suit in the cooler/windier months; boardshorts or lycra are commonly enough in warmer months, but several schools still recommend a shorty for comfort and sun/wind exposure.

Conditions

Wind-blown chop near shore, a small shorebreak and a wave line further out: a flat water-start section close in, wave riding outside. Santa Maria sea temperatures run from about 22 °C in February to 25–26 °C in late summer and autumn.

Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

Schools run beginner courses at Kite Beach on the strength of the cross-onshore wind and the sandy launch, but this is no butter-flat learner lagoon: chop, shorebreak, waves, crowds and shallow low-tide water all need managing, so first-timers belong with an instructor. Intermediates get chop and freeride practice; advanced riders take the outside wave and the downwind options.

The scene

What riders come here for

freeridewavesfreestylewavestraplessdownwinderswatching pros

Who it suitsbeginnerlessons

Sal's main kite hub: school-heavy, international, tourist-oriented, busy in trade-wind season, with a visible local/pro wave-kiting culture around Mitu & Djo and other centres.

Launch and rules

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

With a school or a boat

9 schools name this spot

See who they are

On your own

Room to launch: huge

Read the access rules

Somewhere else

4 spots nearby

All 4 spots within 40 km are under Nearby

Rescue

No public rescue service.

Schools

The on-beach schools advertise supervision, assisted kitesurfing, lesson safety and transfers, and rescue or lifeguard cover is claimed for the beach with no name behind it.

Launching service

One Kite Beach club sells a Launching and Landing Service where an attendant sets the kite up, launches you, lands you and keeps watch: 15 EUR for 2 hours in 2026, with the day, week and two-week rates at 20, 75 and 135 EUR.

That is a watch and assist service, not a guaranteed offshore rescue boat, so confirm cover with a centre before you launch on your own.

Launch

Wide sandy beach on the Costa da Fragata/Kite Beach side of Sal, with multiple kite schools/centres, beach bars or station facilities depending on which part of the beach you use. Launch well clear of lessons, beach users, and turtle-conservation areas in season.

Hazards riders report 17 reported

Wind

Nearby south- and west-coast alternatives can be gusty, offshore, cross-offshore, rocky, or without rescue, so weak upwind riders should not treat them as equivalent substitutes.
nearby south- and west-coast alternatives are gusty, offshore or cross-offshore and rocky, so weak upwind riders should not treat them as substitutes

Crowds and zones

gets crowded in peak season (~150 kiters at busiest)
other beach users close to the launch zone
crowded water and launch in peak season, with around 150 kiters out at the busiest times
Other beach users, students, instructors, and school traffic around the launch zones.
crowded water and launch in peak season, with around 150 kiters out at the busiest times
no lifeguard and no guaranteed rescue boat at the beach: what is sold on the sand is a launch, land and watch service
students, instructors and school traffic moving through the launch zones

Waves and currents

shallow water at low tide
Shallow water near the beach at low tide, especially risky for jumping and freestyle crashes.
shallow water near the beach at low tide, a real risk for jumping and freestyle crashes
a reef roughly 300 m offshore, heavier and cleaner on the outer line at high tide

Protected areas and rules

Wind-blown chop, shorebreak, and outside waves make the spot harder than a flat beginner lagoon.
Costa da Fragata is a protected reserve and a key loggerhead nesting area; vehicle and horse traffic, tourism and unmanaged recreation are the listed pressures on the dunes.
wind-blown chop and shorebreak close in; this is not a flat beginner lagoon
loggerhead nesting roughly June to November on the Costa da Fragata dunes, already under pressure from vehicle and horse traffic and sand extraction

Rules & access

1 min read

2026: Kite Beach and the Costa da Fragata lie inside the 2,693-hectare Costa da Fragata nature reserve, a key loggerhead nesting beach where unregulated vehicle and horse traffic, sand extraction and tourism development are the listed pressures on the dunes.

No kiteboarding permit, launch-zone bylaw or seasonal kiting restriction is on record.

Check the reserve and turtle-season access rules locally before you ride, and keep vehicles and horses off the dunes.

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

Ride the strong part of the day, roughly 9am-3pm, and book lessons ahead in the peak months.
Check the tide before jumping or crashing freestyle near the beach; low water gets very shallow right up to the sand.
Buy the launch-and-watch service from an on-beach school if you are not fully independent in chop and shorebreak.
Stay in Santa Maria unless you specifically want a resort setup, because taxis and school shuttles make the daily run to Kite Beach easy.
Pack strong sunscreen, sunglasses or a hat, and a shorty or 3 mm suit for the cooler trade-wind months.
Do not treat Ponta Preta, Ponta Sino or Santa Maria Bay as safe backups; they are gustier, offshore or cross-offshore. In turtle season stay out of the dunes and nesting ground and follow whatever Project Biodiversity or the local wardens ask.

Getting there

Airport

Amilcar Cabral International Airport (SID), Sal

Route

Most riders stay in Santa Maria and reach Kite Beach by taxi, school shuttle, rental car or bike. It is a short drive: figures of about 10 minutes and 15 minutes circulate for the run out of town, and about 20 minutes from the airport.

Transfer

10-15 minutes from Santa Maria; about 20 minutes from Amilcar Cabral International Airport to Santa Maria, then onward to Kite Beach.

Cost level

medium; 2026 checked local-school and travel pages quote Santa Maria-Kite Beach taxi around 5 EUR one way, Kite Verde club transfers 2 EUR/person/trip, KBC independent-rider Kitebeach shuttle 8 EUR/day or 50 EUR/week, bike rental 15 EUR/day or 60 EUR/week, and car rental about 50 EUR/day.

Staying

Most accommodation and nightlife are in Santa Maria; guides recommend staying there because restaurants, bars, the town beach, and taxis/shuttles to Kite Beach are easy. Options range from apartments and small hotels to larger resorts around the Santa Maria area.

No-wind days

Diving, sailing trips, horseback riding, quad/buggy tours, fishing, zipline, island tours, Buracona/Blue Eye, Pedra de Lume salt flats, Palmeira, Espargos, turtle watching in season, surf/SUP on calmer days, and Santa Maria restaurants/nightlife.

Photos

FAQ

When is the best time to kite at Kite Beach?

The core season runs late October or November through April or May, with January to March especially reliable.

Is Kite Beach suitable for beginners?

Yes; local schools teach all levels here, since the cross-onshore trade wind is safer for progression than Sal's offshore south- and west-coast wave spots.

What is the wind like at Kite Beach?

The NNE to NE trade winds blow cross-on, typically 15-25 knots in season and often strongest from about 9am to 3pm.

Are there kite schools at Kite Beach?

Yes; Kite Beach Cabo Verde/Mitu & Djo, KBC Sal/Surf Hub, and Kite Verde all operate on or near the beach.

What hazards should I know about at Kite Beach?

The beach gets crowded in peak season, with shallow water at low tide that's risky for jumping, and it sits within a protected loggerhead turtle nesting reserve.

The bigger pictureEverything about Santa Maria - Sal

Last updated: August 2026