Kite spot on water · French Polynesia

Sapinus

Name: Sapinus
Address: PF

Riders have kited it in SE–S.

Show on the map-17.6288, -149.6153

Works in: SE–S
Nearest airport: PPTFa'a'ā International Airport, 8 km

Forecast and webcams

Before you go

Forecasts often disagree. When Windguru, ALADIN and Windy agree, it is worth going.

Tips for this spot

Offshore wind carries you away from land. Do not ride it without a rescue boat.
When a storm is coming, get out of the water and land the kite at once. Gusts before a storm are violent and a kite overhead is the highest point around.
New spot: ask locals about shallows, currents and where people launch.

On site

Wind and riding area

worksno reports

Direction the wind blows from. Based on riders' experience, not a forecast.

Pparking

From riders

What you need to know

Who it suits: For experienced riders only.

Watch out for

On a south swell, a very strong current forms right in front of the water entry; a dangerous spot if your gear gets damaged.community map

Parking

Car park about 350 m from the spot.OpenStreetMap
Parking is hard to find.capacity: small, hard to find a spot · community map

Getting there

Difficult access, Musée des îles is the landmark.community map

Conditions

Major left-hand wave spot, S / SW swell.community map

In riders' own words

„Sapinus : (vent : Sud“
„Sud-Est swell : Sud“
„sud-ouest)“
„C’est un spot réservé aux riders expérimentés (gauche) et où il ne fais pas bon casser du matériel.“
„les places de voitures sont dures à trouver.“
„OpenStreetMap way/753459431“
„OpenStreetMap way/1168792334“
„L’accès est délicat (trouver le musée des îles)“
„Quand la houle de sud rentre, un très fort courant se forme juste devant la mise à l’eau.“
„C’est LE spot de wave sailing avec maar’a.“

Wind by month

When it blows

Average wind speed 10 m above ground from NASA POWER (MERRA-2, 2001–2025). The model works on a grid of roughly 50 km; on hills and by the water the wind is often stronger and gustier.

10.3Jan5.3

10.5Feb5.4

9.3Mar4.8

9.3Apr4.8

10.1May5.2

10.8Jun5.6

11.3Jul5.8

10.7Aug5.5

11.8Sep6.1

10.8Oct5.6

10.1Nov5.2

9.6Dec4.9

windiest monthsaverage wind in knots, NASA POWER; below the month in m/s

Values by month

January	10.3 knots · 5.3 m/s
February	10.5 knots · 5.4 m/s
March	9.3 knots · 4.8 m/s
April	9.3 knots · 4.8 m/s
May	10.1 knots · 5.2 m/s
June	10.8 knots · 5.6 m/s
July	11.3 knots · 5.8 m/s
August	10.7 knots · 5.5 m/s
September	11.8 knots · 6.1 m/s
October	10.8 knots · 5.6 m/s
November	10.1 knots · 5.2 m/s
December	9.6 knots · 4.9 m/s

Nearby

More spots within 60 km

Been there?

Add what you know

Parking changed, a new ban, a new obstacle in the water? Tell us, we will check it and update the page.

Sources: Community map “spot de kitesurf école ffvl” (Google My Maps). Wind NASA POWER, airports OurAirports, photos Wikimedia Commons (author and licence with each photo). As of 17 October 2026. These are riders' reports; local rules change, so look around before you ride and follow local signs.