Nearby Pino-Tronzano 4 km · Maccagno 4 km · straight-line distance
Tramontana and Inverna
13:00 · 17:00
The best Inverna sessions run roughly 13:00 to 17:00. Tramontana is a morning wind.
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.
The wind
locals call it Tramontana / Inverna / Foehn
Direction
Kite sizes
metres · typical quiver highlighted
Character
thermal
fills in: The best Inverna sessions run roughly 13:00 to 17:00. Tramontana is a morning wind.
Typical strength
The afternoon thermal is a 3-4 Beaufort wind, roughly 8-16 kt, and only occasionally reaches 6 Beaufort. Across the lake the good thermal afternoons are quoted higher, at 12-20 kt. The north Foehn is the strong one and goes over 25 kt, up to 7 Beaufort, about 28-33 kt.
Thermal or synoptic
thermal; Foehn possible
The quiver, in words
For 75-85 kg the afternoon thermal is 12 m territory while it is filling and 9 m once it is properly on. A north Foehn day over 25 kt takes you to 7 m or smaller. Lake Maggiore figures, not measurements taken at Cannobio.
Direction to shore
The lido sits on the western shore with the lake opening east, so both working winds run along the beach rather than into it. The morning Tramontana out of the north is side-shore. The afternoon Inverna from the south is side to side-onshore as it comes up the basin and bends into the bay at the delta.Read off the line of the shore, with no local measurement to confirm it.
Dominant direction
north Tramontana in the morning and south Inverna in the afternoon
Forecast
Month by month
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
riding season from the spot record · no wind series here is trusted enough to name a season
- Jan2
- Feb2
- Mar5
- Apr10
- May, riders' month0
- Jun, riders' month0
- Jul, riders' month0
- Aug, riders' month3
- Sep, riders' month5
- Oct0
- Nov3
- Dec5
windy days per month (3 h+ at 12 kn+)
Ringed months are the ones riders and schools name: May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep.
The model is wrong here
The model reads 10% of days at its best month, which does not sit with the season and the wind strength this record states. The figures are kept and drawn as hatching so no wind colour can be read off them, and the ringed months are the ones riders name.
| Month | Windy days | Force 4+ | 12 kn or more | Knots | From | Peaks at | Air | Readings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2% | 5% | 2% | 6.7 kt | W | 08:00 | 6.2°C | 62 |
| Feb | 2% | 4% | 4% | 6.2 kt | W | 08:00 | 7.6°C | 57 |
| Mar | 5% | 6% | 6% | 6.8 kt | W | 08:00 | 9.2°C | 62 |
| Apr | 10% | 18% | 13% | 8 kt | W | 09:00 | 12.1°C | 60 |
| May | 0% | 2% | 2% | 6.3 kt | SE | 13:00 | 17°C | 62 |
| Jun | 0% | 5% | 3% | 6.7 kt | W | 14:00 | 21.3°C | 60 |
| Jul | 0% | 3% | 3% | 6.7 kt | W | 07:00 | 24.6°C | 62 |
| Aug | 3% | 8% | 3% | 7.2 kt | W | 07:00 | 24.8°C | 62 |
| Sep | 5% | 5% | 5% | 6.8 kt | W | 07:00 | 19.4°C | 60 |
| Oct | 0% | 3% | 2% | 6 kt | W | 07:00 | 16.7°C | 62 |
| Nov | 3% | 3% | 3% | 7 kt | W | 08:00 | 9.8°C | 60 |
| Dec | 5% | 6% | 6% | 7.1 kt | W | 07:00 | 6.7°C | 62 |
riders' months
Riders and schools name these months. The model reads lower here, and both are shown rather than averaged.
Modelled from the operational forecast archive at 1.5–7 km (2023-2024), daylight hours only, not a ground station: it resolves thermal, lake and valley winds far better than coarse reanalysis but still tends to understate a strong local thermal. A windy day has at least three consecutive daylight hours at 12 knots or more. 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.
High-resolution weather model (modelled) · Open-Meteo historical forecast archive — best-match operational model (ICON-D2 / AROME / ICON-EU / GFS by region), not a ground station · 2023-2024
The water
Type
lake
Standing depth
No measured figure for the launch at the Cannobino delta. The lido shelves gradually and the inshore water is shallow enough that the beach is used by families with small children, but how far out you can stand has not been published.
Tides
none; freshwater lake
Temperature
Summer about 22.5 average at Cannobio; local current summer readings may be higher in sheltered beach water
Winter about 6.1 average at Cannobio
Wetsuit
wetsuit usually needed outside the warmest summer period; exact local thickness guidance is unconfirmed
Currents
no tidal current; river-delta influence from the Cannobino and wind-driven lake chop are the relevant water factors
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
2 schools name this spot
On your own
Room to launch: moderate to large at the lido, but constrained by summer bathers and swimming areas
Somewhere else
Pino-Tronzano, 4 km
Every spot within 40 km is on the map at the top of this page, with its distance under it.
Rescue
Launch
Launch at the Lido di Cannobio, on the sand by the Cannobino delta. It is a spacious beach that gets the wind, used for kite-surf, windsurf, catamarans and sailing. Leave the start area promptly and keep about 150 m from shore to stay off bathers, windsurfers and harbour boat traffic.
Space
moderate to large at the lido, but constrained by summer bathers and swimming areas
Rules & access
Access rules drift faster than anything else we hold — check locally, and propose an edit if this has changed.
Rider tips
- Read the posted lido and swimming-zone signs before you rig; this is a municipal beach with bathers on it.
- Clear the start area quickly and hold about 150 m off the shore once you are riding.
- Take the 13:00-17:00 Inverna window and watch the trend at the back of it; the thermal shuts down fast.
- Keep your head up for ferries and rental boats crossing off the delta.
- Bring a 12 and a 9 for 75-85 kg. The 12 covers the thermal filling in, the 9 covers it once it is on.
- The lifeguard on the sand is there for swimmers. If you need help on the water the numbers are 112 and 1530, and the nearest rescue boats are at Verbania.
Getting there
Airport
Milan Malpensa (MXP) is listed as the nearest major airport to Cannobio
Route
Drive from Malpensa; that is the simple version. Rail, bus and ferry combinations exist, but how workable they are is unconfirmed.
Transfer
about 75-90 by private road transfer from Milan Malpensa, traffic dependent
Cost level
medium
Staying
Cannobio has lakeside camping/resort and town accommodation around the lido and old town.
No-wind days
swimming and beach time at the lido, boat rental/tours, sailing, windsurfing, canoe/catamaran rental, beach volleyball, tennis, mini-golf, trekking and Cannobio town sightseeing
Photos
FAQ
What is the wind like at Cannobio?
Tramontana blows from the north in the morning and Inverna from the south in the afternoon, with the best Inverna window around 13:00-17:00.
Is it suitable for beginners?
No verified shallow training area or beginner-specific kite corridor was found, so independent kiting should be treated as intermediate-plus unless using local instruction.
What are the main hazards?
Short steep lake chop, boat and ferry traffic, sudden late-day wind drop-offs and occasionally strong Foehn are the reported hazards.
Are there rules to know?
No Cannobio-specific ordinance was found, but a 150 m coastal navigation band applies on Lake Maggiore and riders are advised to stay about 150 m from shore, clear of bathers.
Last updated: August 2026