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Paraíba · João Pessoa · Joao Pessoa

Praia do Bessa

also known as Ponta do Bessa, Bessa Beach, Caribessa

lagoonbeginner-friendlyhigh crowds

On this page

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

Nearby Ponta de Lucena 20 km · straight-line distance

Seasonno season namedthe months riders and schools name How windy10-20 ktmixed Launchshared urban beach with tourists, bathers and bars; launch space not formally mappedaccess rules on record, below Waterocean/reef lagoon28°C in summer · 8 things riders flag LevelBeginner to intermediatewith a caveat, in the Level section Schools5named at this spot From the airportno transfer time publishedPinto International Airport (JPA)

When it fills in

No onset time is published for this spot.

Praia do Bessa is a 5.3 km city beach in northern João Pessoa: green water, reef, coconut trees, bathers. The kite point is the stretch in front of Bar dos Golfinhos, where lessons were running in 2014; whether anyone still teaches there is unconfirmed, so ask before you rig. The wind is the weak point.

João Pessoa blows E most of the year and is windier from late May into January, but the area average sits around 10.8-11.7 kt from June-November, and the forecasts for Bessa Beach show 9-13 kt windows more often than proper trade-wind days. Best months for Bessa itself: unknown.

The reef gives shallow flat water at the right tide, and Caribessa is the calm reef-protected corner the kayaks and SUPs use. Treat it as a light-wind, supervised city session shared with swimmers, not a beginner beach you turn up to alone. Bring your biggest kite and check the balneability report; there is urban drainage along this coast.

The wind

Direction

onshore

Kite sizes

7891011121314151617

metres · typical quiver highlighted

Character

mixed

Typical strength

10-20 kt is the range the local schools work to between July and November, and that is the honest ceiling. Day-to-day forecasts for this beach more often show 9-13 kt with stronger gusts, and the long-run station averages nearby are lower again.

Light trade-wind exposure on a city reef beach; low confidence, best months unconfirmed.

João Pessoa's windier period runs from late May to mid-January. Best months for Bessa itself are unconfirmed.

Also on record

Joao Pessoa area monthly mean is about 10.8-11.7 kt from June-November; August peaks at 21.7 km/h.

The quiver, in words

Nothing published locally. Indicative for a 75-85 kg rider, derived from the wind range rather than measured here: 15-17 m or a foil on the common 9-13 kt days, 12 m when it holds in the mid teens, 9-10 m on the rare afternoon that reaches 20 kt. Bring the biggest kite you own and expect to use it.

Direction to shore

On this east-facing urban coast, E/NE are generally onshore to side-onshore and S/SE more side-shore to side-onshore; verify exact launch angle and reef gap locally.

Dominant direction

E most of the year for Joao Pessoa, with S the most frequent direction from 9 July to 16 August. At Bessa itself the ridden directions are N, NNE, NE and SE, NE the best.

Forecast

Month by month

Jan28
Feb46
Mar39
Apr28
May43
Jun66
Jul82
Aug80
Sep83
Oct63
Nov37
Dec40

per cent of the month at force 4 or more

10Jan30°
11Feb30°
10Mar30°
10Apr30°
11May30°
12Jun28°
13Jul27°
13Aug27°
13Sep27°
12Oct28°
11Nov29°
11Dec29°

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

Month	Force 4+	Knots	From	Air	Water
Jan	28%	10 kt	ESE	27.2°C	29.7°C
Feb	46%	10.8 kt	SE	27.5°C	30°C
Mar	39%	10.4 kt	SE	27.1°C	30.3°C
Apr	28%	10.1 kt	SSE	26.9°C	30.2°C
May	43%	10.9 kt	SSE	26.3°C	29.5°C
Jun	66%	11.7 kt	SSE	25.2°C	27.9°C
Jul	82%	13.1 kt	SSE	24.8°C	27°C
Aug	80%	13 kt	SSE	24.8°C	27°C
Sep	83%	12.9 kt	SE	25.2°C	27.3°C
Oct	63%	11.9 kt	SE	26.3°C	28.1°C
Nov	37%	10.6 kt	ESE	26.9°C	28.7°C
Dec	40%	10.6 kt	ESE	27.1°C	29.1°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

ocean/reef lagoon

Standing depth

No measured figure. At low tide the reef a few metres offshore uncovers into shallow natural pools you can stand in, and the sand between the pools and the beach is shallow and calm enough that families put small children in it.Depth over the reef changes quickly with the tide, so read the table before you commit; nothing is documented for a kite line's distance out.

Tides

The reef and the natural pools come and go with the tide; no kite-specific tide window on record.

Temperature

28°C summer · 26°C winter

Wetsuit

Shorts or lycra; water is around 26-29 C all year.

27–30°C water

Calm green water, reef and coconut trees. Shallow, flat, choppy and small waves, depending where you are relative to the reef.

Your level

beginnerintermediatenot for advanceds here

Lessons ran from Bar dos Golfinhos and the flat water behind the reef suits learning, but it is a city beach full of bathers: ride with local supervision.

The scene

What riders come here for

lessonsfreerideurban sessionsSUP/kayak alternatives

City beach. The kite corner has a young bar-and-lessons crowd; the rest is swimmers.

Launch and rules

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

With a school or a boat

5 schools name this spot

See who they are

On your own

Room to launch: shared urban beach with tourists, bathers and bars; launch space not formally mapped

access rules on record

Somewhere else

Ponta de Lucena, 20 km

Ponta de Lucena

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

Rescue

No kite rescue and no support boat. The Paraiba military fire brigade posts guarda-vidas along the Joao Pessoa beaches, including numbered observation posts on the Bessa stretch, and 193 is the emergency number. They are watching swimmers, and they are the reason this beach is worth treating as a shared one rather than a launch of your own.

Launch

City-beach launch in front of Bar dos Golfinhos (Golfinho Bar), where the lessons run.

Space

shared urban beach with tourists, bathers and bars; launch space not formally mapped

Rules & access

2026: Joao Pessoa publishes no kite rules, lifeguard restrictions or designated launch area for Praia do Bessa. What exists on the ground is a family swimming beach with fire-brigade guarda-vidas posts along it, so until an ordinance appears the posts and the regulars are the rule.

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

Rider tips

Rig near Bar dos Golfinhos only after an instructor or the bar staff confirm that is still where kiters launch.
Stay out of the natural pools and the reef gaps when swimmers are in them; on this beach they outnumber you.
Check the balneability report before a session near the drainage outfalls, and the tide before crossing the reef.
Expect 9-13 kt more often than not; pack the largest kite you own.
The beach is a taxi or rideshare from Bessa, Manaira, Tambau or Cabedelo; there is no kite parking to look for.
The schools that teach beginners on this coast run their lessons at Ponta de Campina in Cabedelo, on shallower water and steadier wind. Bessa is the town session, not the teaching beach.
Rescue here is the fire brigade on 193, watching swimmers from the posts. There is no kite boat.

Getting there

Airport

Presidente Castro Pinto International Airport (JPA)

Route

Northern Joao Pessoa, by city road, taxi or rideshare. Confirm the kite corner around Golfinho Bar before you rig.

Cost level

medium

Staying

Hotels, pousadas and apartments in Bessa, Manaira, Tambau and Cabedelo.

No-wind days

Caribessa kayak/SUP · Picãozinho natural pools · Seixas natural pools · Jacare sunset · Joao Pessoa city beaches

Photos

Areia Vermelha - João Pessoa - Pb. Brasil (8631839347) — Marinelson Almeida - Traveling through Brazil from Niteroi, Brasil, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

FAQ

Is Praia do Bessa suitable for beginners?

Kite lessons have been reported near Bar dos Golfinhos, and reef-protected sections can suit learning, but it is a shared urban beach requiring local supervision.

What is the water like?

Bessa has calm, green, reef-influenced water that is shallow, flat and choppy in different sections along its 5.3 km length.

What are the hazards?

Bathers, reef and coral areas, tide-sensitive natural pools and urban beach obstacles are the main things to watch for.

Last updated: August 2026