The 20 Best Kitesurfing Spots in the World

Tight wind, water flowing under the board and that suspended instant before take-off: anyone looking for the 20 best kitesurfing spots in the world doesn’t want just a list of names, but real guidance to choose the next session. From the tramontana on the Adriatic to Caribbean lagoons, passing through Indian Ocean reefs, each spot has a distinct character, with conditions, seasons and “traps” to know. Between long waves for wave riding, flat water for freestyle and channels ideal for learning the first tacks, the point isn’t only where it blows strongest, but where the wind combines with safety, logistics and kite atmosphere.

Anyone coming from the world of kitesurf Italy will find many parallels in this global panorama with the Salento wind: spots that change face with a few degrees difference in direction, protected bays perfect for kitesurfing for beginners, reefs that reward those with total bar control. The goal isn’t to sell the “perfect destination”, but to help you understand which spot truly meets your needs: technical progression, an active family vacation, intensive training or a nomad trip following weather systems. In these pages famous names like Tarifa, Maui or Cape Town coexist with lesser-shouted gems, and with a continuous comparison with the best kitesurf spot in Italy, particularly with Salento, to show you how to read a place even before rigging the kite.

• 20 kitesurfing spots in the world compared by wind, water, required level and atmosphere.
• Clear guidance for those who want to learn kitesurfing and choose a spot suitable for first water starts.
• Special focus on kitesurf Salento, spot kitesurf Puglia and how they rank compared to the major international classics.
• Equipment, course and safety advice to plan kitesurf vacations without surprises.
• Practical table to compare wind season, water conditions and recommended level of the main spots.

Top 20 best kitesurfing spots in the world: complete overview

Before diving into the details of individual places, it’s useful to have an overview of how the best kitesurfing spots in the world are distributed. The red thread is always the same: reliable wind, manageable water and space to rig safely. Around these three pillars, each area plays its own game. In Europe Tarifa and Greece stand out for the consistency of summer wind, while the Canaries offer almost year-round conditions. Across the Atlantic, Brazil remains the king of side-onshore wind, while the Caribbean is dominated by turquoise lagoons and stable winter weather.

If you look to the Indian Ocean, the Sri Lanka – Zanzibar – Mauritius triangle offers a powerful combination of reefs, lagoons and solid thermal winds. Further away, Hawaii and the southwest Pacific attract those seeking significant waves and wild scenery. In this global mosaic, kitesurf Italy occupies an interesting position: perhaps with less “guarantee” of wind compared to northeast Brazil, but with a remarkable variety of conditions, especially between kitesurf Adriatic and kitesurf Ionian. Those who train sensitivity and weather reading here then adapt more easily to foreign spots.

To avoid getting lost, it’s useful to classify spots by water type and required level. Some of the 20 best places in the world are clearly suited for kitesurfing for beginners, with shallow water and moderate wind. Others already demand good board control and the ability to handle shorebreak, currents or aggressive chop. Imagine Marco, an intermediate rider who started in kitesurf Lecce and now looks for a pure freestyle trip: he will need flat water, medium-strong side-shore wind and space to make mistakes. Different is Chiara’s case, who wants to combine a kitesurf course with relaxation: for her it’s essential to have an organized kitesurf school, water rescue and accommodation close to the beach.

To better orient yourself among the 20 spots most cited internationally, the following table offers a quick glance at season, water type and recommended level. It’s not dogma, but a useful compass to start narrowing options based on what you really want to do in the water, not just the photos on social media.

This overview already allows you to see how a rider who trained between kitesurf Taranto and kitesurf Salento can choose the next jump with criteria: it’s not enough to ask “where it blows hard”, you need the spot that makes you grow without knocking you out at the first bad gust.

The 20 best kitesurfing spots in the world: from Tarifa to Brazil

When we talk about the top 20 best kitesurfing spots in the world, some names come up automatically because, simply, the wind there arrives like an alarm clock. In Europe, Tarifa in Spain is the perfect example: a crossroads of winds between the Atlantic and Mediterranean, with a strong and steady Levante and a more manageable Poniente. Here sea space is not lacking, but you already need good skill to handle gusts and crowds. It’s an extraordinary spot for those who want to raise their level, less ideal for those who still can’t control speed on the board well.

Staying on the European continent, Greece offers gems like Mikri Vigla on Naxos and the windy beaches of Rhodes or Paros. The summer Meltemi blows regularly, often side-shore, creating manageable and very educational conditions. It’s an interesting scenario for those coming from the kitesurf Adriatic: thermal or gradient wind, moderate chop, warm water. Those who learned among Garda thermals or Salento breezes will find Greece a familiar playground but often more consistent in intensity.

Across the Atlantic, Brazil dominates the rankings thanks to spots like Cumbuco, Jericoacoara, Tatajuba and Preá. Here the trade wind blows almost every day in season, often at a side-onshore angle that makes returns to the beach easy even for those who are not yet edge-of-beating ninjas. The internal lagoons, often shallow and flat, are an ideal laboratory for rapid progression: jumps, controlled kiteloops, first unhooked tricks. Those who have racked up sessions in spot kitesurf Puglia will find in Brazil the “turbo” version of what they already know: same principles, but more hours on the water each day.

In the Indian Ocean, Le Morne in Mauritius is iconic. Lagoon and reef offer two parallel worlds: inside a pool of flat water perfect for freeride and consolidating basics, outside a powerful wave that requires technique and attention to corals. It’s a classic example of a spot that can be in a top 20 precisely because it satisfies different riding styles. A similar but more “raw” dynamic is found at Ponta Preta in Cape Verde, where the wave is the undisputed protagonist and the margin for error shrinks.

Those looking for easier conditions can look to Sri Lanka, with Kalpitiya and the nearby lagoons. Strong but steady wind, flat water and well-structured schools make this area a reference for those who want to combine an intensive kitesurf course with a simple vacation. Heading to these destinations after a few seasons between kitesurf Ionian and the Adriatic allows you to capitalize on the habit of less predictable winds, bringing a more mature weather reading to tropical waters.

Broadening the view further, Maui in Hawaii remains an icon. Here wind meets significant waves and currents, which makes Hawaiian spots less suited to first tacks but perfect for those wanting to explore wave riding with directional boards and foil. The same applies to Cape Town in South Africa, where 30 knots are the rule rather than the exception. It’s the place where riders with solid foundations, perhaps formed between kitesurf Lecce and northern Italy lake spots, go to test themselves in real conditions.

The takeaway? These 20 spots, spread across continents and climates, share one thing: a wind that, in season, really arrives. The rest – water type, temperature, services – must be chosen based on where you are in your rider journey.

How to choose your next spot in the world top 20

Faced with so many options, the real question is: which spot makes sense for you right now? For a novice coming from kitesurfing for beginners in a calm lagoon, a Tarifa with Levante at 35 knots would be only frustration and unnecessary risk. Conversely, an advanced rider used to the chop of kitesurf Taranto might get bored in a closed bay with 15 knots side-on and waist-deep water. The key is to cross three factors: level, the style you want to train and the time you can dedicate to the session.

A good strategy is this:

• Beginner level: look for spots with flat or slightly choppy water, moderate depth and wind between 14 and 22 knots, side-onshore. Brazilian lagoons, Sri Lanka, some Caribbean bays and several kitesurf Italy spots in summer fit this profile.
• Intermediate level: you can aim for places with chop, moderate shorebreak and winds between 18 and 28 knots. Tarifa with Poniente, Meltemi in Greece, the Canaries on non-extreme days and many Salento spots are perfect.
• Advanced level: if you have total control in every point of sail, you can target Cape Town, Hawaiian wave spots, Mauritius reefs or the bigger waves of Cape Verde.

Another often underestimated variable is water temperature. Beautiful spots in winter require well-chosen, performance wetsuits. Before planning a trip to cold waters, it makes sense to study a good kite wetsuit guide: a useful resource is available here, in Italian, on how to choose a kitesurf wetsuit, perfect to prepare for long sessions without freezing after four runs.

Closing this loop, you see how the world top 20 is not a fixed podium but a grid to use according to your specific moment. The best spot in the world is the one that lets you get back to shore smiling and with a small technical step forward.

Kitesurf Italy vs the rest of the world: the role of Salento and Puglia

Comparing kitesurf Italy and international giants isn’t a parochial game, but a practical way to understand what you can train near home before investing in a long trip. The south of the peninsula, with kitesurf Salento at the forefront, offers a surprisingly complete gym thanks to two seas: kitesurf Adriatic on one side, kitesurf Ionian on the other. This means that, with the same weather system, you can find waves on one side and more orderly water on the other, simply by moving a few kilometers.

The kitesurf Lecce and kitesurf Taranto spots are perfect for learning to read how wind interacts with the coast. The tramontana, for example, often gives cleaner sea on the Ionian side, while the sirocco can fill the Adriatic with chop and at the same time open interesting windows in sheltered bays. This kind of training is not “local folklore”: it’s exactly the skill you need when you land in Tarifa, Greece or Brazil and must decide, based on a map, which beach works best that day.

Among the best kitesurf spots in Italy it’s impossible not to mention some lagoons in the northeast, thermal lake spots and the major islands like Sicily and Sardinia. The consistency of summer wind in certain narrow channels or tide-influenced bays makes these places perfect for those who want to combine kitesurf school and first jumps. A rider who completed a good kitesurf course in Puglia, perhaps on a mixed chop-wave spot, will arrive in a windy Brazil with a superior base of balance and board management compared to someone who has only seen flat lagoons.

In Puglia, the variety of conditions is often compared – on a small scale – to that of some ocean destinations: no giant swell, of course, but a combination of cliffs, long beaches, sheltered bays and headlands that alter wind direction. This explains why many Italian instructors insist on the importance of understanding the famous Salento wind: it’s not just “how hard it blows”, but “where it enters from, what it hits, what it creates in the water”. The qualitative leap between the rider who only looks at the anemometer and the one who interprets wind charts and coastal morphology becomes evident in every new spot in the same way.

Comparing Italy and the world, some concrete advantages of the Puglian coasts for those who want to really grow emerge:

• Easy access to multiple spots within an hour’s drive;
• Presence of established schools that know the “signatures” of the various local winds perfectly;
• Possibility of doing kitesurf vacations combining intense sessions with discovery of coastal towns, without complex logistics like internal flights or long transfers.

In short, Italy – and Puglia in particular – certainly do not replace giants like Brazil or Hawaii, but they can prepare you to really take advantage of them. Getting into the water in Jericoacoara with your head already used to wind games means turning every gust into an ally and not into a surprise.

From Salento to the world: building your own “quiver” of spots

A modern rider doesn’t get attached to a single spot; they build a true “quiver of places”, just like with sails. In practice, many start with kitesurf Salento, then add a trip to Greece or the Canaries to the calendar, and when the level grows they aim for Brazil or Mauritius. Each stop adds a specific skill: in Puglia you learn to handle changes in direction and intensity jumps, in Greece you refine technique in more regular water, in Brazil you push freestyle in flat lagoons, in Mauritius you begin to taste waves in relative safety.

This progression is not mandatory, but it works because it alternates familiarity and challenge. After a season among spot kitesurf Puglia, tackling Tarifa in the low season – with medium wind and less crowded seas – can be an intelligent choice. There the game becomes learning coexistence with dozens of kites in the air, an element often missing in less tourist-driven Italian spots. Finally, when space and speed management is natural, aiming for an international wave spot allows you to rediscover kitesurf almost from scratch, with directional boards or foil.

This way of thinking about the 20 best spots on earth not as a checklist to collect, but as a reasoned journey, immediately puts you in a different mindset: don’t just ask “where it blows strongest”, but “where can I take the next step without burning stages”.

Learning kitesurfing: recommended spots worldwide for beginners and intermediates

If the main goal is to learn kitesurfing, choosing the spot weighs as much as choosing the board or the kite. The risk of starting in conditions that are too difficult is associating the kite with frustration: too deep water, strong onshore wind, heavy shorebreak. Instead, some of the 20 best kitesurfing spots in the world shine precisely because they offer ideal gyms for the first days, with shallow water, moderate wind and large spaces where you can make mistakes without paying dearly.

Among these, many lagoons in Brazil are now a global reference for kitesurfing for beginners. Constant side-on wind, smooth water, prepared schools and rescue always ready make progression rapid and safe. Similarly, Kalpitiya in Sri Lanka offers a calm lagoon with sandy bottom and strong but regular wind; the ideal is to get there with the theoretical basics already clear and use the trip to turn the first few meters of water start into truly controlled tacks.

But you don’t necessarily have to cross the ocean. In kitesurf Italy there are several spots designed precisely for beginners: closed lagoons, sheltered gulfs, lakes with boat service. A good kitesurf school in Italy, especially in regions like Puglia, Sicily or Veneto, is often the smartest starting point, because it also introduces you to all safety aspects, right-of-way rules and reading conditions. A good instructor teaches you that there is no “lost day”: if the wind is too strong or off to go out, you study on land, review theory, analyze the weather.

For intermediate riders, instead, the spots to choose are those that demand something more: a bit of chop, some waves to overcome, maybe light currents. Places like Tarifa with Poniente, some Greek beaches, or the kitesurf Salento spots with tramontana form a perfect intermediate step. You’re not yet in full “ocean winter”, but neither in the perfect lagoon. Here edge control, starting in switch and basic jump control becomes essential to really have fun.

An often overlooked aspect in learning is managing the cold. In many European spots, even in late spring or early autumn, staying many hours in the water means protecting yourself well. A poorly chosen wetsuit shortens sessions, fatigues muscles and reduces clarity. This is why it’s useful to study guides like those on choosing a kitesurf wetsuit, so you don’t discover after the first body drag that you’re stiff as a board.

Another piece for those who want to learn kitesurfing well is to gradually introduce different disciplines. After the first twin-tip outings, many approach foil to open new horizons in light winds. In this sense, an interesting resource to understand how to start is the foil guide available here: foil and surf-foil: how to begin, which helps not to skip steps in a technical but very rewarding discipline.

Practical checklist to choose a spot if you’re learning

To avoid gross mistakes in choosing the destination, a concrete checklist can make the difference between a true progression trip and a holiday spent on the beach waiting for the right moment that never comes. Before booking, always ask yourself:

• Wind: in that time of year, do statistics show at least 4 days out of 7 with wind suitable for beginners (not excessive, not too unstable)?
• Type of water: is there a shallow water area where you can do body drags and first starts without immediately losing bottom?
• Schools and safety: is there at least one kitesurf school with certified instructors, radio in helmets and recovery service?
• Beach space: is it possible to learn to manage the kite on the sand without being glued to other kites?
• Logistics: from your accommodation to the spot do you need complex transfers or can you reach the beach easily every day?

Answering these questions honestly, perhaps consulting riders who know both kitesurf Italy spots and some of the major world destinations, protects you from choices based only on spectacular photos but poorly aligned with the real needs of someone still building the basics.

This way, every trip becomes a “module” added to your path, not a leap into the void in conditions that have nothing to do with what you actually know how to do on the board.

Seasons, wind and equipment: plan your kitesurf vacations

Even the best spot in the world, in the wrong month, can turn into a flat-water pool with not a leaf moving. That’s why planning kitesurf vacations well means studying the wind season as much as accommodation. Tarifa, for example, performs best between late spring and early autumn, while Cape Town explodes in the southern hemisphere summer. Brazil lives its peak between late summer and the European winter, from August to January, when the trade winds enter with impressive regularity.

Those who stay in Europe can exploit a mix of thermals and weather systems. Lake Garda, Lake Idro and other lake spots offer morning and afternoon sessions tied to temperature differences between water and air. In the south, between kitesurf Salento and Sicily, the presence of two seas or narrow channels creates wind accelerations that, if understood, allow multiplying outings even in shoulder months. Here the Salento wind is an ally only if you learn to read it in advance, checking local forecasts and consulting those who live that coast every day.

Equipment then plays a key role. Those choosing windy destinations like Brazil or Cape Town often need to bring smaller kites (7–9 meters), while for Italian thermals in summer you often need 11–13 meters. Having a flexible quiver, or quality rental availability on site, makes everything more manageable. Likewise, a good wetsuit tuned to the actual water temperature decides how long you can stay in the water each session: no use having 30 knots perfect if after 20 minutes you’re shivering.

A small trick from an experienced rider is to build the year’s calendar alternating pure intensity trips (like Brazil in high season) with “reading” training periods in places like the kitesurf Adriatic or Ionian. In the first you rack up hours, try tricks, insist on jumps. In the second you learn to make peace with shifting wind, changing forecasts, borderline days when you decide whether to go in or not. This balance makes each season complete, without relying only on two weeks of long vacation.

Finally, don’t forget that many top destinations require early bookings, especially for accommodation close to the spot and for organized kitesurf courses. Serious schools work with limited numbers to maintain quality and safety; moving early guarantees you a place when wind statistics are best.

Annual strategy: combining Italy and the world

An effective plan might look like this: spring and autumn spent exploiting the fronts of kitesurf Italy, between Puglia, Sardinia and Tuscany, with short weekends dedicated to specific spots. Summer focused on thermals of lakes and Adriatic and Ionian coasts, perhaps adding some technique clinics in spots like kitesurf Lecce or some Sicilian bays. Winter, if possible, dedicated to a big transfer to one of the top 20 world destinations: Brazil, South Africa, Sri Lanka or the Caribbean.

This rhythm ensures you never have a dead moment in the rider’s season, turning each time of year into a piece of a bigger puzzle. And, above all, it gives you something wind statistics don’t tell: consistency. In kitesurfing, those who truly progress aren’t the ones who make an occasional explosive trip, but those who build many “blocks” of water distributed throughout the year.

What is the best spot in the world for someone new to kitesurfing?

There isn’t a single best spot, but some places are particularly suitable for kitesurfing beginners: many lagoons in Brazil, Kalpitiya in Sri Lanka and some sheltered bays in Greece and Italy offer shallow water, moderate wind and structured schools. The priority is to look for side-on wind, sandy bottom and the presence of a kitesurf school with dedicated rescue.

How do kitesurf spots in Italy compare to the major international spots?

Kitesurf spots in Italy, especially in regions like Puglia, Sicily, Sardinia and the large northern lakes, don’t always have the same wind consistency as the Brazilian trade winds, but they offer an enormous variety of conditions. Between the Adriatic and the Ionian, for example, Salento allows training in chop, waves and variable wind. This complexity forms well-rounded riders, capable of then taking full advantage of the easier conditions at the world’s top spots.

When is it best to book kitesurf vacations to top destinations like Brazil or Cape Verde?

For the most requested destinations it’s wise to move several months in advance, especially if you want accommodation near the spot or to follow an intensive kitesurf course. For Brazil the strong period runs from August to January, while for Cape Verde and many Atlantic areas the European winter is ideal. Booking by the end of spring for winter trips ensures more choice and often better rates.

What’s the difference between choosing an ocean spot and one on a closed sea like the Mediterranean?

Ocean spots often offer more consistent swell, marked tides and strong, clean winds, but can present stronger currents and challenging shorebreak. The Mediterranean, and therefore kitesurfing in Italy, offers generally smaller waves and less extreme conditions, but greater variability and dependence on weather systems. Training in the Mediterranean helps develop good weather reading, useful later for any destination.

Is it necessary to use a foil to make the most of the best kitesurfing spots in the world?

It’s not mandatory, but foil opens a new dimension, especially on light wind days. Many top destinations have mornings with 10–14 knots where the twin-tip struggles while the foil flies. Starting calmly, following dedicated teaching resources and targeted lessons, allows you to greatly increase the number of usable days both in Italian spots and abroad.