MapCape VerdeSanta Maria, SalPonta PretaSanta Maria, Sal

Ponta Preta

Santa Maria - Sal

also known as Ponta Preta Beach, Praia da Ponta Preta

Part of Santa Maria, Sal →

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

wavesadvanced onlymedium 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–Apr

Months riders and schools name

How windy

15-25 knots

Character: trade

Room to launch

tight

access rules on record, below

Water

waves

27 °C in summerExposed reef and point: fast rights and lefts over reef, the right being the better wave

Hazards

Reported by riders

Level

Advanced only

With a caveat: see Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

Crowds

medium crowds · busy Dec Jan Feb Mar

Schools

named at this spot

From the airport

Cabral International Airport (SID)

Transfer times under Getting there

When it fills in

afternoon reported locally; exact local daily timing unconfirmed

Nearbystraight-line distance

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

Kite Beach / Shark Bay
Santa Maria Bayno page yet
Ponta do Sinono page yet
Ponta Leme Bedjeno page yet
Ali Babano page yet
Secret Spotno page yet

The spot

The wave sits on an exposed Atlantic reef and point about 2 km west of Santa Maria, on the southwest coast of Sal, right beside the Ponta do Sino nature-reserve and tourism zone.

Wave characteristics

The right-hander is fast and hollow, lefts happen too, and winter swells run 3-6 m. The classic setup is a NE to E trade blowing cross-off over northwest swell: the face stays clean, and a mistake sends you seaward.

Launch hazards

The launch is rock and stone with shorebreak on top, so getting in and out is the technical part of the day.

Skill requirements

Schools sit nearby, but nobody learns here. This is for advanced and professional wave riders with real self-rescue and someone watching from the beach. Ponta Preta has hosted the GKA Kite-Surf World Cup more than once and is the home wave of Mitu Monteiro and Airton Cozzolino. Base yourself in Santa Maria for the beds, the food and the schools, and ride Kite Beach on the days your wave skills are still coming together.

The wind

locals call it NE trade winds

Direction

cross-offNE to ENEwind blows away from land — rescue cover matters here

Direction to shore

cross-off

Kite sizes

7891011121314151617

metres · typical quiver highlighted

The quiver, in words

9-12 m covers a 75-85 kg rider through the usual 15-25 knot trades, ridden on a surfboard rather than a twin-tip. Peak-season days quoted at 18-30 knots call for the small end of that quiver or below it, and on the biggest February swells the kite you can control while the wave is breaking matters more than the one the wind average suggests.

Character

trade

When it fills in: see above ↑

Average strength

15-25

Typical strength

15-25 knots; some Sal schools quote 18-30 knots during Dec-May windy season

Glassy on the wave face when the NE trade lines up, and dangerous for exactly that reason: the angle pushes you away from the shore.

Winter carries both the wind and the swell.

The windiest months come out as November-April, the main season as December-April, and usable wind stretches October-May; the trades themselves blow 15-25 knots daily from November through June. December is when the surf is cleanest and most consistent. Big winter swells push the waves to 3-6 m.

Within the day the wind peaks between about 09:00 and 15:00, with February among the windiest months.

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).

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

waves

Standing depth

no - exposed Atlantic reef/point break with rocky bottom and deep water outside the break

Tides

Best around low tide. The tide state changes both the teaching water and the riding.

Temperature

27 °C summer · 21–24 °C winter

Modelled monthly average: 22–27 °C

Wetsuit

shorty or light wetsuit in winter; many riders are comfortable in minimal neoprene in warmer months

Currents

Offshore and cross-offshore wind carries a rider seaward, and the beach itself reportedly runs vigorous currents.

Conditions

Exposed reef and point: fast rights and lefts over reef, the right being the better wave. The shoreline and the launch are rocky, and the shore break turns heavy on bigger swell. Ponta Preta lies in or on the edge of the Ponta do Sino natural-reserve area, whose marine part is rocky bottom with a coral community.

Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

not for beginners herenot for intermediates here

Advanced/pro wave riders only: fast powerful reef waves, rocky launch and bottom, shorebreak, and cross-off/offshore wind requiring reliable self-rescue and wave judgment. Beginners and progressing intermediates should use Kite Beach or other supervised Sal spots instead.

The scene

What riders come here for

advancedwavesstraplesssurfboardspectating on big GKA/winter swell days

Rarely crowded on an ordinary day, but when Ponta Preta is firing it pulls local experts and pros. Spectators come too, and so does GKA attention. Respect the lineup and the riders who live here.

Launch and rules

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

With a school or a boat

8 schools name this spot

See who they are

On your own

Room to launch: tight

Read the access rules

Somewhere else

4 spots nearby

All 4 spots within 40 km are under Nearby

Rescue

+238 597 5484

Rescue — full text1 min read

Rescue cover

There is none on the point. No boat, jet-ski or lifeguard service publishes cover at Ponta Preta, and the schools with rescue boats work the Santa Maria bay and Kite Beach side rather than here.

The realistic backup is a shore watch, another rider on the water and the medical centre in Santa Maria about 2 km away.

Emergency contacts

Cape Verde's emergency numbers are 130 for an ambulance, 131 fire and 132 police; no maritime rescue number is published for the island.

The kite school on the beach in front of RIU Cabo Verde is the nearest staffed presence and answers on WhatsApp (+238 597 5484), but it does not advertise a rescue service.

Launch

Rocky/stony beach and point launch west of Santa Maria near the RIU Cabo Verde/Ponta do Sino side.Riders commonly need to time a lull in the shorebreak and clear the rocks quickly before heading out to the reef waves.In front of the RIU hotel beach, the kiting zone sits to the right of the marked yellow buoys; the zone to their left is reserved for boat traffic.

Hazards riders report 12 reported

Wind

offshore wind - self-rescue essential
cross-offshore/offshore wind that can push riders out to sea

Crowds and zones

strong local/pro crowd on good days despite being generally uncrowded
local/pro crowd and high consequence lineup on good days

Bottom

submerged rocks
submerged and exposed rocks
rocky/stony launch area

Waves and currents

powerful 3-6m waves
heavy shorebreak
Fast, powerful reef waves, reportedly up to 3-6 m on winter swell.

Protected areas and rules

protected natural-reserve environment around Ponta do Sino/Ponta Preta

Other

no dedicated rescue service on record

Rules & access

1 min read

Permits and reserve status2026: no kite permit, municipal zone or seasonal ban applies, but the point sits inside the Reserva Natural da Ponta do Sinó, a 5,720-hectare reserve at the edge of a tourism development zone whose terrestrial area was recently cut by 27 hectares. The reserve is managed through codes of conduct rather than published activity bans, and vehicle traffic over the dunes is one of the pressures wardens are working against, so drive and park on existing tracks only.Local practiceA practical local rule matters more than any of that: kite schools on Sal do not allow their rental equipment to be used at this spot, so you ride your own gear.EventsThe GKA Kite-Surf World Cup ran here 16-21 February 2026.

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

Sit on the point and watch a few sets before you rig; on the biggest winter days the beach is the right call anyway.
Check swell and wind angle together, because Ponta Preta needs a proper winter swell and a workable cross-off trade.
Walk the rocks and the entry at low water and at higher water before you rig; the shorebreak moves the exit.
Ride inside the 09:00-15:00 wind window and leave someone on the beach who knows you went out, because nobody else is watching.
Bring your own gear: the Sal schools will not let their rental kit be used here.
Wear impact and flotation gear on serious swell and thin booties for the rocks, and build wave hours at Kite Beach or Santa Maria Bay first.

Getting there

Airport

Amilcar Cabral International Airport (SID), Sal

Route

Fly to SID, base in Santa Maria, then take a short taxi/drive west to the Ponta Preta/RIU Cabo Verde/Ponta do Sino side. The beach is also close enough for coastal walks from Santa Maria for spectators, but riders usually want vehicle support for gear.

Transfer

15-25 minutes from SID to Santa Maria hotels; Ponta Preta is about 2-3 km west of Santa Maria

Cost level

mid

Staying

Santa Maria is the practical base, from simple apartments and backpacker rooms up to large beach resorts and 5-star hotels. Several sit at the west end, toward Ponta Preta.

No-wind days

Surfing friendlier breaks when there is swell, diving, deep-sea fishing, SUP tours, bike or quad tours, beach walks from Santa Maria through Ponta do Sino to Ponta Preta, Pedra de Lume salt crater, Buracona/Blue Eye and shark-bay sightseeing trips.

Photos

FAQ

When is the best time to kite Ponta Preta?

The main windy and swell season is winter, especially November to April, with December often giving the most consistent clean surf.

Is Ponta Preta suitable for beginners?

No; it's an advanced-to-professional wave spot with a rocky launch, offshore wind, and no verified rescue service, so beginners should use Kite Beach instead.

What is the wind like at Ponta Preta?

NE to ENE trade winds blow cross-off at around 15-25 knots, making the wave face clean but pushing mistakes out to sea.

What is Ponta Preta known for?

It has repeatedly hosted GKA Kite-Surf World Cup events and is closely associated with Cape Verdean wave riders including Mitu Monteiro and Airton Cozzolino.

The bigger pictureEverything about Santa Maria - Sal

Last updated: August 2026