6How many people are in the group courses?
We keep our groups small for Kitesurfing lessons, we normally have 2-3 students per instructor.
Most schools will run with 4 per instructor but we believe this is slightly too many for a good lesson to be carried out. We also offer 1-2-1 instruction for a slightly higher fee although this does mean a lot more time “hands on”. Because of Covid-19 restrictions both from HM Government and our sports governing body the BKSA (British Kite Sports Association) we cannot run any “group” lessons (2 or more persons) unless they are of the same household AND additional then, they need to be of a similar weight.
How long are my lessons or vouchers valid for?
Your lessons and vouchers are valid for 12 months from the purchase date. We are unable to offer any lessons after the 12 months. Lessons and vouchers bought before 2016 have now expired.
What is your Cancellation policy?
We need wind to run courses (see wind and weather below). So if we find ourselves with unusable wind conditions then we will rebook your lesson/course for a time that suits you, we are unable to offer any refunds under any circumstances for weather postponed lessons/courses. We are available 7 days a week for most of the year so we will be able to rebook you quickly. If you need to move your course we ask for 7 days notice, we have limited spaces on courses so we need to make sure they are all full especially on weekends.
If you cancel your lesson and request a different course date within 7 days you will forfeit you course/lesson unless we are unable to refill that space.
What wind and weather do we need?
We need ten knots of wind to fly kites on Day 1 and twelve or more knots of wind for you to enjoy your Day 2. We will teach in any safe conditions as long as it's windy. We cannot teach in zero wind. Hill Head is open to winds from the West Northwest, West, Southwest, South, Southeast and East Southeast. In Easterly conditions we may move the lessons and courses to Calshot. As we do need wind for our lessons there is always the chance your lesson will be rebooked and we will rebook when it suits you but we will not be able to give any refunds on courses for lack of wind. For the best weather forecasts please check
Xcweather
Windguru
Magicseaweed
How do I book?
Decide which course you would like (see Kitesurf lessons page), contact us via email or phone to see if your preferred date is available then pay online via our online or make a payment by bank transfer to confirm your place. We only take prepaid bookings.
What do I need to bring?
We have all the equipment you need to complete your kitesurfing course, but we understand that it's always nicer to use your own equipment. So if you have some of your own gear then bring it along and we can tell you if it's suitable to use. For most lessons other than short 1-2-1 lessons of less than 3 hours we recommend that you bring Lunch/a snack, Water, Towel, Sun protection, Swimwear and Trainers / sturdy footwear. We DO NOT "upsell" you boots or any other items, everything you need to complete your course is provided. We also use the latest equipment from leading brands.
What time do the lessons start?
For Kitesurfing lessons we have to teach at mid to low and low to mid tide. Tide times change daily so start times will always be different.
Our group courses are between 3-6 hours so we could start as late as 3pm in the summer months.
SUP lessons can start whenever you like although we do prefer to run SUP sessions on the high tide when the water movement in the Solent is less. We are able to run evening and lunchtime SUP sessions through the week and weekends.
Do we have to pay for parking?
Hill Head and Lee-on-Solent have free car parking throughout the whole year. Parking near our centre is free on the roadside except for the bays directly opposite us which are limited to two hours so are of little use. The main car park at Salterns Park is free at the moment but please be aware that the local council are talking about putting in pay and display machines so watch this space.
Do you have insurance?
Yes, we have a £5,000,000.00 public liability insurance.
What is kitesurfing?
Kitesurfing is the ultimate extreme sport combing aspects of Wakeboarding, Windsurfing,
Paragliding and Kite flying. It's a fantastic way to keep fit and experience surfing and flying at the same time!
One element of the sport, Kitesurf Course racing may be about to be accepted as an Olympic sport, possibly for 2020.
Do I need previous experience?
No. Our Day 1 course starts right at the beginning. If you do have balance skills from surfing, wakeboarding, snowboarding or indeed skateboarding then this will of course help when you start getting up on the board (Day 2). If you are really unsure then maybe think about booking private tuition or our VIP course that way we can go exactly at your pace.
Once you have completed your course with us we recommend some additional study/reading from the governing body of Kitesurfing, the British Kitesports Association (BKSA), click here for more info.
- See our Kitesurfing Lessons page for more info.
- Our kitesurf school instructors are ALL fully BKSA qualified. We no longer employ instructors unless they are BKSA qualified.
- Our kitesurfing centre is located 20 minutes from Portsmouth and 30 minutes from Southampton and is just an hour from the M25.
We keep our groups small for Kitesurfing lessons, we normally have 2-3 students per instructor.
Most schools will run with 4 per instructor but we believe this is slightly too many for a good lesson to be carried out. We also offer 1-2-1 instruction for a slightly higher fee although this does mean a lot more time “hands on”. Because of Covid-19 restrictions both from HM Government and our sports governing body the BKSA (British Kite Sports Association) we cannot run any “group” lessons (2 or more persons) unless they are of the same household AND additional then, they need to be of a similar weight.
How long are my lessons or vouchers valid for?
Your lessons and vouchers are valid for 12 months from the purchase date. We are unable to offer any lessons after the 12 months. Lessons and vouchers bought before 2016 have now expired.
What is your Cancellation policy?
We need wind to run courses (see wind and weather below). So if we find ourselves with unusable wind conditions then we will rebook your lesson/course for a time that suits you, we are unable to offer any refunds under any circumstances for weather postponed lessons/courses. We are available 7 days a week for most of the year so we will be able to rebook you quickly. If you need to move your course we ask for 7 days notice, we have limited spaces on courses so we need to make sure they are all full especially on weekends.
If you cancel your lesson and request a different course date within 7 days you will forfeit you course/lesson unless we are unable to refill that space.
What wind and weather do we need?
We need ten knots of wind to fly kites on Day 1 and twelve or more knots of wind for you to enjoy your Day 2. We will teach in any safe conditions as long as it's windy. We cannot teach in zero wind. Hill Head is open to winds from the West Northwest, West, Southwest, South, Southeast and East Southeast. In Easterly conditions we may move the lessons and courses to Calshot. As we do need wind for our lessons there is always the chance your lesson will be rebooked and we will rebook when it suits you but we will not be able to give any refunds on courses for lack of wind. For the best weather forecasts please check
Xcweather
Windguru
Magicseaweed
How do I book?
Decide which course you would like (see Kitesurf lessons page), contact us via email or phone to see if your preferred date is available then pay online via our online or make a payment by bank transfer to confirm your place. We only take prepaid bookings.
What do I need to bring?
We have all the equipment you need to complete your kitesurfing course, but we understand that it's always nicer to use your own equipment. So if you have some of your own gear then bring it along and we can tell you if it's suitable to use. For most lessons other than short 1-2-1 lessons of less than 3 hours we recommend that you bring Lunch/a snack, Water, Towel, Sun protection, Swimwear and Trainers / sturdy footwear. We DO NOT "upsell" you boots or any other items, everything you need to complete your course is provided. We also use the latest equipment from leading brands.
What time do the lessons start?
For Kitesurfing lessons we have to teach at mid to low and low to mid tide. Tide times change daily so start times will always be different.
Our group courses are between 3-6 hours so we could start as late as 3pm in the summer months.
SUP lessons can start whenever you like although we do prefer to run SUP sessions on the high tide when the water movement in the Solent is less. We are able to run evening and lunchtime SUP sessions through the week and weekends.
Do we have to pay for parking?
Hill Head and Lee-on-Solent have free car parking throughout the whole year. Parking near our centre is free on the roadside except for the bays directly opposite us which are limited to two hours so are of little use. The main car park at Salterns Park is free at the moment but please be aware that the local council are talking about putting in pay and display machines so watch this space.
Do you have insurance?
Yes, we have a £5,000,000.00 public liability insurance.
What is kitesurfing?
Kitesurfing is the ultimate extreme sport combing aspects of Wakeboarding, Windsurfing,
Paragliding and Kite flying. It's a fantastic way to keep fit and experience surfing and flying at the same time!
One element of the sport, Kitesurf Course racing may be about to be accepted as an Olympic sport, possibly for 2020.
Do I need previous experience?
No. Our Day 1 course starts right at the beginning. If you do have balance skills from surfing, wakeboarding, snowboarding or indeed skateboarding then this will of course help when you start getting up on the board (Day 2). If you are really unsure then maybe think about booking private tuition or our VIP course that way we can go exactly at your pace.
Once you have completed your course with us we recommend some additional study/reading from the governing body of Kitesurfing, the British Kitesports Association (BKSA), click here for more info.
- See our Kitesurfing Lessons page for more info.
- Our kitesurf school instructors are ALL fully BKSA qualified. We no longer employ instructors unless they are BKSA qualified.
- Our kitesurfing centre is located 20 minutes from Portsmouth and 30 minutes from Southampton and is just an hour from the M25.
