Map › Greece › Naxos - Mikri Vigla › Pori Beach

Cicladi · Koufonisia · Naxos Regional Unit · Chora, Pano Koufonisi

Pori Beach

also known as Pori Koufonisi, Παραλία Πορί

advanced onlylow crowds

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

On this page

Wind
- Month by month
Forecast
Water
Level
The scene
Launch
- Rescue
Hazards
Rules & access
Schools
Tips
Getting there
Photos
FAQ

Nearby Mikri Vigla 17 km · Glyfada (Naxos) 17 km · Agiassos 17 km · Golden Beach (Chrissi Akti) 35 km · Santa Maria 37 km · New Golden Beach (Tserdakia) 37 km · straight-line distance

SeasonJun to Septhe months riders and schools name How windy15-16 knotssynoptic Launchhugeaccess rules on record, below Watermixed25°C in summer · 9 things riders flag LevelAdvanced onlywith a caveat, in the Level section

Schoolsnone named here

From the airportno transfer time publishedNaxos Airport (JNX)

When it fills in

The meltemi is synoptic, so it does not switch on and off with the sun. It runs through the night, firms up from mid-morning, holds its strongest from early afternoon into the early evening and eases two or three knots after dark. A quiet morning is not a lost day, and an evening session is often still on — though the national rule stops you at sunset.

Pori Beach is a wide crescent bay on Pano Koufonisi, 3.5 km from Chora, the island's only town, reached on foot along the coastal trail, by local bus, by kaiki or by car.

The land behind the bay blocks south and west wind and leaves it open to the north, so the summer Meltemi arrives largely onshore and, from June through September, blows hard and steady. Water is shallow and clear over fine sand, gentle enough at the edge that the bay gets recommended for young swimmers.

Everything else is unsupervised: no lifeguard, no organised beach, no shade, and no kite school anywhere on Koufonisia. In September 2021 a 41-year-old kitesurfer fractured both legs here near a support boat and was flown by helicopter to Athens, which tells you what a bad day costs in response time.

The island has no airport and no large hotels, so it is a ferry from Naxos, Piraeus or another Cyclades port and a studio or villa around Chora. Come self-sufficient and already riding well, or pick a spot with a school on the sand.

The wind

locals call it Meltemi

Direction

onshore

Kite sizes

5678910111213141516

metres · typical quiver highlighted

Character

synoptic

fills in: The meltemi is synoptic, so it does not switch on and off with the sun. It runs through the night, firms up from mid-morning, holds its strongest from early afternoon into the early evening and eases two or three knots after dark. A quiet morning is not a lost day, and an evening session is often still on — though the national rule stops you at sunset.

Typical strength

July and August are the strong months: the median hour sits at 15-16 knots, about half of all hours reach 15 or more and roughly a quarter reach 20 or more. June and September are riding months too, several knots lighter, median nearer 10-12 with the hard days still arriving. Averaged across June to September the wind works out around 13 knots. These are modelled figures for the bay, indicative rather than measured on the water.

Sustained conditions through the season; no numeric wind-speed range found

Pori faces the meltemi, the north wind that dominates the Cyclades in summer, and the bay's orientation puts it largely onshore. July and August are the peak, with a median around 15-16 knots and roughly a quarter of hours over 20. June and September still work but run lighter.

Winter has plenty of wind on paper and almost nobody riding: the island empties, the wetsuit rule bites from 15 October, and there is no cover of any kind.

Thermal or synoptic

synoptic Meltemi

Also on record

The quiver, in words

Indicative for a 75-85 kg rider and worked back from modelled wind rather than measured here: 9-12 m covers most July and August days, 7-8 m for the meltemi afternoons that push past 25 knots, 12-14 m in June and September when the median drops. Bring the small kite.A quarter of peak-season hours are over 20 knots and there is nobody on the beach to land you if you are overpowered.

Direction to shore

Onshore. Of the hours at 12 knots or more, over half come from due north, with north-northeast and north-northwest taking most of the rest; the bay opens north and the land behind it blocks south and west.

Dominant direction

North. Of the hours at 12 knots or more, north accounts for more than half and north-northeast and north-northwest for most of the remainder. The summer meltemi is the whole story here.

Forecast

Month by month

Jan56
Feb59
Mar51
Apr46
May29
Jun, riders' month51
Jul, riders' month83
Aug, riders' month44
Sep, riders' month42
Oct41
Nov57
Dec40

per cent of the month at force 4 or more

Ringed months are the ones riders and schools name: Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep.

13Jan17°
12Feb17°
12Mar17°
11Apr18°
9May20°
11Jun23°
14Jul25°
10Aug26°
10Sep25°
10Oct23°
12Nov20°
10Dec18°

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

Month	Force 4+	Knots	From	Air	Water
Jan	56%	12.6 kt	N	12.2°C	17.4°C
Feb	59%	12.4 kt	N	12.2°C	16.8°C
Mar	51%	11.5 kt	N	12.9°C	17°C
Apr	46%	10.9 kt	N	16.9°C	17.7°C
May	29%	9.3 kt	N	20.1°C	19.6°C
Jun	51%	10.9 kt	NNW	25.5°C	23.3°C
Jul	83%	13.6 kt	N	28°C	24.9°C
Aug	44%	10.4 kt	NNW	27.4°C	26°C
Sep	42%	10.3 kt	NNW	24.7°C	25°C
Oct	41%	10.4 kt	N	20.7°C	23°C
Nov	57%	11.8 kt	N	17.1°C	20.3°C
Dec	40%	10.4 kt	N	14.5°C	18.1°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

mixed

Standing depth

Shallow, calm enough at the edge for young swimmers

Tides

Effectively none. The Aegean tide is tiny — at the nearest island port the whole swing between high and low runs about 10 cm and is often half that. Nothing here changes with the tide; plan the session around the wind and the light.

Temperature

25°C summer · 16°C winter

Wetsuit

Not needed in the June-September riding season on water-temperature grounds, though that was not independently measured. A wetsuit is legally required nationwide 15 October-15 May, a stretch when the spot is rarely ridden anyway.

17–26°C water

Large crescent bay with fine sand and clear water. The land behind blocks south and west wind and leaves the bay open to the north, which fits strong and largely onshore exposure to the summer Meltemi. No Blue Flag, no beach organisation, no natural shade.

Part of the beach is used by naturists.

Your level

not for beginners herenot for intermediates hereadvanced

Advanced riders, given the wind exposure and the isolation. The shallow bay really is calm and the entry is gentle, and sustained Meltemi with no lifeguard and no fast medical access still makes this an advanced kite spot.

The scene

What riders come here for

remote sessionsfreeride

Koufonisia is getting more popular and stays small, with no large hotels: villas, studios and apartments around Chora, and a population of 391 at the 2021 census. Pori counts among the island's best beaches and still does not get crowded. Part of it is a naturist beach.

Launch and rules

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

With a school or a boat

No school names this spot

Nobody has been recorded teaching or running a boat here.

On your own

Room to launch: huge

access rules on record

Somewhere else

Mikri Vigla, 17 km

Mikri Vigla Glyfada (Naxos)Agiassos

Every spot within 40 km is on the map at the top of this page, with its distance under it.

Rescue

No lifeguard, no beach organisation, no kite-specific rescue. A Hellenic Coast Guard port station is posted on Koufonisia, which is who you would be calling, but nothing is stationed on this beach. The September 2021 accident here ended in a helicopter to Athens, which is the honest measure of the chain.

Ride with someone, and ride inside a self-rescue you have actually practised.

Launch

Beach launch from the sand of Pori's large crescent bay; no source describes a specific rigging zone within the bay.

Space

huge

Hazards riders report 9

isolated island spot
no rescue service or kite school on record
strong Meltemi exposure
Isolated island spot: Koufonisia has no airport, ferry-only access, and the beach itself is reached by a ~3.5 km walk, local bus or kaïki from Chora, not a direct road transfer for emergencies
No lifeguard and no organised beach infrastructure
No natural shade
Strong Meltemi exposure in season
In September 2021 a 41-year-old kite surfer fractured both legs on a trick near a support boat off Pori and needed a helicopter medevac to Athens, which is the measure of the distance to advanced medical care
Part of the beach is used by naturists, which matters for where you rig rather than for safety

Rules & access

2026: no Koufonisia-specific municipal ordinance was found; the Greek national kitesurfing regulation applies coast-wide — no kiting before sunrise or after sunset, minimum 200 m from swimmers, anchored boats, rocks, reefs, islets, dive markers and other obstacles, no closer than 200 m to shore except beyond the marked swim-zone buoys, no farther than 1 nautical mile offshore, minimum 1 nautical mile from ports/marinas/fish farms (reducible to 500 m by local committee decision), no kiting at beaches classed as popular and heavily frequented, a clear 100 m launch radius, mandatory safety gear (helmet, harness with hook, line-cutting knife, quick-release leash, buoyancy vest, kite and board leashes), wetsuits required 15 October-15 May, riding prohibited when the wind would push you out to sea unless a lifeguard with a powered boat is present, riding above Beaufort 6 or in poor visibility permitted only with a lifeguard and motor boat present, no kiting under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and an age floor: barred under 16 for anyone who cannot swim properly, with 14- and 15-year-olds allowed only under written parental consent and supervision within 100 m.

Access rules drift faster than anything else we hold — check locally, and propose an edit if this has changed.

Rider tips

Carry your own shade and water. The beach has neither and nothing is organised.
Work out the gear transport first: Pori is a 30-minute walk, a local bus or a kaiki from Chora, not a roadside pull-up.
Ride inside your own self-rescue. There is no lifeguard, and hospital-level care is a ferry or a helicopter away.
Rig well clear of the naturist section of the beach.
Carry your own shade and water. Nothing on this beach is set up for you and there is no natural shade anywhere on it.
Two tavernas on the beach serve food and drink in season, so the day is not as bare as the 'unorganised beach' label suggests — but they are not a rescue plan and they do not hold kite gear.
Take the small kite seriously. Roughly a quarter of July and August hours are over 20 knots and the wind holds into the evening rather than dropping off.
Ignore the tide. The swing here is about 10 cm and it changes nothing about the launch or the depth.

Getting there

Airport

Naxos Airport (JNX), with flights from Athens, Thessaloniki and Heraklion only. Koufonisia itself has no airport.

Route

Koufonisia is ferry-only, from Piraeus and from other Cyclades islands including Naxos and Amorgos. From Chora, Pori is about 3.5 km: car, local bus, the daily kaiki, or a coastal walking trail of roughly 30 minutes.

Staying

No large hotels on Koufonisia. Villas, studios and apartments, mostly around Chora.

No-wind days

Xylompati caves · Gala beach · The Devil's Eye sea cave

Photos

A windsurfer wading into the shallow, crystal-clear water at Pori beach, Koufonisi, with an anchored sailboat and swimmers behind — Yanni Haviaras / CC BY-SA 3.0 us via Wikimedia Commons

FAQ

When is the best time to kite at Pori Beach?

June through September is the listed Meltemi season for the spot.

Is Pori Beach suitable for beginners?

The spot is considered suitable for advanced riders only, given its exposure and isolated setting.

What is the wind like at Pori Beach?

A synoptic north Meltemi drives conditions in the large, fine-sand crescent bay.

What are the hazards at Pori Beach?

The spot is isolated with no verified rescue service or kite school on site.

Last updated: August 2026