Owner of the establishment is respectful and very informative, will definitely book a lesson in the…read morenext coming weeks. He gave raw knowledge of kite surfing fundamentals along with do's and don'ts.

My boyfriend and I took a 4 hour introductory group lesson with John Arthur and he was awesome! He…read moredoes a nice job explaining the basics and really wants to teach you to succeed. He explains mistakes other teachers make, and makes safety a top priority. He is also available by email to answer any subsequent questions you have after taking a lesson with him (I've already emailed him with a kite question and he responded promptly). There were a total of 4 students in the group. We were all completely new to kite surfing, and the wind was pretty bad (he says sometimes he will reschedule a class due to wind conditions), but this is San Diego and apparently the wind conditions here are some of the worst in the world. "If you can kite surf here, you can kite surf anywhere." He gave us some tips and then we took turns flying trainer kites until we could keep them in the air for a decent amount of time and even make some infinite signs and dives before crashing. He then drew us a diagram of the different wind zones including the launch zones and the power zone, and explained how to fly the kite upwind and in low wind conditions, and how to turn right and left. He told us each what size kite and harness to buy. He had two 9m kites with short lines, which we then learned how to inflate, hook up to lines, launch, fly, depower or "kill", land and put away. He taught 2 kinds of launches (side and watery), and unhooked then hooked flying skills. Since there were four of us, he put us in pairs and spent his time going back and forth between the groups. If you a beginner and not "gifted" like we were, being left to your own devices with a kite like this in these kind of wind conditions was both exhausting and frustrating, thus I'd recommend the $115 private 2 hour lesson over the $179 4 hour group lesson. I don't think any of us got unassisted launching down (though the other group might have managed it when I wasn't watching them), which was probably partly due to the rapidly changing wind conditions. He actually went over the 4 hours by about 30 mins, so we felt he went the extra mile, but I think everyone was pretty exhausted after that much kite time (my current fitness level could be better, I admit!). He gave us some kite surfing magazines at the end which had lots of good pointers and pictures to get us stoked to keep working at it. This sport takes time and dedication: it won't be as easy to pick up as it looks. He says to focus on the kite, not the board: master the kite, and you will master the sport, focus on the board and you will fail. That makes complete sense to me. You can't be looking up at the kite while you ride, it must be a subconscious extension of yourself. One of the magazines recommended buying a trainer kite (I saw a 1.7m complete $59 on ewg.org/amazon) and mastering that before spending your money on a lesson, which I wish we'd done in hindsight. The lesson for 2 people is a LOT more expensive than a training kite and I think our time and money would've been better spent if we'd had basic flying skills down. My boyfriend doesn't agree, however. He feels that buying a training kite without learning the basic skills that John taught us might be frustrating to the novice and deter people from trying a lesson, which is also a good point, so take my advice and use it to do what you feel most comfortable with =).

Got my son's first kite here. He is so happy! The owners were helpful with showing me how to do the…read morekite knot too. We will be back when it's time to upgrade my son's kite.

Vic is amazing. I've been flying his 'Fighter' since I was a kid with my father (45 years ago at…read moreleast). We bought them from him at Mission Bay decades ago. While cleaning up my garage, I came across 3 of them still in the tubes, but really needing some TLC. I took them to Kite Country not even realizing it was Vic's place. He reconditioned them all at a ridiculously good price, and it was great catching up with him!

Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!!!! We wend to EVERYBODY in the neighborhood and NOBODY…read morelet us rent their kayak at 3:30 pm Dec 9, except these guys. Awesome service and forever grateful to Nicolas - you saved our 1 year anniversary! Amazing service - quick clear instructions, very considerate, warned us about any possible problems explained how to row in the kayak as it was our first time and we had a tandem kayak. After he explained us how to put it in the water and not to roll over, we went and did it first try - no problems. We locked the wheels to the wooden fence so that nobody steels them (they are used to transport the kayak easier so that you don't have to carry it in your hands). We saw the sunset and peaked in the cave which was very exciting. Don't go inside the caves if you are renting on your own as the tides can be very unpredictable and you can roll over or hit the rocks - this is also illegal and only allowed during guided tours. Value point is amazing too. For a tandem it's 35$ (39.22$ with tax) and solo is 30$. All the guided tours were 80$+ and I don't really see the point them if you can go with these guys for only 35$. We did a full one hour but I am not sure how long you can usually go we came pretty late before the closing time. If you want to get the guided tours during the winter times the last ones usually depart at 2:30 so make sure you make it in time!

Great selection of gear and great rentals. Closest shop to the beach which is awesome to bring…read morestuff down to the beach. Been there since the 70s they have done a good job changing it.

John, the owner, is a great guy and a wealth of good advice on Kitesurfing, SUPing and surfing…read more Lots of inventory and always willing to source what anyone needs. I'm glad he's in our area

I have been here a few times and found the service excellent. It is a family owner run business and…read moreit shows. When it came to updating my new SUP I know I wanted to use this shop. Others I had visited in the area just came across as too cool for school and not always helpful to someone who needed the right advice and help. They let me demo a board for a few days with no pressure to buy. It worked! I bought a ridiculously expensive carbon SUP from these guys this week and I love it. I am glad they got the sale. They, John and his wife are really worth chatting to and good people. Their shop is quite easy to miss but when you go in, it is as an Aladdin's Cave of goodies with the help, knowledge and service you need to make the right purchase.

Great experience and best place. Best price. I will be a returning customer!! Thank youread more

OMG!! I did the Captain Kirk's SUP lesson, and I was so impressed that I did a kiteboarding lesson…read more The main thing is my AQUATIC SAFETY knowledge is a lot better than before. ***Warning**** I read and have testimony that other kiteboarding companies that operate in LBC had "horrific accidents and deaths." I recently had the pleasure of taking a kiteboarding lesson with Captain Kirk's Watersports, and it was an unforgettable experience! From the moment I arrived, the team was incredibly welcoming and professional. The instructor was not only highly skilled but also patient and encouraging, making sure everyone felt at ease. What truly set this experience apart was the positive and supportive atmosphere. It felt like more than just a lesson; it was an exhilarating adventure. I left feeling confident and excited to continue kiteboarding. I highly recommend Captain Kirk's Watersports for anyone looking to learn kiteboarding. You won't be disappointed!

We all know is about the service - there are plenty of sites on-line where we can buy the equipment…read morewe want, but no one provides the personalized customer service as does Rob Hamilton at No Limit Kiteboarding. Rob always gets back to you in a timely fashion. The selection and pricing of wing foiling equipment is great, and the repair process is second to none. I greatly appreciate the notion that you can send a damaged wing to the shop knowing that it will be taken care of in a timely manner. Highly recommend this business.

I first came into this shop in 2021 to get to know the ins and outs of kitesurfing, before even…read moretaking my first lesson. I walked into the shop, got referred to an excellent kitesurfing school nearby, and have fallen in love with the hobby ever since. Every time I took a lesson, I would stop by the shop beforehand to get to know the different brands of kites and boards. It was many months of stopping by the shop every now and then before I even made my first purchase. Throughout it all, the whole crew at no limit were very welcoming and taught me everything. I've purchased from them three kites, two boards, harnesses, bars, and essentially my entire setup over the past two years. The crew here rocks! Thanks to Rob, Jenn, Jesse, Dane, Tom

John's description of the course:…read more Looking for San Diego CA Kiteboarding? I am an independent Kiteboarding Instructor who has been teaching for over 9 years. If you are in San Diego CA and are looking for lessons my program is called Kite Mastery! This is an intense kite flying course which starts with land training. This is a 3 part course and each part is 3 hours long (practicing by your self is required after each session). Developing your muscle memory takes time, usually hours of practice to truly get proficient. At the completion of this course you will have mastered all the kite flying skills necessary to fly in most condition. For those of you traveling to San Diego call me and I'll create a custom course to fit your time schedule. Fees are as follow: Land training (gear included) $600.00. Call or e-mail to find out about water training. Jckiteboarding@yahoo.com or John at 619-733-5300. When you are ready to purchase equipment visit calikites.com Brian will provide you with excellent service. brian@calikites.com or 619-223-5483 Our experience: My wife and I recently took kitesurfing lessons with John. John's dedication to teaching is exactly what it should be. At all times his concern was our learning and safety. We followed his guidance and had a great time learning how to maneuver the kite. Kitesurfing isn't as easy as it looks, but with John's course we were able to fully control the kite and remain safe even in strong gusty winds. We took about 2 weeks vacation to learn, and we needed all of it, playing with the kites almost every day. It can probably be done in less time, but with less training comes more risk. If we could make the decision over again, we would DEFINITELY do it the same way - John's style of instructing is exactly what we were looking for - someone who's relaxed, experienced, and most of all ...focused on our learning/safety.

My buddy and I paid for a 3 hour lesson and after our instructor took a 25 min water break where he…read moreleft the beach all together, they then ended our session 45 mins early- giving us less than 2 hours in total. With 45 mins left in our session, our instructor- who was the owners son, asked us if we wanted to get in the water since we did well on land, so of course we said yes. He left to go put on his wet suit and was gone for close to 30 mins, the entire time we're standing there waiting talking to the owner, Bart. I even made a comment about how long we've been waiting and he made a joke about his son always taking forever with his wetsuit. When he finally comes back, we stand around for another 10 mins then start to walk down to the water. Bart yells down that he's going to just put the next three hours on our credit card. We said no, we thought this was part of our current session considering our session was stopped 45 mins early for us to get in the water. Other wise we would spent that time practicing more with the kites since we paid for the time. It looks like there's quite a few of these one star reviews so we're just going to go with one of the other two kite surfer company's there since they both have all 5 star reviews. If someone doesn't care about customer satisfaction in a service base industry that usually has repeat customers, then find someone else.

Great experience with SoCal. Had a water lesson with Mitch and he was super supportive and got me…read morethe furthest I've gotten in the sport. Bart was communicative and also helpful with the lesson. Would definitely recommend and go back again!!

"Brand New Never Touched Water" to "You Purchased Used Gear" within 48hrs?…read more This post adheres to iKitsurf Posted Guidelines: Stripped of all personal references to the very best of my ability, while giving a strictly accurate account of the transaction. I NEVER EVER EVER EVER write negative reviews. Yet this hit my threshold, it was expensive and fraudulent. ----------------------------------------------------------- Boards Unlimited 2814 Cañon St, San Diego, CA 92106, United States +1 619-866-3769 ----------------------------------------------------------- Explicitly Lying + To Take Money = Stealing via Fraud ------------ On Friday afternoon bought at shop "BRAND NEW NEVER TOUCHED WATER" (stated five times verbally by the proprietor). Last words to me as I loaded the board into my SUV: "That Board Has Never Touched Water". $1000 Mike's Lab Race Kite Board with fins, for hard cash cash under the table. A very fair market price for new 2014 model. On Sunday afternoon late. As a courtesy after the prioprietors Sat/Sun races were over, so as not to distract him. I asked the proprietor to exchange the "brand new never touched water board" for "store credit" the following day Monday to buy more kites from the shop instead. ( I have six twin tip boards in my quiver, I changed my mind ). Not cash back, just store credit, to buy more kites. Proprietor came right out firing HARD. Explicitly and repeatedly stating that "THE BOARD IS USED AND CANNOT BE RETURNED". And that he would not exchange used gear. I calmly repeated a number of times, that the proprietor's words to me were his decision, and that I would transparently report the truth of our transaction to Yelp and iKitesurf, whatever he decided to do. Proprietor replied at one point : "nobody ever reads those things". --------------- The Why: Turns out propietor revealed to me his motivation. He had been given the board from Mike at Mike's Lab for free. For promo purposes, yet had never used the board. So the sale to me represented $1K pure cash profit. To exchange instead for kites would have represented a small fraction of pure $1K profit. Thus the motivation to lie and mistreat me. ------------- Summary: I have been in the reseller business for 28 years and this sort of bait and switch behavior is virtually unheard of anywhere anymore on any product. Question - When was the last time a business did this to you? Nowadays gotta treat every single person you meet transparently square, everything is transparent - or reviews like this instantly pop up. "Brand New Never Touched Water" to "You Purchased Used Gear" within 48hrs? Explicitly Lying + To Take Money = Stealing via Fraud ------------- Believe me it hurt to write this thing; priding negativity is never good. Yet for the wrong to succeed the right need only remain silent. Thank god to the right to free speech in America. It serves us well.

From the owner: San Diego's Kiteboarding Shop and School. Kitboard and SUP Stand Up Paddle Sales and Rentals,…read moreWetsuits, Apparel, Boards, Paddlboards. Kiteboarding gear. SUP Stand Up Paddle and Kitboarding Lessons by Pros serving Point Loma, Mission Beach, La Jolla, Pacific Beach and San Diego County.

It's obvious that Jesse and his team at OTH are passionate about kiteboarding. They are willing to…read moreanswer any questions and their enthusiasm and encouragement make learning fun. I've had a great time learning the basics from Bob, Carter and Jesse. They have good equipment and make use of helmet-mounted walkie talkies to give instant feedback when you are out on the water. Highly recommend for anyone looking to get started.

The name says it all!…read more It is a blessing to have Off the Hook Kiteboarding (OTH) available in SoCal. Jesse and his team are VERY professional, patient, knowledgeable and their concentration on safety is unmatched. I have experimented with a couple of other kiteboarding schools and OTH made me feel comfortable, safe, and part of their team. I highly recommend OTH if you are researching places to learn to kitesurf or if you want to excel in your skill levels. Bonus: OTH offers kiteboarding trip packages during Belmont Shores' offseason (Nov-March). I was fortunate enough to attend one of them this past November in Los Barriles, and I had a phenomenal time with everyone. I'm looking forward to attending future trips. OTH rocks!