Texel, Netherlands: kitesurf and windsurf guide

What it's actually like

Compiled by WindChaser, 27 September 2026

Texel is the island across the water from Den Helder, reached by the TESO ferry, with a wide North Sea beach on one side and the shallow Wadden Sea on the other. Numbered posts with red tops stand along the beach, and the municipality uses them to set out where each beach sport may go.

North of Paal 17, the beach access at De Koog, the sporting beach begins: one of two stretches kept for beach sports that other visitors might find a nuisance. Kitesurfschool Texel has been based at Paal 17 since 2005.

From the Paal 17 access, Kitesurfschool Texel says to walk a little under 250 metres to the right, north along the beach, to its pavilion.

Your month

When it's good

April · 58%. 17 rideable days in 30, 5.4 hours a day over 12 kt. Bring a book.

Where else it blows in April

ERA5 puts the share of rideable days 14.5 points higher here, and no weather station has settled it, so treat these figures as a guide.

At a glance

Is it for you?

Skill levelComfortable

WaterMixed bag

Wind · AprUsually turns up

Crowds · AprBusy patches

Local vibeFriendly enough

Water qualityUsually clean

NightlifeA bar or two

CostMid

Geek analysis

April in the record

58% of days clear 12 kt for three daylight hours or more.

In April the wind most often sits at 8 to 11 kt (31% of daylight hours). No daylight hour is over 12 kt on at least half the days. The best hours are 3pm to 4pm, each on 43% of days. See both charts in the full report

No weather station near enough to check these figures against.

April on the record

The month's own figures, not the year's average.

Rideable days17 of 30Four Aprils in the record

Wind, rideable hours17 ktMean over daylight hours at 12 kt+

Air9.5°CMaximum

Take it with you

The full Texel report

Seven sections over six pages, built from the same record as this page. A PDF you can read on the plane.

01Hour-by-hour & month-by-month wind02The month's own records03Full stays, schools & kit04Per-launch tide notes05Zones, posts & rip currents06Getting there, packing & best months07Sources, and their limits

When it gets busy

Crowds

Jan · Low

Busiest from May to September, with the summer holidays, the kite school teaching and events at the Paal 17 pavilion; November to March are the quiet months. Compiled research, not a count. The Round Texel starts and finishes at Paal 17; in 2026 it ran from 4 to 6 June.

On the water

What April usually does

April sits outside the best months here. 58% of days clear 12 kt for three daylight hours or more.

Your playground

Launches & safety

Conditions change. Check local rules and conditions before you ride.

Launch
Hazard
Parking
School
Stay
Webcam

Local intel

Getting there & on the ground

Nearest airportAmsterdam Schiphol (AMS)About 83 km by road to the TESO ferry at Den Helder, around 80 minutes.

On the groundSeptember to FebruaryThe windiest months in the record. January is the pick.

Getting aroundFerry, then carTESO sails hourly from Den Helder to ’t Horntje, no reservation needed. Paal 17 is 12 km from the ferry by road.

Stay, schools & kit

Who works this beach

© Hans van FranekerKitesurfschool TexelSchool$$$MidGoogle MapsKiteKite lessons at Paal 17 since 2005, in small groups, from an introduction lesson to hydrofoil and wave clinics. No experience needed to start.

All 3 stays near Texel on one page

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