Hamworthy Park
Poole Harbour's practical launch: grass to rig on, cheap parking, and flat water — a size up from Sandbanks.
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● Spot · shaded: the wind directions that work here. It is not a riding area or a permitted kite zone. Two fingers to move the map.
Location & launch
Know before you go.
- Launch
- Grass park running down to a sandy harbour beach — one of the easiest launches in the country.
- Wind
- SE · SSE · S · SSW · SW · WSW · W · WNW · NW winds work here.
- Tide
- Needs a reasonable amount of water; at dead low there is a long walk over mud and weed.
The shaded area shows the wind directions recorded as working here. It is not a permitted kite zone or a safe launch boundary. Check local signs.
Local rules, hazards & spot guide
Need to know
The things that catch people out here.
- The same PHC harbour permit applies here as at Sandbanks.
- It is more sheltered than Sandbanks, so expect a couple of knots less and to be on a bigger kite.
- At dead low water it is a long walk over mud and eelgrass. Mid to high is the window.
- Free grass to rig on and cheap parking — the practical reason a lot of locals prefer it to Sandbanks.
Conditions
- Best
- Works
- Offshore
- Works in
- SE, SSE, S, SSW, SW, WSW, W, WNW, NW
- Best in
- SW, WSW, W
- Offshore (careful)
- NNW, N, NNE, NE
- Wind quality
- moderate
- Water
- Flat
- Depth
- standing
- Best tide
- Mid to high
- Spring range
- 2 m
More sheltered than Sandbanks and correspondingly lighter — you often need a size up.
Tide rule
Needs a reasonable amount of water; at dead low there is a long walk over mud and weed.
Sea breeze · May–Aug
- Beginner
- Ideal
- Intermediate
- Good
- Advanced
- Workable
Hazards
Most serious first. The level is in words as well as colour.
- medium
shipping Poole commercial port and the Brownsea ferries operate nearby.
- medium
crowds Popular family park and swimming beach in summer.
Access & rules
- Launch
- Grass park running down to a sandy harbour beach — one of the easiest launches in the country.
- Permit
- Poole Harbour Commissioners kitesurfing permit required, as for the rest of the harbour.
- Insurance
- Third-party liability expected
- Tuition
- Recognised schools only
- Facilities
- toilets, cafe, rigging area, changing
Parking
- Hamworthy Park car park
paid (Considerably cheaper than Sandbanks.)
Official guidance · Poole Harbour Commissioners
Safety
Who is around if it goes wrong. None of it makes the water safe.
- Lifeguards
- Seasonal cover on the swimming beach.
- RNLI
- Poole RNLI
- Nearest A&E
- Poole Hospital, Poole (~10 min)
- Water quality
- Designated bathing water — good
The spot
Hamworthy Park is where a lot of Poole locals actually ride. A public park runs straight down to a sandy harbour beach, so you rig on grass, walk twenty metres, and launch into flat water. Parking is a fraction of the Sandbanks price.
The trade-off is shelter: tucked further into the harbour, it sits a couple of knots lighter than Sandbanks and you will often want a bigger kite. At dead low water there is a long walk over mud and eelgrass, so mid to high tide is the window. The same Poole Harbour Commissioners permit applies here as everywhere else inside the harbour.
Links & local
Schools & shops nearby
- Poole Harbour Watersports · kite school, watersports shop · ~2 km
Nearby alternatives
Other launches around Poole Harbour, with different conditions.
- Whitley Lake, Sandbanks
The designated kitesurfing area inside Poole Harbour — waist-deep flat water for hundreds of metres.
Sources
Where this record came from, and how confident we are in it.
- Poole Harbour Commissioners — kitesurfing permits
Checked 2026-09-07 · permit
- The Kitesurf Centre — Poole Harbour guide
Checked 2026-09-07 · spots, conditions
- Kite & Windsurfing Guide — Hamworthy Park
Checked 2026-09-23 · wind
Verify locally. Coordinates 50.7106, -2.0033. Conditions, access arrangements and beach rules change; check them on the day before you rely on anything on this page.