Paracas
Ica · Paracas (El Chaco)
also known as Bahia de Paracas, Kite Point, Santo Domingo Bay, The Point
Riding essentials
Season
Aug–May
Months riders and schools name
How windy
18-25 knots
Character: thermal
Room to launch
huge
access rules on record, below
Water
mixed
20 °C in summer
Hazards
22
Reported by riders
Level
Beginner to advanced
With a caveat: see Your level
Crowds
medium crowds · busy Jan Feb Mar Apr
Schools
6
named at this spot
From the airport
210 min
Lima (LIM)
On the clock
11:00 · 11:30
On the clock
11:00 · 12:00 · 13:00 · 14:00 · 16:00 · 18:00 · 19:00
Mornings are light, a northerly under 10 knots, good for foiling and little else. Around 11:00-11:30 the wind swings to the south and starts building. In high season it runs from about 11:00 to 19:00, strengthening steadily through the afternoon and often peaking near 16:00. In low season it arrives later, 13:00-14:00, and quits around 18:00. Schools are on the water roughly 11:00-12:00 until 18:00-19:00.
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.
- Laguna Grande (inside the national reserve, ~1 hour south, quieter with clearer water)
- Playonno page yet
- Zarateno page yet
- Mendietano page yet
- San Andresno page yet
- Pisco downwinderno page yet
The spot
The launch
Best season
Wind direction
Water temperature
Sand and weather
Reserve rules
The wind
locals call it Paracas thermal / Paracas wind
Direction
Direction to shore
cross-off
Dominant direction
South to southwest once the thermal is up, after a light northeast or northerly morning; at The Point the working angle reads as southeast.
Kite sizes
metres · typical quiver highlighted
The quiver, in words
8-12 m covers most days for a 75-85 kg rider.A 9 or 10 m is the everyday kite in the 18-25 knot high season; a 12 m earns its keep in the 12-20 knot low season.Keep a 7 m for the 30-plus knot Paracas days. Foil gear or a big kite is what makes the light northerly morning rideable.
Character
Average strength
About 18-23 knots around midday in the main season; 12-20 knots June to August.
Typical strength
18-25 knots through the high season and 12-20 knots June to August, with 26-30 knot gusts once or twice a week and full 30-plus knot sandstorm days a few times a season. The morning northerly, before the switch, rarely passes 10 knots.
Forecast
Live forecast
Month by month
- Jan, riders' month92
- Feb, riders' month89
- Mar, riders' month81
- Apr, riders' month95
- May, riders' month77
- Jun53
- Jul74
- Aug, riders' month79
- Sep, riders' month77
- Oct, riders' month92
- Nov, riders' month98
- Dec, riders' month95
windy days per month (3 h+ at 12 kn+)
Ringed months are the ones riders and schools name: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec.
- 92%Jan21°
- 89%Feb21°
- 81%Mar21°
- 95%Apr19°
- 77%May18°
- 53%Jun18°
- 74%Jul17°
- 79%Aug16°
- 77%Sep16°
- 92%Oct17°
- 98%Nov18°
- 95%Dec19°
windy days per month (3 h+ at 12 kn+) · water °C below · season highlighted
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.
Every figure, month by monthWindy days · Force 4+ · 12 kn or more · Knots · Wind from · Peaks at · Air · Water · Readings
| Month | Windy days | Force 4+ | 12 kn or more | Knots | Wind from | Peaks at | Air | Water | Readings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 92% | 97% | 97% | 15.9 kt | SSW | 16:00 | 22.2 °C | 20.6 °C | 62 |
| Feb | 89% | 93% | 93% | 15.8 kt | SSW | 16:00 | 23.3 °C | 21.1 °C | 57 |
| Mar | 81% | 97% | 87% | 15.4 kt | SSW | 15:00 | 22.8 °C | 21.1 °C | 62 |
| Apr | 95% | 98% | 98% | 16.6 kt | SSW | 15:00 | 20.6 °C | 19.4 °C | 60 |
| May | 77% | 92% | 89% | 15.2 kt | SSW | 16:00 | 18.3 °C | 18.3 °C | 62 |
| Jun | 53% | 75% | 70% | 13.2 kt | SSW | 16:00 | 17.2 °C | 17.8 °C | 60 |
| Jul | 74% | 85% | 82% | 14.5 kt | SSW | 16:00 | 16.1 °C | 16.7 °C | 62 |
| Aug | 79% | 97% | 95% | 16.4 kt | SSW | 16:00 | 16.1 °C | 16.1 °C | 62 |
| Sep | 77% | 88% | 85% | 15.8 kt | SSW | 16:00 | 16.1 °C | 16.1 °C | 60 |
| Oct | 92% | 95% | 94% | 16.7 kt | SSW | 15:00 | 17.2 °C | 16.7 °C | 62 |
| Nov | 98% | 100% | 100% | 17.2 kt | SSW | 15:00 | 18.3 °C | 17.8 °C | 60 |
| Dec | 95% | 98% | 97% | 16.6 kt | SSW | 15:00 | 20.6 °C | 19.4 °C | 62 |
How this is modelledmodelled · 2023-2024
A weather model's cell over this place, not a station on it. Good for comparing places, weaker for one beach.
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
mixed
Standing depth
Sandy bottom that stays shallow for about the first 100 m at the school end of the bay before it opens into deep water. That shelf is why the beginner scene works here at all. Inside the reserve, Laguna Grande is waist-deep across a long stretch and is the safest water on this coast.
Tides
Semidiurnal, and small: heights typically run 0.1-0.7 m above mean lower low water, an amplitude of roughly 0.6 m. The spot is not tide-dependent and sessions are not planned around it.
Temperature
20 °C summer · 16 °C winter
Modelled monthly average: 16–21 °C
Wetsuit
A 3/2 mm full suit is the conservative default: the water here is commonly around 16–22 °C. Some riders use a shorty or nothing on the warmer summer days, and the colder, windier months justify 4/3 mm or thicker.
Currents
No meaningful current at the main kite beach and no rocks in the riding area; the peninsula shelters the bay.Away from it, the exposed reserve and wave spots have rocks and sea urchins and need real self-rescue skills, and downwinders toward Pisco and San Andrés have limited landings and wind shadows, so go with someone who knows the shore.
Conditions
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
6 schools name this spot
On your own
Room to launch: huge
Somewhere else
1 spot nearby
Rescue
Launch
Kite Beach, also called Kite Point or Santo Domingo Bay, sits about 2 km from Paracas town: a 45-50 minute walk, or a couple of dollars by taxi or tuk-tuk.Sandy rigging area, parking, cafés and toilets, and schools with hot showers, changing rooms, lockers, an air compressor and a wind-sheltered chillout area.The bay opens wide from there.Wind shadow behind the school buildings is real, so land near the water's edge rather than up by the walls.
Rules & access
1 min read
Reserve entry
Permitted activities
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
- Nothing happens before 11:00. Use the morning for the reserve, a Ballestas boat trip, or a foil session in the light northerly.
- Pack kites and bags dry and closed; the fine desert sand sticks to everything.
- The kite beach is a 45-50 minute walk from town, or a couple of dollars by tuk-tuk, which is money well spent with a board bag.
- Ride with a school or a confirmed rescue service unless you are comfortable with cross-off wind and your own self-rescue.
- Reserve entry is paid and the gate closes at 16:00, so a reserve day and an afternoon session do not fit into the same day.
- Bring soles in cash, a wind shell and sun cover, and ask a school as well as the app: the local thermal can add several knots over the model.
Getting there
Airport
Jorge Chavez International Airport, Lima (LIM)
Route
Most riders fly into Lima and cover the last 260 km south by road. Buses run from central Lima in about 3-3.5 hours from roughly US$15-20; a private transfer or airport taxi is 2-3 hours for around S/ 400, about US$130-150; a rental car works too. From Ica the bus is about an hour.In town everything is walkable, taxis cost 8-10 soles, and the kite beach is a 45-50 minute walk or a US$1.50-3 tuk-tuk.
Transfer
210 min
Cost level
medium
Staying
Budget hostels and rooms in Paracas town, kite-oriented stays near the spot, and larger hotels south of town. Kangaroo Kite House, Bamboo Paracas Resort and Paracas Backpackers House are the ones riders end up in.
No-wind days
Reserve viewpoints and beaches, the Ballestas Islands wildlife boat trip, kayaking and SUP, dune buggies and sandboarding toward Huacachina, pisco and wine tours near Ica, paragliding in the reserve, and a surf trip out to San Gallan when it lines up.
Photos
FAQ
Is Paracas suitable for beginners?
Yes, beginners use the sandy, shallow, flat-water section with school and rescue support, while intermediate and advanced riders use the larger freeride bay.
What is the wind like?
A cross-off desert thermal usually builds around 11:00-12:00, peaks mid-afternoon and can last until sunset, typically 18-25 knots.
When is the best time to visit?
The strongest season runs mid-September or October through April; June-July is the least reliable period.
Are there kite schools nearby?
Yes, schools include Kangaroo Kite, PeruKite, Kite Club Paracas, Jose Luis Kite School and Inka Solwara, with rescue boats reported at some.
What are the hazards?
Gusty, terrain-accelerated wind, cold Humboldt-current water, wind shadows near buildings, and occasional 30+ knot sandstorm days.
The bigger pictureEverything about Paracas
Last updated: August 2026