Toytown Germany

Kitesurfing is one of the newest extreme sports to be sweeping the globe. The deal is this: you wear a body harness, attach yourself to a great big kite, strap a surfboard to your feet, and then let the wind drag you at high speed over a lake or the ocean. As well as barrelling across the waves, you can also use the kite's lift to jump high into the air. By tapping into the raw natural power of the wind in this way, you can get one of the biggest rushes of any extreme sport. Europe's Mecca for kitesurfing is Tarifa, on Spain's southern Atlantic coast. Unfortunately Bavaria is a landlocked state so the opportunities for flying in a steady sea breeze are not great. It is, however, still possible to kitesurf near Munich. ...

[img]http://www.toytowngermany.com/munich/kitesurfing_munich.jpg[/img]

You will sometimes see kitesurfers on any of the big lakes around Munich. For example the Wörthsee, Starnberger See, or Ammersee. These three lakes, however, are not the most suitable. The Starnberger See only gets about 20 days per year which are suitable for kitesurfing. The kitesurfer's prefered lakes are Chiemsee, about an hour south east of Munich, near Rosenheim. And Achensee, an hour and a half directly south of Munich, just over the Austrian border. The best location in terms of suitable wind conditions, is a little further afield, at Gardasee in Northern Italy. This is aproximately 2 to 3 hours drive from Munich.

Getting kitted out with kitesurfing gear is not cheap. The costs are €700 for a kite, €300 for a board, €200 for a wetsuit (essential in the cold Bavarian lakes), and €250 for a harness and safety system. That's at least €1,450 in total. Note that these are starting prices only. You can pay up to twice as much for fancier kit. As far as I know there is only one kite surfing shop in Munich. And that is Kitemania at Humboldtstr. 17, near Kolumbusplatz, Giesing. Outside of Munich there is Element Sports which is at Wasserbergerstr. 9, in Stephanskirchen near Rosenheim (45 mins south of Munich).

[img]http://www.toytowngermany.com/munich/kitesurf_3.jpg[/img]

Before splashing out on all your own kit, it is probably best to take a short course. Then you get both instruction and the hire of kit included in the price. Kitemania offer a 3 hour course for €50. This teaches theory and ground handling of a kite. There is no surfing. Element Sports offer kite and board hire, without instruction, at €40 per day. Their weekend training courses cost €200 for 2 days, 8 hours per day. If weather is unsuitable for flying, the hours can be carried over to another day. They also do week trips to Tarifa for €777.

Of course, in order to fly on a lake legally you have to have a permit. This is Germany, right? In this country you practically need a permit just to breath. By taking part in a training course your permit is sorted for you. If you wish to fly independently then you need to secure a permit from the authorities at the relevant lake. For Achensee permits you need to contact the Achensee Kite Club (PDF). The situation regarding permits on Gardasee is not known. Perhaps a knowledgable reader can give us feedback?

Kitemania
Humboldtstr. 17, Munich Giesing
Tel. 0176 60001344

Element Sports
Wasserburgerstr. 9a, Rosenheim Stephanskirchen
Tel. 08031 84850

The best lake for kitesurfing near Munich is, imo, Reschensee. It's just over the border into Italy, about 2.5 hrs drive from Munich. Was there with Element Sports this weekend. If you check the webcam you'll see snow on the mountains surrounding the lake (even in mid-June!). But don't let that put you off. The water is not that cold. And the wind is suitable for kiting 95 days out of every 100!

Was at Neusiedlersee (5.5 hrs drive from Munich) in Austria to windsurf for 5 days. Best location on earth for windsurfing or kitesurfing due to the constant breeze, size 10km by 30km (I think) and depth: it only ever gets as deep as you're shoulders!!!! There were loads (200+) of expert windsurfers and kitesurfers lapping up the force 3 to 6 (but not blustery) winds. Bit strong for me though, being a relative beginner.

If you're thinking of learning how to Kitesurf, then www.kitesurfing.at have a base there, camping site etc...

Marvellous.

Obviously the lake was as warm as toast too (due to the depth).

Are there any kiteboarding or snowkiting enthusiasts in the Munich area? I live southwest of Munich, close to Alps, and looking for people who enjoy catching some wind.

Topics merged by admin

MMEEEE!!!

I´D LOVE TO TRY Kitesurfing...do you have any tips? is it possible to do it in Bavaria?

Jenny