Live wind
Water & wetsuit
Loading water data…
About this spot
Great Bay is the beach in front of the Ritz-Carlton on St. Thomas's East End, and it is the bay a visiting rider realistically uses when staying on the island. A riding guide that kited here describes the launch on the north side of the beach, reached from a gravel parking lot along Bay Road.
The same guide is blunt about the launch: it is very small and rocky, and the wind normally blows onshore, so launching and landing need care. Once out, the riding area opens up, but the guide's overall advice for St. Thomas is that a boat to the surrounding islands gives cleaner wind, flatter water and friendlier riding than the shoreline.
This is not a learning beach. No school teaches here, the rocky launch punishes mistakes, and the onshore wind pushes you back at the rocks — come already riding upwind and self-sufficient, or book the boat trip instead.
3-day forecast
Speed / gusts in knots. Colour = rideability for this spot. Bottom row = recommended kite size for your weight — not recommended outside this spot's 13–25 kn range.
Conditions
- Water
- choppy
- Depth
- Rocky launch; deeper water quickly off the beach
- Seabed
- rock and sand at the launch, sand further out
- Skill
- intermediate, expert
- Beginners
- Not for beginners — intermediate and up
- Wind range
- 13 kn – 25 kn
Access & parking
Bay Road on the East End; gravel parking lot on the right, launch on the north side of the beach.
Parking: Gravel parking lot along Bay Road.
Amenities
- The practical in-town option when staying on St. Thomas
- Open riding area once past the launch
- Parking close to the beach
Needs local verification: Sources: a visiting riders' guide to kiting St. Thomas (launch on the north side of Great Bay by the Ritz-Carlton, gravel parking on Bay Road, very small and rocky launch, wind normally onshore, boat trips to the surrounding islands recommended for cleaner wind and flatter water). No school teaches here, so no beginner label. Wind strength is a regional estimate, not a station record. Needs local verification.
Local hazards
- Very small, rocky launch — the riding guide flags it directly
- Wind normally onshore, pushing you toward the rocks on launch and landing
- No school or rescue service on this beach