Sea · Kilifi County · Kenya
Watamu Reef
Best for kiting from May to July, with 58 to 76 % kite days. Water 27 to 29 °C.
A kite day has at least 3 hours of 12 to 35 knots (gusts up to 45) between 10:00 and 19:00, in daylight. Percentages are the share of such days in each month, counted over 9 years.
- 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.
Confidence highHourly model data, 2017 to 2025, checked against the season shape of a nearby weather station, a regional model or a documented season. Shares its model grid cell with 1 nearby spot, so the numbers describe the area, not one beach.
Month by month
- Kite days
- 9 % Offabout 3 of 31 days
- Too light, kiteable, too strong
- Too light 91 %
- Kiteable 9 %
- Too strong 0 %
- 10 day trip
- under 1 in 10 trips got at least 5 kite days, about 0.7 expected
- Best hours
- 14:00 to 14:00when the wind is most often 12 to 35 knots
- Daylight
- 12.2 h
- Water
- 27 °C, boardshorts
- Air
- 27 °Cdaily maximum, 27 °C during kite hours
- Rain
- 17 of 31with 1 mm or more
- In one sentence
In October, Watamu Reef averaged 3 kite days out of 31 (9 %). Water 27 °C, boardshorts. under 1 in 10 trips of 10 days starting in October got at least 5 kite days.
| Kite days% of days | 15 | 17 | 3 | 27 | 58 | 76 | 73 | 44 | 27 | 9 | 0 | 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Verdictshare plus good years | Off | Off | Off | Possible | Good | Prime | Prime | Good | Possible | Off | Off | Off |
| 10 day tripof 10 trips, 5+ kite days | 1 in 10 | 1 in 10 | under 1 in 10 | 3 in 10 | 7 in 10 | 9 in 10 | 8 in 10 | 4 in 10 | 2 in 10 | under 1 in 10 | under 1 in 10 | under 1 in 10 |
| Good yearsof 0, reached 50 % | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | · |
| Best hourshour of day, most often 12 to 35 kn | 14 to 16 | 13 to 15 | · | 13 to 17 | 13 to 15 | 12 to 15 | 12 to 14 | 13 to 15 | 13 to 14 | 14 to 14 | · | · |
| Daylighth | 12.3 | 12.2 | 12.1 | 12.0 | 12.0 | 11.9 | 11.9 | 12.0 | 12.1 | 12.2 | 12.3 | 12.3 |
| Water°C at the surface | 28 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 29 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 29 |
| Air°C, daily maximum | 29 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 |
| Rain days1 mm or more | 7 of 31 | 5 of 28 | 13 of 31 | 25 of 30 | 24 of 31 | 20 of 30 | 22 of 31 | 20 of 31 | 19 of 30 | 17 of 31 | 20 of 30 | 19 of 31 |
| Wetsuitfor that water and the air on kite days, + boots and gloves | shorts | shorts | shorts | shorts | shorts | shorts | shorts | shorty | shorts | shorts | shorts | shorts |
- In January, Watamu Reef averaged 5 kite days out of 31 (15 %). Water 28 °C, boardshorts. 1 in 10 trips of 10 days starting in January got at least 5 kite days.
- In February, Watamu Reef averaged 5 kite days out of 28 (17 %). Water 28 °C, boardshorts. 1 in 10 trips of 10 days starting in February got at least 5 kite days.
- In March, Watamu Reef averaged 1 kite days out of 31 (3 %). Water 29 °C, boardshorts. under 1 in 10 trips of 10 days starting in March got at least 5 kite days.
- In April, Watamu Reef averaged 8 kite days out of 30 (27 %). Water 30 °C, boardshorts. 3 in 10 trips of 10 days starting in April got at least 5 kite days.
- In May, Watamu Reef averaged 18 kite days out of 31 (58 %). Water 29 °C, boardshorts. 7 in 10 trips of 10 days starting in May got at least 5 kite days.
- In June, Watamu Reef averaged 23 kite days out of 30 (76 %). Water 28 °C, boardshorts. 9 in 10 trips of 10 days starting in June got at least 5 kite days.
- In July, Watamu Reef averaged 23 kite days out of 31 (73 %). Water 27 °C, boardshorts. 8 in 10 trips of 10 days starting in July got at least 5 kite days.
- In August, Watamu Reef averaged 14 kite days out of 31 (44 %). Water 26 °C, shorty. 4 in 10 trips of 10 days starting in August got at least 5 kite days.
- In September, Watamu Reef averaged 8 kite days out of 30 (27 %). Water 27 °C, boardshorts. 2 in 10 trips of 10 days starting in September got at least 5 kite days.
- In October, Watamu Reef averaged 3 kite days out of 31 (9 %). Water 27 °C, boardshorts. under 1 in 10 trips of 10 days starting in October got at least 5 kite days.
- In November, Watamu Reef averaged 0 kite days out of 30 (0 %). Water 28 °C, boardshorts. under 1 in 10 trips of 10 days starting in November got at least 5 kite days.
- In December, Watamu Reef averaged 1 kite days out of 31 (2 %). Water 29 °C, boardshorts. under 1 in 10 trips of 10 days starting in December got at least 5 kite days.
Good years are not shown here: this spot has no complete per year values, because the two models drift apart over the years. x in 10 reads: of all 10 day trips that started in that month between 2017 and 2025, x in 10 got at least 5 kite days. We cap the figure at 9 in 10 because wind is never a promise. Best hours: the hours from 10:00 on when the wind most often reaches 12 to 35 knots. Rain day: 1 mm or more of rain.
Source: ECMWF IFS 9 km via Open-Meteo, hourly model wind, 2017 to 2025; water temperature 2023 to 2025. How we count kite days and trip odds
Trip odds at Watamu Reef
How often a trip of your length got at least half its days with kite wind, 2017 to 2025, capped at 9 in 10.
- January1 in 10 trips of 10 days got at least 5 kite days, about 1.8 expected
- February1 in 10 trips of 10 days got at least 5 kite days, about 1.3 expected
- Marchunder 1 in 10 trips of 10 days got at least 5 kite days, about 0.4 expected
- April3 in 10 trips of 10 days got at least 5 kite days, about 3.4 expected
- May7 in 10 trips of 10 days got at least 5 kite days, about 6.1 expected
- June9 in 10 trips of 10 days got at least 5 kite days, about 7.6 expected
- July8 in 10 trips of 10 days got at least 5 kite days, about 7.0 expected
- August4 in 10 trips of 10 days got at least 5 kite days, about 4.2 expected
- September2 in 10 trips of 10 days got at least 5 kite days, about 2.4 expected
- October (now)under 1 in 10 trips of 10 days got at least 5 kite days, about 0.7 expected
- Novemberunder 1 in 10 trips of 10 days got at least 5 kite days, about 0.0 expected
- Decemberunder 1 in 10 trips of 10 days got at least 5 kite days, about 0.3 expected
x in 10 reads: of all 10 day trips that started in that month between 2017 and 2025, x in 10 got at least 5 kite days. We cap the figure at 9 in 10 because wind is never a promise.
Trip odds by start week
Pick your start week and trip length. Each cell: of all trips of that length that started in that week between 2017 and 2025, how many in 10 got at least half their days with kite wind.
Trip odds by start week, 10 day trips, 2017 to 2025
- 1
- 2
- 1
- 1
- 2
- 1
- 1
- 1
- 0
- 0
- 0
- 0
- 0
- 2
- 4
- 3
- 4
- 6
- 6
- 7
- 7
- 9
- 9
- 9
- 9
- 9
- 9
- 9
- 8
- 6
- 4
- 4
- 5
- 4
- 3
- 3
- 1
- 2
- 1
- 1
- 0
- 0
- 0
- 0
- 0
- 0
- 0
- 0
- 0
- 0
- 0
- 0
Colours as in the kite year: 6 in 10 and more like Prime · 4 to 5 in 10 like Good · 2 to 3 in 10 like Possible · under 2 in 10 like Off · No data hatched (fewer than 30 trips) · Ringed: this week · Raised: your start week
x in 10 reads: of all 10 day trips that started in that week between 2017 and 2025, x in 10 got at least 5 kite days. We cap the figure at 9 in 10 because wind is never a promise.
Source: hourly wind from the ECMWF IFS model via Open-Meteo, 2017 to 2025, kiteCOMPASS method v1. How we count
under 1 in 10
trips of 10 days starting in week 45 (e.g. 5 to 11 November) got at least 5 kite days in 2017 to 2025 (63 trips).
Zero wind trips: 9 in 10
about 0.0 kite days expected out of 10
Kite days per trip, 63 trips
Bars right of the line are good trips (5 kite days or more).
How the wind behaves
In June, the windiest month
- Too light 24 %
- Kiteable 76 %
- Too strong 0 %
Too light on 24 %, kiteable on 76 %, too strong on 0 % of days.
Best hours: 12:00 to 15:00, when the wind is most often 12 to 35 knots.
Share of kite days by wind direction, 16 sectors
Wind steadily from S (180°).
Kitesurfing at Watamu Reef: quick answers
When is the best time to kitesurf at Watamu Reef?
The best months are May to July: from 2017 to 2025, 58 to 76 % of days in those months were kite days.
Is Watamu Reef windy in October?
Rarely. 9 % of days in October were kite days from 2017 to 2025, about 3 days in a typical October. Fewer than 1 in 10 trips of 10 days starting in October got at least 5 kite days, 2017 to 2025.
What is the water temperature at Watamu Reef?
The water ranges from 26 °C in August to 30 °C in April. In October it is about 27 °C (wetsuit: boardshorts).
How many kite days does Watamu Reef get in a year?
About 107 days a year were kite days from 2017 to 2025, out of 365. A kite day has at least 3 hours of 12 to 35 kn model wind between 10:00 and 19:00 in daylight, with gusts up to 45 kn.
Live forecast
The numbers above are long term averages. The forecast shows the next days.
Live forecast from Windy
The forecast map for Watamu Reef comes from windy.com (Windyty SE, Prague, Czech Republic) and opens right here on this page. Once you load it, your browser contacts Windy, which receives your IP address and may set its own cookies. Nothing is loaded before you click.
Spot facts
- Region
- Kilifi County
- Country
- Kenya
- Water body
- Sea, from Natural Earth map data
- Nearest airport
- Malindi International Airport (MYD), 19 km straight line. Flights are not sold here; this is for planning only.
- Time zone
- UTC+03:00 in October
- Coordinates
- -3.3725, 40.0085
- Model
- ECMWF IFS 9 km via Open-Meteo, hourly
Conditions, checked against kite guides
Water state, flat areas, waves and whether schools teach here, from kite sources, not from satellite images.
Not yet checked against kite guides. We research spot conditions one by one and show only what a kite source says.
Nearby kite spots in Kilifi County
Kite days in October, % of days
- Malindi Town
Kenya · 31 points more kite days than Watamu Reef in October
40 %Kite days by month at Malindi Town: Jan 51 %, Feb 42 %, Mar 20 %, Apr 57 %, May 93 %, Jun 98 %, Jul 98 %, Aug 91 %, Sep 77 %, Oct 40 %, Nov 6 %, Dec 14 % - Malindi Bay
Kenya · 38 points more kite days than Watamu Reef in October
47 %Kite days by month at Malindi Bay: Jan 53 %, Feb 42 %, Mar 20 %, Apr 59 %, May 93 %, Jun 98 %, Jul 99 %, Aug 93 %, Sep 82 %, Oct 47 %, Nov 5 %, Dec 14 % - Kilifi Creek
Kenya · 36 points more kite days than Watamu Reef in October
45 %Kite days by month at Kilifi Creek: Jan 66 %, Feb 55 %, Mar 30 %, Apr 61 %, May 90 %, Jun 97 %, Jul 99 %, Aug 89 %, Sep 76 %, Oct 45 %, Nov 7 %, Dec 18 % - Che Shale
Kenya · 41 points more kite days than Watamu Reef in October
50 %Kite days by month at Che Shale: Jan 41 %, Feb 34 %, Mar 18 %, Apr 52 %, May 85 %, Jun 96 %, Jul 98 %, Aug 90 %, Sep 80 %, Oct 50 %, Nov 4 %, Dec 11 %
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kiteCOMPASS · method k3h-10to19-v1 · 2017 to 2025
Model wind: ECMWF IFS 9 km via Open-Meteo, hourly, 2017 to 2025. Water temperature: 2023 to 2025. Kite day: at least 3 hours of 12 to 35 kn model wind between 10:00 and 19:00 in daylight, with gusts up to 45 kn. Shares its model grid cell with 1 nearby spot, so the numbers describe the area, not one beach. Confidence: high.
Cite this
In October, 9 % of days at Watamu Reef met the kiteCOMPASS kite day rule: at least 3 hours of 12 to 35 kn model wind between 10:00 and 19:00 in daylight, with gusts up to 45 kn (ECMWF IFS 9 km via Open-Meteo, hourly, 2017 to 2025). https://kitecompass.app/spot/watamu-reef
Numbers on this page are free to reuse under CC BY 4.0: name kiteCOMPASS and link to this page.