Kitesurfing on Rügen: Wiek and other spots

Kitesurfing on Rügen mostly means the north of the island. On the shallow Wieker Bodden 2 spots face each other across the water: Wiek for westerly wind and Dranske for easterly. The wind direction in the forecast tells you which one will work.

Wiek is a place I keep going back to. I kited there in August 2022, we had a "perfect week in Wiek" in September 2024, and in March 2025 I opened my season there. In June 2025 the forecast looked so good that I left straight away. My Instagram caption at the time: "9 hours for a flying visit? No problem."

Where to kitesurf on Rügen

The Wieker Bodden is a shallow lagoon on the Wittow peninsula in the north of Rügen. "Bodden" is the local word for the shallow bays cut off from the open Baltic by strips of land. The water inside is calmer and, more importantly, shallow enough to stand over large areas.

All 4 spots are also on the kite spot map.

Wiek: shallow flat water for westerly wind

Wiek sits on the eastern shore of the Wieker Bodden and works in wind from southwest to north. A straight westerly blows onshore, from the water towards the beach. On the water that brings you back towards land, but at launch and landing it is tricky: if the kite gets away from you, it drags you up the beach and onto the rocks at the entry. Launch with clear space downwind, and if you have the choice, wind coming slightly from the side makes launching easier.

The shallows are roughly 500 x 2,000 m with a sandy bottom. There are a few rocks near the entry, and some of the bigger boulders are marked. Water shoes make sense here even in summer, mainly for the first few metres from the shore.

Kiters and windsurfers have separate entry points about 150 m apart. Paid parking is within 50 m of the spot, and there are toilets, a school and a rental shop.

For beginners after a course, these shallows are the main reason I like Wiek. They reach about 450 to 500 m out from the shore, and beyond that there is deeper water and the fairway into Wiek. As long as you stay in the shallows, you stand up after a fall and walk back. In a westerly the wind pushes you towards the beach, so most of the fear of ending up far downwind of the shore goes away here. Southwest and north blow more from the side and push you along the shore instead, so keep an eye on where the shallows end. You still need to be able to launch and land on your own and to release the kite with the quick release, the safety release on your bar, before your first solo sessions make sense.

Dranske: the opposite shore for easterly wind

Dranske is on the other side of the same lagoon. A westerly is partly blocked by land there, so people kite mainly when the wind is from the east. The shallows there are roughly 150 x 500 m with a sandy bottom and no rocks.

The rules are stricter than at Wiek. According to the local school, kiting at Dranske is only allowed by arrangement with them. During lessons the shallow area is reserved for students, and everyone else may only ride in deep water, at VDWS Kitelevel 5 or above (VDWS is the German association of water sports schools). In westerly wind the school warns of a higher risk and recommends moving over to Wiek.

If it's blowing from the east and you want to ride at Dranske, stop at the school first, ask whether and where you can ride that day, and only then rig your kite.

Breege and Juliusruh: open sea and waves

At Breege and Juliusruh you ride on the open-sea side, along the long Schaabe beach. It works mainly in northeasterly and southeasterly wind, both blowing at an angle to the shore. A straight easterly blows dead onshore and brings the biggest waves. The bottom is sandy and it stays shallow along the beach, but waves break right at the shore (shorebreak).

For a beginner after a course this is the harder option. Launching and landing through shorebreak takes kite control that most people don't have yet straight after a course. Parking is paid and within 250 m of the beach.

Ummanz and Suhrendorf: big shallows, small zone

In the west of Rügen, about 20 km from Wiek as the crow flies, Suhrendorf on the island of Ummanz has some of the largest shallows in Germany. It works in wind from southwest to north.

Because of nature conservation rules, though, kiting is only allowed in a smaller marked water sports zone. You get to the water through the campsite and pay for a day ticket. At neighbouring Schaprode kiting is not allowed at all. Before you go, check on site exactly where the zone ends.

Where you can't go: the national park around the Bug

The Bug is a narrow peninsula that separates the Wieker Bodden from the open sea. The water around its southern part, west and north of the Wiek fairway, belongs to the strictest protection zone of the Vorpommersche Boddenlandschaft National Park and is closed to all vessels. The Dranske spot at the base of the Bug is not affected.

In a northerly, a downwinder from Dranske south along the Bug can look tempting. Don't do it, the southern part is closed. The national park has other closed areas and places where kiting is banned, so at any unfamiliar spot ask at the school first where riding is allowed.

When to go: wind and temperature by month

Rügen gets wind from 2 main directions. Westerlies arrive with low-pressure systems all year, most often in the winter half. In spring and summer stable easterlies often settle in for several days, frequently with blue skies. On the Wieker Bodden spring thermals boost the easterly, because the air is already warm while the water is still cold. That is why it often blows harder there than the forecast suggests.

The NASA POWER model for the area around Wiek shows how wind and temperature change through the year. These are average winds 10 m above the ground over a 0.5° grid cell tens of kilometres across, not the wind on the beach.

It is windiest from October to February, when it is also cold. From May to August it is warmer and the average wind is lighter. I have kited on Rügen in March, June, August and September. If your dates are flexible, watch the wind direction in the forecast: a steady westerly means Wiek, a steady easterly means Dranske.

Wetsuit and what to pack

The Baltic Sea (the Ostsee in German forecasts and schools) is cold. From September to May bring a thick wetsuit, boots and sometimes a hood. In summer a German surf guide puts the average at 18 °C air and 17 °C water, and a 4/3 is usually enough. How to choose thickness by water temperature is covered in Kitesurfing wetsuit guide: thickness by water temperature.

Besides the wetsuit, pack water shoes for the rocks at the Wiek entry and a warm layer for the beach, because the wind off the water feels cold even in summer.

Rügen or somewhere else

Rügen works well if you can get there by car (Stralsund, the gateway to the island, is under 300 km from Berlin or Hamburg) and want shallow water and several spots in one area for different wind directions. There are more options on the Baltic Sea: Fehmarn to the west and the Hel Peninsula in Poland to the east. Other German spots are covered in Kite spots in Germany.

When I want shallow lagoons, steady wind and only a few riders on the water, I go on a kite safari in the Red Sea. For more ideas by level, see Best kitesurfing spots in the world by level.