Best Kitespots in New Zealand

61 spots · Oceania

Best for kiting in April and from August to January, with 51 to 61 % kite days. Water 13 to 20 °C.

Median of 38 spots with model data, one per grid cell.

Kite spots: 61 spots
Median kite days: 52 % of days; median spot, over the year
Water: 17 °C; median, 2023 to 2025
Best spot: Clifford Bay; 73 % kite days per year

Kitesurfing in New Zealand

New Zealand has 61 kite spots in our data. The median spot reaches 52 % kite days over the year; Clifford Bay leads with 73 %. The spots spread over 14 regions.

Best season at the median spot: April and August to January (50 % kite days or more). Water 13 to 20 °C over the year.

Kite destinations in New Zealand

Kitesurfing in Raglan
Windiest month: September, 56 % kite days
1. J
2. F
3. M
4. A
5. M
6. J
7. J
8. A
9. S
10. O
11. N
12. D
Kite days by month in Raglan: Jan 42 %, Feb 31 %, Mar 29 %, Apr 35 %, May 34 %, Jun 37 %, Jul 42 %, Aug 42 %, Sep 56 %, Oct 51 %, Nov 39 %, Dec 40 %

All kite destinations, month by month

Best time to visit New Zealand

Prime 60 % and more
Good 40 to 59 %
Possible 20 to 39 %
Off under 20 %
No data hatched
Ringed: this month

Prime also needs a good month in at least 7 of the 9 years, so one freak year cannot make a month Prime. A month with 60 %+ but fewer good years shows as Good.

Best season: April and August to January
Warm and windy: January to February

Kite days at the median spot range from 46 % in February to 61 % in September.

Water 13 °C in August to 20 °C in February. Air 14 °C in August to 21 °C in February, day maximum.

Kitesurfing in New Zealand: quick answers

When is the best time to kitesurf in New Zealand?

The best months are April and August to January: the median spot in New Zealand had 51 to 61 % kite days in those months from 2017 to 2025.

Which is the best kite spot in New Zealand?

Clifford Bay has the most kite days in New Zealand: 73 % of days averaged over the year, 2017 to 2025.

How warm is the water in New Zealand?

The water ranges from 13 °C in August to 20 °C in February at the median spot. Wetsuit: 5/4 in August, 3/2 in February.

Destinations by month

Kite days per month, % of days, 2017 to 2025

Kite days by month for destinations in New Zealand
	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Raglan	42	31	29	35	34	37	42	42	56	51	39	40

Prime 60 % and more
Good 40 to 59 %
Possible 20 to 39 %
Off under 20 %
No data hatched

Prime also needs a good month in at least 7 of the 9 years, so one freak year cannot make a month Prime. A month with 60 %+ but fewer good years shows as Good.

Regions by month

Median kite days of the spots in each region.

Kite days per month, % of days, 2017 to 2025

Kite days by month for regions in New Zealand
	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Auckland	52	42	43	56	47	49	49	52	61	60	51	52
Canterbury	52	46	35	30	22	23	24	24	36	42	46	55
Northland	61	47	52	61	57	57	62	64	66	67	55	58
Taranaki	58	52	57	61	59	60	63	64	73	69	63	62
Wellington	67	67	62	58	56	55	58	66	75	72	72	72

Prime 60 % and more
Good 40 to 59 %
Possible 20 to 39 %
Off under 20 %
No data hatched

Prime also needs a good month in at least 7 of the 9 years, so one freak year cannot make a month Prime. A month with 60 %+ but fewer good years shows as Good.

Water temperature by region and month

Water temperature by month for regions in New Zealand
	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Auckland	22 °C	23 °C	21 °C	19 °C	17 °C	15 °C	14 °C	13 °C	15 °C	16 °C	19 °C	21 °C
Canterbury	19 °C	19 °C	18 °C	16 °C	13 °C	11 °C	10 °C	9 °C	11 °C	13 °C	16 °C	18 °C
Northland	21 °C	22 °C	21 °C	20 °C	18 °C	17 °C	16 °C	15 °C	16 °C	16 °C	18 °C	19 °C
Taranaki	20 °C	20 °C	19 °C	18 °C	17 °C	16 °C	15 °C	14 °C	14 °C	15 °C	17 °C	18 °C
Wellington	18 °C	19 °C	18 °C	17 °C	16 °C	14 °C	13 °C	13 °C	13 °C	14 °C	15 °C	17 °C

Median water temperature of the spots in each region, 2023 to 2025, from the Open-Meteo marine archive.

Top spots outside our destinations

Good spots that no kiteCOMPASS destination covers yet, ranked by kite days per year.

Kite days per year, % of days

1
Clifford Bay
New Zealand
73 %
2
Lyall Bay
New Zealand
71 %
3
Pungarehu
New Zealand
70 %
4
Stent Road
New Zealand
70 %
5
Farewell Spit
New Zealand
69 %
6
Castlepoint Beach
New Zealand
68 %
7
Kina Road
New Zealand
67 %
8
Tokerau Beach
New Zealand
62 %
9
Whitireia Park Bay
New Zealand
62 %
10
Petone Beach
New Zealand
60 %

Good for learning

Kite schools teach here, checked against kite guides. Only spots we checked appear.

None checked in New Zealand yet.

By region

Auckland

24 spots · 52 % kite days per year

See all spots in Auckland

Taranaki

8 spots · 62 % kite days per year

See all spots in Taranaki

Canterbury

4 spots · 36 % kite days per year

See all spots in Canterbury

Northland

4 spots · 59 % kite days per year

See all spots in Northland

Waikato

4 spots · 40 % kite days per year

See all spots in Waikato

Wellington

4 spots · 65 % kite days per year

See all spots in Wellington

Otago

3 spots · 48 % kite days per year

See all spots in Otago

Middle Beach

Smaller regions

All spots in New Zealand

Clifford Bay leads with 73 % kite days per year, followed by Lyall Bay (71 %) and Bayley Road (70 %).

Kite days per year, % of days

1
Clifford Bay
New Zealand
73 %
1. J
2. F
3. M
4. A
5. M
6. J
7. J
8. A
9. S
10. O
11. N
12. D
Kite days by month at Clifford Bay: Jan 73 %, Feb 78 %, Mar 74 %, Apr 72 %, May 62 %, Jun 63 %, Jul 61 %, Aug 72 %, Sep 80 %, Oct 82 %, Nov 80 %, Dec 76 %
2
Lyall Bay
New Zealand
71 %
1. J
2. F
3. M
4. A
5. M
6. J
7. J
8. A
9. S
10. O
11. N
12. D
Kite days by month at Lyall Bay: Jan 71 %, Feb 73 %, Mar 67 %, Apr 67 %, May 63 %, Jun 59 %, Jul 63 %, Aug 74 %, Sep 78 %, Oct 83 %, Nov 78 %, Dec 76 %
3
Bayley Road
New Zealand
70 %
1. J
2. F
3. M
4. A
5. M
6. J
7. J
8. A
9. S
10. O
11. N
12. D
Kite days by month at Bayley Road: Jan 63 %, Feb 57 %, Mar 69 %, Apr 70 %, May 70 %, Jun 68 %, Jul 74 %, Aug 75 %, Sep 81 %, Oct 75 %, Nov 66 %, Dec 71 %
4
Pungarehu
New Zealand
70 %
1. J
2. F
3. M
4. A
5. M
6. J
7. J
8. A
9. S
10. O
11. N
12. D
Kite days by month at Pungarehu: Jan 63 %, Feb 57 %, Mar 69 %, Apr 70 %, May 70 %, Jun 68 %, Jul 74 %, Aug 75 %, Sep 81 %, Oct 75 %, Nov 66 %, Dec 71 %
5
Stent Road
New Zealand
70 %
1. J
2. F
3. M
4. A
5. M
6. J
7. J
8. A
9. S
10. O
11. N
12. D
Kite days by month at Stent Road: Jan 65 %, Feb 56 %, Mar 67 %, Apr 70 %, May 70 %, Jun 66 %, Jul 72 %, Aug 75 %, Sep 84 %, Oct 73 %, Nov 69 %, Dec 69 %
6
Farewell Spit
New Zealand
69 %
1. J
2. F
3. M
4. A
5. M
6. J
7. J
8. A
9. S
10. O
11. N
12. D
Kite days by month at Farewell Spit: Jan 70 %, Feb 70 %, Mar 69 %, Apr 65 %, May 60 %, Jun 65 %, Jul 61 %, Aug 63 %, Sep 77 %, Oct 80 %, Nov 75 %, Dec 76 %
7
Castlepoint Beach
New Zealand
68 %
1. J
2. F
3. M
4. A
5. M
6. J
7. J
8. A
9. S
10. O
11. N
12. D
Kite days by month at Castlepoint Beach: Jan 76 %, Feb 70 %, Mar 72 %, Apr 59 %, May 57 %, Jun 58 %, Jul 61 %, Aug 68 %, Sep 78 %, Oct 70 %, Nov 74 %, Dec 75 %
8
Kina Road
New Zealand
67 %
1. J
2. F
3. M
4. A
5. M
6. J
7. J
8. A
9. S
10. O
11. N
12. D
Kite days by month at Kina Road: Jan 62 %, Feb 58 %, Mar 64 %, Apr 66 %, May 66 %, Jun 64 %, Jul 66 %, Aug 69 %, Sep 77 %, Oct 72 %, Nov 67 %, Dec 66 %
9
Tokerau Beach
New Zealand
62 %
1. J
2. F
3. M
4. A
5. M
6. J
7. J
8. A
9. S
10. O
11. N
12. D
Kite days by month at Tokerau Beach: Jan 62 %, Feb 49 %, Mar 58 %, Apr 62 %, May 63 %, Jun 59 %, Jul 66 %, Aug 69 %, Sep 68 %, Oct 67 %, Nov 56 %, Dec 65 %
10
Whitireia Park Bay
New Zealand
62 %
1. J
2. F
3. M
4. A
5. M
6. J
7. J
8. A
9. S
10. O
11. N
12. D
Kite days by month at Whitireia Park Bay: Jan 59 %, Feb 60 %, Mar 58 %, Apr 56 %, May 56 %, Jun 52 %, Jul 56 %, Aug 64 %, Sep 73 %, Oct 71 %, Nov 66 %, Dec 67 %
11
Petone Beach
New Zealand
60 %
1. J
2. F
3. M
4. A
5. M
6. J
7. J
8. A
9. S
10. O
11. N
12. D
Kite days by month at Petone Beach: Jan 63 %, Feb 64 %, Mar 56 %, Apr 54 %, May 51 %, Jun 45 %, Jul 52 %, Aug 61 %, Sep 68 %, Oct 72 %, Nov 70 %, Dec 69 %
12
Ninety Mile Beach
New Zealand
60 %
1. J
2. F
3. M
4. A
5. M
6. J
7. J
8. A
9. S
10. O
11. N
12. D
Kite days by month at Ninety Mile Beach: Jan 63 %, Feb 50 %, Mar 53 %, Apr 61 %, May 56 %, Jun 57 %, Jul 63 %, Aug 64 %, Sep 68 %, Oct 67 %, Nov 56 %, Dec 59 %
13
Ruakaka River Mouth
New Zealand
58 %
1. J
2. F
3. M
4. A
5. M
6. J
7. J
8. A
9. S
10. O
11. N
12. D
Kite days by month at Ruakaka River Mouth: Jan 59 %, Feb 44 %, Mar 51 %, Apr 62 %, May 58 %, Jun 57 %, Jul 61 %, Aug 63 %, Sep 64 %, Oct 67 %, Nov 54 %, Dec 56 %
14
Oakura
New Zealand
57 %
1. J
2. F
3. M
4. A
5. M
6. J
7. J
8. A
9. S
10. O
11. N
12. D
Kite days by month at Oakura: Jan 53 %, Feb 47 %, Mar 49 %, Apr 55 %, May 53 %, Jun 56 %, Jul 59 %, Aug 59 %, Sep 69 %, Oct 65 %, Nov 57 %, Dec 57 %
15
Weld Road
New Zealand
57 %
1. J
2. F
3. M
4. A
5. M
6. J
7. J
8. A
9. S
10. O
11. N
12. D
Kite days by month at Weld Road: Jan 53 %, Feb 47 %, Mar 49 %, Apr 55 %, May 53 %, Jun 56 %, Jul 59 %, Aug 59 %, Sep 69 %, Oct 65 %, Nov 57 %, Dec 57 %

Show 46 more spots

16 Army Bay 56 %
17 Orewa 56 %
18 Shakespear Regional Park 56 %
19 Tindalls Beach 56 %
20 Bramley Beach 55 %
21 Eastern Beach 55 %
22 St. Heliers 55 %
23 East End 55 %
24 Omaha 54 %
25 Manly Beach 53 %
26 Taieri River Mouth 52 %
27 Browns Bay 52 %
28 Waitara 52 %
29 Muriwai 50 %
30 Herne Bay 48 %
31 Island Bay 48 %
32 Kohimarama 48 %
33 Milford 48 %
34 Mission Bay 48 %
35 Pt. Chevalier 48 %
36 Shoal Bay 48 %
37 Takapuna 48 %
38 Tamaki Point 48 %
39 Middle Beach 48 %
40 Paihia 45 %
41 Napier 44 %
42 Tamaki River 43 %
43 Ashworths Beach 42 %
44 Kuku Beach 42 %
45 Jenkins Bay 41 %
46 Kaitarakihi 41 %
47 Whangamata 41 %
48 Lake Pupuke 40 %
49 Raglan 40 %
50 Raglan Beach 40 %
51 New Brighton South 36 %
52 Foxton River Mouth 35 %
53 Lake Ellesmere / Timber 32 %
54 Wairau Bar 24 %
55 Ohope Beach 23 %
56 Tahunanui 19 %
57 Lake Taupo 18 %
58 Lake Coleridge / Ryton Bay 3 %
59 Lake Clearwater 1 %
60 Lake Wanaka / Te Hai 0 %
61 Waihi Bay 0 %

More in Oceania

Back to all Oceania spots

kiteCOMPASS · method k3h-10to19-v1 · 2017 to 2025

Kite days by month for New Zealand: median of 38 spots with model wind data (one per grid cell), 2017 to 2025; water temperature 2023 to 2025.

Cite this

kiteCOMPASS, kite spots in New Zealand, data 2017 to 2025. https://kitecompass.app/best-kitespots/new-zealand

Numbers on this page are free to reuse under CC BY 4.0: name kiteCOMPASS and link to this page.