Despite its small size, Israel is bordered by or home to four major bodies of water, with a long and impressive Mediterranean coastline to the west. Wherever you travel in Israel, you’re rarely far from the water.
Combined with Israel’s warm climate and long coastline, this has helped create a thriving water sports scene, with surfing, kitesurfing and SUP among the most popular activities.
While the waves in Israel may not reach the size or consistency found in destinations such as Sri Lanka or Portugal, the country still offers an excellent surfing experience, supported by a large local surf community and plenty of good beaches along the Mediterranean coast.
In this guide, we’ll take you through some of the best places for surfing and kitesurfing in Israel, helping you add a fun and active experience to your trip.
Best beaches for surfing in Israel
Surfing enthusiasts will be happy to know that Israel has several excellent surfing beaches along the Mediterranean coast. Many of them are home to local surf clubs where you can rent a board, take lessons for beginners or more experienced surfers, and head out to enjoy the Mediterranean waves.
Backdoor Beach, Haifa
One of the best beaches for surfing in Israel, named after a well-known beach in Hawaii, the Backdoor Beach is a small coastline stretch in the Bat Galim Beach in Haifa. Even when there are good waves throughout the country – the waves at the Backdoor beach are even more powerful and will benefit from protection from the wind thanks to Haifa Bay. However, the rare wave quality here has turned Backdoor Beach into a very crowded beach, bursting with dozens of local surfers from Haifa almost all year round, which makes the beach quite busy for surfers.
In addition, it’s important to note that the beach is mainly suitable for advanced surfers, and not ideal for beginners.
Sdot Yam beach
The spectacular Sdot Yam beach, located in Kibbutz Sdot Yam, is a collective name for a number of excellent surfing sites that produce different waves for all levels. The beach has a pleasant atmosphere and is a great spot for professional surfers who are looking for relatively quiet and uncrowded beaches. The beach is divided into 3 main sections, with the best surfing spots being its southern and northern ends.
Kontiki Beach, Netanya
One of the best-known and most popular surfing beaches in Israel. Kontiki Beach in Netanya features a big breakwater, which splits the waves into two sides without making them smaller and creates a great surfing environment. Kontiki Beach is a world-renowned surfing beach, as it’s the official host of major international surfing competitions that are held in Israel, and it is also used by several local surfing camps and clubs, making it busier than other nearby beaches.
Poleg Beach, Netanya
Poleg Beach, which is one of the most beautiful and popular beaches in Israel, features a wide coastline with a large space for surfing. The beach has three surfing clubs, and it is considered a very good beach for beginner surfers. However, Poleg Beach usually gets quite busy, as it’s a popular site for surfing, kitesurfing, and SUP altogether.Best kitesurfing beaches in Israel
One of the most unique things about the Israeli Mediterranean coastline is that it’s one of the only places in the world with kitesurfing beaches which are located right by major cities. This makes kitesurfing in Israel a very convenient and pleasant experience, as you will be able to go out to sea right from central areas in cities like Haifa, Tel Aviv, and Bat Yam.
Rif Raff Beach, Eilat
Eilat is the kitesurfing capital of Israel, as statistically, the winds here do not fall short of the leading kitesurfing destinations in the world. Reef Raf beach is the official spot for kitesurfing in Eilat. It is located in the area of the southern beaches of Eilat, near the Orchid Reef Hotel. June to September is the best time to surf here when you can expect a good amount of wind almost every day, while the rest of the year there are quite a few windy days here as well.
Betset Beach
The northernmost spot for kitesurfing in Israel, Betset Beach is a quiet and uncrowded beach, which is considered to be one of the most beautiful beaches in Israel. The beach itself is sandy and easy to swing, but the water line is mostly rocky with specific points between the rocks from which you can enter and leave comfortably.
The kitesurfing spot in Bestet Beach is known for providing the best conditions in the country for northerly winds in terms of wind strength and entry time on days when the northerly wind blows. The entry time is also very early and there are days when the north wind will start here as early as 10:00 in the morning, compared to more southern beaches where you will have until noon to wait for the wind to come in. However, it is important to know that the wind here tends to be very strong and can reach up to 30 knots even on days with a mild weather forecast, so this is another thing to consider if you are a beginner kitesurfer.
Bat Galim Beach, Haifa
The coastal stretch of Bat Galim in Haifa is considered the best spot for kite surfing in Israel because the reef here creates long and orderly waves even when the sea is “messy” and not suitable for kitesurfing on other beaches.
However, although Bat Galim Beach is a great beach for kite surfing, it is not suitable for beginners. At the southern entrance point, the entrance to the water is through a very sharp and shallow reef that requires walking on it until you reach enough depth to allow you to get on the surfboard. Beyond that, along the entire stretch of beach, apart from two specific spots, there are no other exit points and it is not possible to leave safely. This makes the beach a great option for advanced kite surfers, but too risky of an option for beginners,
Bat Yam beaches
There are two beaches in Bat Yam that are ideal for kitesurfing: Hasela Beach and Tayo Beach, with Tayo Beach being the more popular and busier of the two. It is a sandy and wide beach, making it ideal for beginners, and relatively many kitesurfing courses are held here. The Bat Yam beaches are very popular for kitesurfing because they’re relatively wide compared to other spots in the immediate vicinity, making the surfing experience much more pleasant.
Diamond Beach, Sea of Galilee
Diamond Beach is the main spot for kitesurfing in the Sea of Galilee and is considered by many to be the best overall kitesurfing site in Israel. Diamond Beach is located in the eastern part of the Sea of Galilee, just a little north of Kursi Beach on Highway 92. The Sea of Galilee is suitable for kitesurfing from the end of May to the beginning of September with a south-westerly/westerly wind coming in during the afternoon, and some say that surfing in the Sea of Galilee is a much more special experience compared to the Mediterranean Sea, because it is a relatively flat freshwater lake and some claim that the wind here causes a longer air time.
However, it’s important to note that Diamond Bech is a relatively dangerous beach for kitesurfing because it is a particularly rocky beach, with stones and rocks both on the beach and in the water, making it an option that’s only suitable for experienced surfers.
