The First Kiteboarding School in the Caribbean

Cabarete Kitesurfing – The Windsurfing Mecca

Riders Love Kite Surfing Kite Beach - Kiteboarding Cabarete

Cabarete owes its fame to the trade wind.
Nowhere on this Dominican Republic island — nor on any  other Caribbean island  can you find such near perfect conditions for kite surfing, windsurfing, kiteboarding and other wind-propelled extreme water-sports.

It is around the wind sport industry that Cabarete emerged as a trendy windsurfing spot and top 10 kiteboarding location destination.

In the past two decades, Cabarete developed an international reputation as host of major kite surfing and windsurfing competitions, being considered today among the top ten places in the world for these exciting sports. As a result, Cabarete now boasts a great variety of lodging facilities, from all-inclusive resorts, hotels, suites and condominiums, to villas, & pensions. Yet for many, its most unique and interesting feature is the miles and miles of beachfront restaurants and bars and the possibility to have dinner by the sea.

How Kitesurfing In Cabarete Started…

Arial View of Cabarete Bay and Kite Beach Cabarete

Two Canadians are credited for catapulting Cabarete to international fame. Back in the mid 1980s, windsurf enthusiast Jean Laporte and journalist Tim Hall spread the word among their photographer-reporter friends and wrote an article for Voile Libre. Within six months, half the worlds windsurfing community was made aware of Cabarete. Although not the first windsurfer to discover Cabarete, Laporte is largely credited for getting it on the map in the windsports world.

It wasn't until 15 years later that kiteboarding was discovered on the Atlantic Coast.

Locals saw two Japanese tourists flyiling around in Cabarete Bay and didn't know what to think of this extreme new sport.
In early 1999, French kiteboarding pioneers Franz Olry and Christopher Tasti traveled to Cabarete to test the waters.
They soon made Cabarete their home as, like Laporte, they had found the ideal spot to train and progress.

Local windsurfers Marcus Bohm and Stefan Ruether were intrigued by this new sport and bought their first kite and board from Tasti.

At first, the other locals thought they were crazy as it took them many hours and many miles of walking up and down the beach before they could finally stay on the board, ride upwind and have fun.

In September 1999, the two launched Cabarete's first kiteboarding school, Fly High and Surf.
Not wanting to disrupt the windsurfing lessons in Cabarete Bay, Bohm and Ruether went to Punta Goleta, now known as Kite Beach, one bay west and just a short 20 to 25 minute walk from the main town.
At first, they did not believe the spot was ideal as at that time, the directional boards they were using had giant fins and from their windsurfing experience, the reef was too shallow to pass at low tide.

Within one year, production of bi-directional kiteboards with smaller fins hit the market and their challenge was solved. In 2000, the partners split to pursue other endeavors.

In 2001, Ruether started another school called Kitexcite, introducing kiteboarding to the Caribbean and becoming the primary Cabarete kiteboarding school.

A few years later Kitexcite became the Best Kiteboarding School and the only Authorized Best Kiteboarding Retailer on Cabarete Kite Beach.
Becoming a premium Best Kiteboarding retailer Kitexcite began operating the Best Kiteboarding rental pool with latest and newest kite and board models.

And this year Kitexcite expands to Puerto Plata's Playa Dorada and Costa Dorada, bringing kiteboarding lessons to these areas too.