Map › Netherlands › Midsland aan Zee
North Sea / Baltic Europe: Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Denmark, Poland, Baltics (Lithuania/Latvia/Estonia), Sweden, Norway · Wadden Islands · Midsland
Midsland aan Zee
also known as Terschelling Noordzee
Nearby De Cocksdorp 34 km · Ameland (Hollum / Noordzee) 34 km · Makkum 36 km · straight-line distance
When it fills in
Synoptic, not thermal. The wind arrives with the weather system and can be blowing at any hour, through the night included, so there is no daily fill-in to wait for and no evening die-off to plan around. Tide and daylight set the timing of a session instead. No local onset has been recorded; this follows from the coast's wind character.
The wind
Direction
Kite sizes
metres · typical quiver highlighted
Character
synoptic
fills in: Synoptic, not thermal. The wind arrives with the weather system and can be blowing at any hour, through the night included, so there is no daily fill-in to wait for and no evening die-off to plan around. Tide and daylight set the timing of a session instead. No local onset has been recorded; this follows from the coast's wind character.
Typical strength
12 to 40 kt from a safe direction is the working window, and about two hours of it makes a session. Over fourteen late-summer days the daily maxima ran 14 to 33 kt with gusts to 40. Direction is the filter here, not strength: most of those days blew west or south-west, which is offshore on this coast, and only four came from a usable quarter.
Also on record
Reported year-round average is about 14 kt; no official long-term spot average is available.
The quiver, in words
Nothing is published for this beach, so these are indicative rather than measured. For a 75-85 kg rider, 12 m covers the 14-17 kt bottom end, 9-10 m the low-to-mid twenties that make up most of the usable days, and 7 m once it is over 30. In surf and moving water, err on the small side.
Direction to shore
safe directions are N, NW, NE, with W usable on the North Sea coast; west builds the bigger waves and north-east can leave it comparatively flat
Dominant direction
The prevailing wind on Terschelling is south-west, and on this coast that is offshore, which is why the Wadden-side beaches take the south-westerly days. The North Sea side works on west, north-west, north and north-east. West builds the biggest waves; north-east can leave the water nearly as flat as the Wadden side.
Forecast
Month by month
- Jan, riders' month97
- Feb96
- Mar95
- Apr, riders' month96
- May, riders' month91
- Jun, riders' month94
- Jul96
- Aug94
- Sep, riders' month89
- Oct, riders' month98
- Nov, riders' month96
- Dec, riders' month99
per cent of the month at force 4 or more
Ringed months are the ones riders and schools name: Jan, Apr, May, Jun, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec.
- 24Jan7°
- 24Feb7°
- 19Mar7°
- 21Apr10°
- 17May14°
- 17Jun17°
- 19Jul19°
- 17Aug20°
- 18Sep19°
- 20Oct15°
- 23Nov11°
- 23Dec8°
avg knots per month · water °C below · season highlighted
| Month | Force 4+ | Knots | From | Air | Water |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 97% | 24.3 kt | SW | 5.8°C | 6.5°C |
| Feb | 96% | 24.2 kt | WSW | 6.5°C | 6.5°C |
| Mar | 95% | 19.3 kt | SW | 6.8°C | 7.2°C |
| Apr | 96% | 20.9 kt | ENE | 8.7°C | 9.6°C |
| May | 91% | 17.3 kt | NNE | 12.8°C | 13.9°C |
| Jun | 94% | 17.1 kt | WSW | 15.5°C | 16.8°C |
| Jul | 96% | 19 kt | WSW | 17.4°C | 19.2°C |
| Aug | 94% | 17 kt | SW | 18.7°C | 19.9°C |
| Sep | 89% | 18.4 kt | S | 17°C | 19°C |
| Oct | 98% | 20 kt | S | 13.5°C | 14.8°C |
| Nov | 96% | 23.2 kt | SW | 9.4°C | 11.1°C |
| Dec | 99% | 23.3 kt | SW | 6.4°C | 7.5°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 (2022-2024), 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 · 2022-2024
The water
Type
waves
Standing depth
No. The North Sea side is deep. Sandbanks make flatter patches, but this is not a standing-depth teaching lagoon.
Tides
Tidal North Sea beach with sandbanks, two highs and two lows a day. On the nearest gauge at West-Terschelling a middling cycle sits around 60-75 cm either side of the datum and a spring cycle reaches about 105 cm, so the range runs roughly 1.4 to 2.1 m and low water uncovers large banks.Read the table before a downwinder, because the banks and the current channels rewrite the ride.
Temperature
19.4°C summer · 4.7°C winter
Wetsuit
Cold North Sea water. Spring and autumn need a proper suit, winter is savage, and high summer might let you get away with a shorty: August water sits around 19.4 C, February around 4.7 C.
Currents
Normal North Sea surf with waves and current, and the current along the coast runs hard on the incoming and the outgoing tide.
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: large
Somewhere else
De Cocksdorp, 34 km
Every spot within 40 km is on the map at the top of this page, with its distance under it.
Rescue
Launch
Wide sand North Sea beach through the Midsland aan Zee crossing, at Midsland aan Zee 457, 8891 HV Midsland, with free parking, a toilet and somewhere to eat at the head of the path, and room to spare on the sand. The commonly used North Sea accesses are West, Midsland and Formerum aan Zee.
Space
large
Rules & access
Access rules drift faster than anything else we hold — check locally, and propose an edit if this has changed.
Rider tips
- In summer, set up well outside the 200 m exclusion either side of a beach crossing.
- Ask the school which beach they are using that day: Midsland aan Zee, Formerum aan Zee or Groene Strand.
- Read the tide table before a downwinder; the banks and the current channels rewrite the ride.
- For flatter water, weigh a north-east day here against the tide-dependent Groene Strand.
- Pack light enough to carry. The ferry and the bus in are part of the session.
- A south-west forecast is a Wadden-side day, not a North Sea one: on this beach it blows straight out to sea.
- Keep kites off the beach crossings themselves; they are the route in for the ambulance and the horse carts.
Getting there
Airport
Amsterdam Schiphol (AMS)
Route
Ferry from Harlingen to West-Terschelling, then bus, bicycle or local transport on to Midsland aan Zee. Harlingen to Terschelling takes about 2 hours on the regular ferry, 50 minutes on the direct fast one.
Cost level
medium
Staying
Midsland and Midsland aan Zee have holiday cottages, village accommodation and beach-area stays; no kite-specific lodging is listed.
No-wind days
Cycling and hiking from Midsland, Terschelling nature areas, beach walks, West-Terschelling village/harbor and island water-sports alternatives.
Photos
FAQ
Is Midsland aan Zee suitable for beginners?
It is mainly intermediate to advanced: local school Seven Oceans teaches there only when waves are low and a sheltered sandbank is available, since the open North Sea beach has surf, current and deep water.
What is the wind like?
NKV lists N, NW and NE as safe directions, with W also usable; west and north-west wind bring waves while north-east can make the sea comparatively flat.
Are there rules or restricted zones?
Yes, from 1 May to 1 October kitesurfing is only allowed outside a 200 m zone on each side of the beach crossings and 100 m out from the waterline; outside that period the whole coast is open.
What hazards should riders know?
Strong currents with incoming and outgoing tide, large sandbanks at low water creating channels, and limited on-site rescue facilities are the main reported hazards.
Last updated: August 2026