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Sottomarina di Chioggia

Veneto · Venezia · Sottomarina / Chioggia

also known as Sottomarina, Sottomarina Diga, Diga Sottomarina, Gigetto's Kite Beach, Area kite INDIGA

Part of Chioggia →

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

beginner-friendlyhigh 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

Mar, Apr, May, Sep, Oct, Nov

Months riders and schools name

How windy

20-45 kt

Character: mixed

Room to launch

huge

access rules on record, below

Water

mixed

25.3 °C in summerUnder the Chioggia south breakwater the water flattens off close to shore

Hazards

Reported by riders

Level

Beginner to advanced

With a caveat: see Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

Crowds

high crowds · busy June July August September

Schools

named at this spot

From the airport

80 min

Venice Marco Polo (VCE)

When it fills in

Scirocco thermal commonly builds in the afternoon and can blow until sunset in fair spring/summer weather; Bora timing is synoptic and can blow for many hours.

Nearbystraight-line distance

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

Venice Lagoonno page yet
Bibione
Isola Verdeno page yet
Rosolina Mareno page yet
Albarellano page yet
Delta del Pono page yet

The spot

Sottomarina is a working kite beach on the Adriatic side of Chioggia, and the part that matters is the north end by the Diga, around INDIGA and Gigetto's, rather than the resort beach in front of the hotels.

Water conditions

Three kinds of water sit next to each other: flatter stuff tight under the breakwater, chop out in the middle, and some of the better wave conditions in the Upper Adriatic when Bora or Scirocco set up properly.

Bora from N/NE is strong, long and rough. Scirocco from S/SE is either a fair-weather thermal in spring and summer or, after many hours of wind, a cleaner swell.

Bathing season

In the bathing season everything goes through the authorised corridor on the free beach between lifeguard towers 1 and 2, and outside it there is no legal way into the water.

This is an intermediate-and-up freeride and wave beach; a beginner belongs with one of the schools, on a light side-on day.

Booking

Summer has the weakest wind of the year and the fullest beach, although light thermal sessions do happen. The amenities in this part of Veneto are excellent and the wind is not guaranteed, so book off a forecast rather than off a calendar.

The wind

locals call it Bora and Scirocco

Direction

cross-on

Direction to shore

cross-on

Dominant direction

NE/NNE Bora and SE/SSE Scirocco; summer E thermal also reported

Kite sizes

89101112

metres · typical quiver highlighted

The quiver, in words

Unconfirmed; bring a range for 10-45 kt conditions, with small kites for Bora and larger/lightwind gear for thermal days.

Character

mixed

When it fills in: see above ↑

Average strength

The nearest annual observation record, at Circolo Nautico Chioggia, gives 5 kt average wind and 10 kt gusts for 2017-2018. Do not read that as session strength: it flattens out the storm and thermal days you actually ride.

Typical strength

Bora commonly 20-45 kt in spring/autumn; SE/SW winds are reported at 10-25 kt; summer easterly thermals reach up to about 15 kt.

Both main directions come in side-onshore, which is what makes the place workable: you can normally get back to the beach under your own kite. Bora is strong and wavey. The summer thermal is a much softer thing.

Bora from north and north-east and Scirocco from south and south-east carry this beach. March-May and September-November are the best months. Summer generally has no good wind, though usable lighter spring and summer thermal Scirocco or easterly sessions still turn up.

The waves come with the Bora and Scirocco systems, not with any daily trade-wind reliability.

Forecast

Live forecast

Windguru Windfinder Windy

Month by month

riding season from the spot record · no wind series here is trusted enough to name a season

No month-by-month share of windy days is held for this spot. The months riders and schools name are Mar, Apr, May, Sep, Oct, Nov, and whatever the series does hold is in the table below.

Modelled from weather reanalysis on a 10–25 km grid, 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	6.6 kt	E	3.3 °C	10 °C
Feb	6.9 kt	E	5 °C	8.9 °C
Mar	6.6 kt	E	8.9 °C	10 °C
Apr	6.3 kt	E	13.3 °C	13.3 °C
May	5.8 kt	E	17.8 °C	18.3 °C
Jun	5.6 kt	E	21.7 °C	22.2 °C
Jul	5.4 kt	E	24.4 °C	25 °C
Aug	5.4 kt	E	23.9 °C	25.6 °C
Sep	6 kt	E	20 °C	22.8 °C
Oct	6.4 kt	E	15 °C	18.9 °C
Nov	6.8 kt	E	8.9 °C	15.6 °C
Dec	6.7 kt	E	4.4 °C	12.8 °C

About these figuresriders' months

Riders and schools name these months. The model reads lower here, and both are shown rather than averaged.

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.

Chioggia (WeatherSpark modeled climatology) · weatherspark

The water

Type

mixed

Standing depth

Open Adriatic beach with shallow nearshore sand on a gentle slope; foilers walk out some metres through shallow, grassier water.No figure is published for how far you can stand, but the district's bathing rules require the 1.50 m safe-water limit to be marked with buoys, or flagged on a beach sign where it is not, so that line is the practical marker for where you stop touching.

Tides

High water is sometimes given as the best tide here and the spot is sometimes listed as tide independent. Check on the day: Venice-lagoon and Upper Adriatic water levels still move the beach and the shorebreak.

Temperature

25.3 °C summer · 9.7 °C winter

Modelled monthly average: 9–26 °C

Wetsuit

Boardshorts or shorty in midsummer; spring/autumn full suit; thick winter wetsuit or drysuit for cold Bora sessions.

Currents

Strong current when the Bora swell is running. No quantified current data was found.

Conditions

Under the Chioggia south breakwater the water flattens off close to shore; move east, out of the protection, and you get chop and waves. Bora and Scirocco both build waves, the Bora quick and rough, the Scirocco cleaner after many hours of wind. Water quality is medium and cloudy.

The bottom is sand, with sea grass in places.

Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

Beginner, intermediate and pro all appear in the ratings, and SpinOut runs beginner courses on this beach.

In practice a true beginner belongs in the school and on the corridor, on a lighter side-on day: strong Bora, current, waves, swimmers and the breakwater are not a first-week combination.

Intermediates and above get freeride, freestyle in the flat under the breakwater, and big-air and wave days.

The scene

What riders come here for

wavesfreerideintermediatefreestylebig air

Who it suitslessons

A settled Veneto local scene, with SpinOut, Radical Spot and Gigetto's as the visible hub; when it blows, hundreds of kiters arrive from across Italy. In summer the same sand holds a full beach-resort crowd, which is why corridor discipline is taken seriously here.

Launch and rules

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

With a school or a boat

3 schools name this spot

See who they are

On your own

Room to launch: huge

Read the access rules

Somewhere else

4 spots nearby

All 4 spots within 40 km are under Nearby

Rescue

No kite rescue and no safety boat.

Bora and Scirocco are both side-on here, so a rider who loses a board can normally get back to the beach without outside help, and the beach access has to stay clear for rescue vehicles.

Lifeguard cover on the beach is the bathing-season service the concessions are required to run, not a watch on kiters.

At sea the Coast Guard emergency number is 1530.

Launch

Beach and corridorLong, wide sandy beach at the north end of Sottomarina near Via San Felice and the Diga, with the kite corridor on the free beach between lifeguard towers 1 and 2 and the rigging and club activity around INDIGA/Gigetto's/Radical Spot. The corridor runs perpendicular to the beach, at least 30 m wide at the water's edge and widening to about 80 m by 100 m out, marked by orange buoys out to 300 m and signposted on the sand.Corridor rulesIt is a transit lane, not a riding area: body-drag out and in through the first 100 m, one kite at a time, and give way to whoever is coming back.

Hazards riders report 19 reported

Crowds and zones

busy beach in peak summer
Breakwater/mole and port entrance area at the Diga; avoid getting too close and respect navigation lanes.
Peak summer beach crowd and swimmers, some of whom walk straight past the kite-zone signs.
Peak summer beach crowd and swimmers; some swimmers ignore kite-zone signs.
Peak summer beach crowd and swimmers; some swimmers ignore the kite-zone signs.

Waves and currents

very wide beach can mean a long walk to open water at low tide
Strong Bora can produce powerful, fast-building waves and strong current.
High local standard on wave days; not a forgiving strong-wind beginner venue.
very wide beach can mean a long walk to open water depending on the tide
Strong Bora produces powerful, fast-building waves and strong current.
No safety boat: in Bora with current and shorebreak, the way back is your own.

Protected areas and rules

During the 2026 bathing season, launching/landing outside the authorized corridor is restricted in the bathing zone.
Only one kite may transit the launch corridor at a time; entry and exit require a body-drag for at least the first 100 m.
Breakwater and port entrance at the Diga: riding is banned inside the ports and channels of the Chioggia district and within 500 m of their mouths.
During the bathing season, launching and landing outside the authorized corridor is forbidden inside the bathing zone, and the 300 m bathing strip is closed to kites between 08:30 and 19:30.
Only one kite may transit the launch corridor at a time; entry and exit require a body-drag for the first 100 m, with priority to the rider coming in.

Other

Cloudy water and some sea grass reported.
Cloudy water and some sea grass.
A wide beach means a long walk to open water at low water.

Rules & access

2 min read

2026 season: during the bathing season, kitesurf and wingfoil are allowed only through the dedicated launch corridor on the free beach by the Diga, between lifeguard towers 1 and 2; outside that corridor, launching, landing and navigation inside the bathing zone are forbidden, and no evolutions, jumps or dangerous manoeuvres are allowed close to shore or inside the corridor. The 2026 bathing season runs to 13 September 2026 unless extended.

Corridor specifications

Underneath that sits the Chioggia maritime district's bathing-safety framework (ordinance 24/2009 and its yearly successors), which sets the detail: kitesurf only in daylight and in favourable sea and weather; during the bathing season riding is confined to the water between 300 m and 1,000 m from the bathed shoreline, and between 08:30 and 19:30 the 300 m bathing strip is closed to any craft, windsurf and kitesurf included; launch and landing must use a marked corridor whose position is notified in advance to the Capitaneria and the municipality, at least 30 m wide at the water's edge and widening to 80 m at 100 m out, bounded by orange buoys to 300 m and signed on the beach; the corridor is free to use and open to all, is for launching and landing only, and swimming, mooring, anchoring and every other craft are banned inside it; where depth allows, the first 100 m must be covered by body-drag, otherwise on foot, with one kite at a time in those 100 m and priority to the rider coming in.

Rider requirements

Riders must be at least 16, must wear a flotation device (lifebelt, floating harness or floating wetsuit) at all times, must have a quick-release that depowers the kite while keeping it attached, and must carry a line cutter; lines are connected only when about to launch and disconnected on landing, and a kite is never left unattended without one side disconnected and the lines wound up.

Restrictions and permits

Riding is banned inside the ports and maritime channels of the Chioggia district and within 500 m of their mouths, which is directly relevant at the Diga, and within 100 m of a diver's marker buoy. No permit or registration fee is required to use the corridor.

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

Check the Diga Sud Chioggia forecast and the live readings before you drive; the good days here are forecast days.
In Bora, rig smaller than you would for a sea breeze and expect current, shorebreak and waves that build fast.
Use the official corridor between towers 1 and 2 during the 2026 bathing season, never launch through the swimmer zone, and ask at Radical Spot or SpinOut about the current markers and any day-specific restriction.
Stay tight under the breakwater for the flattest water; move out and east only if you want the bigger chop and the waves.
The corridor is free and needs no card, but the rules attached to it are law here: 16 minimum age, a flotation device worn at all times, a working quick-release and a line cutter.
Keep well clear of the port mouth at the Diga; the 500 m exclusion around harbour and channel entrances is not a courtesy line.

Getting there

Airport

Venice Marco Polo (VCE) is the nearest major airport, 32.4 km from Sottomarina in a straight line; Treviso (TSF) is 49.4 km away.

Route

By car, follow the signs to Chioggia and then Sottomarina. By bus, get to Venice Piazzale Roma and take line 80 to Sottomarina; from Marco Polo Airport you connect to Piazzale Roma first. There is also a direct bus from the airport to Sottomarina-Piazzale Europa on some weekdays and Sundays, about 1h20.

Transfer

80 min

Cost level

medium

Staying

Sottomarina is a developed seaside resort: hotels, campsites, residences, apartments and beach establishments. The kite end is up by INDIGA and Gigetto's at the north; SpinOut has an agreement with the Mosella Suite Hotel.

No-wind days

Chioggia old town and its canals, the Venice lagoon by boat, Pellestrina and Ca' Roman, the walk out along the Diga Sottomarina, the beach clubs, the cycling routes, SUP and surf, the seafood in town, and diving or snorkelling trips out to Le Tegnue.

Photos

Venice lagoon canal at Chioggia, recognisable local waterscape — Ik2hty / CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

FAQ

Is Sottomarina di Chioggia suitable for beginners?

Schools run beginner courses at the spot, but strong Bora, waves, current and the breakwater mean independent beginners should stick to lighter, side-on days with school support.

What is the wind like?

The main winds are Bora from the north/north-east, often 20 to 45 knots in spring and autumn, and Scirocco from the south/south-east, with summer generally offering little reliable wind.

Where do you launch?

The kite corridor sits on the free beach near the Diga, between lifeguard towers 1 and 2, close to the INDIGA and Gigetto's area at the north end of Sottomarina.

Are there rules or restricted zones?

In 2026, kitesurf and wingfoil during the bathing season, which runs until 13 September, are allowed only through the dedicated launch corridor, with launching and navigation elsewhere in the bathing zone forbidden.

What hazards should riders know about?

Hazards include the breakwater and port entrance area, strong Bora-driven waves and current, and a busy summer beach crowd.

The bigger pictureEverything about Chioggia

Last updated: August 2026