King of the Air at the King of Hotels, Dolphin Beach Hotel

2 min read

Red Bull King of the Air is an event you don’t want to miss, and where better to watch the action live than from Dolphin Beach Hotel? With our hotel being the only hotel on the Blouberg beach strip with direct access to the beach and the King of the Air tournament taking place right on our doorstep, Dolphin Beach is the ideal location to sit back and enjoy the best of the best of kiteboarding.

Red Bull King of the Air is an annual kitesurfing competition and is celebrating its 11th anniversary in Cape Town. The tournament initially started in 2000 at Ho’okipa beach in Maui, Hawaii, but moved to South Africa’s Mother City in 2013. The 18 best athletes in the world compete and are judged on the height of their jumps, the variety, extremity, and technicality of tricks they pull off, and their style. The athletes consist of the top three finalists from the 2022 competition, winners from the Red Bull King of the Air Qualifier Series, and the winners of the Online Qualifier, and they range from past champions and well known kiteboarders to fresh faces looking to make a name for themselves. The judges come from around the world – the Netherlands, Spain, England, France, and South Africa.

The competition is highly dependent on the weather conditions – a minimum of wind speeds of 25 knots are needed for the event to take place. The window for the event stretches from 25 November 2023 to 10 December 2023, and updates of when exactly the tournament will take place will be released closer to the time. But with the competition being the biggest innovator of kitesurfing, the wait will surely be worth it!

King of the Air attracts over 7000 visitors per day and Dolphin Beach is the perfect base for the event. Our hotel is the only one on the Blouberg beach strip that offers direct access to the beach, meaning you can be out of bed and on the beach within a few minutes. Our on-site restaurant, Blowfish, offers gorgeous views of the beach and the ocean with floor-to-ceiling windows. You can enjoy a delicious meal and drinks without missing out on the fun! And you can even make a stop at our Kitesurfing Shop located in Blowfish and have a chat with our kitesurfing ambassador, Mike Mac Donald.

Once King of the Air is finished, Mike’s own competition is set to take place between 11 December 2023 and 25 January 2024. Cape Town is the final stop of the Big Air Kite League Tour, where the best kiteboarders come to show off their elite-level skills. Come support Mike, his hard-working team, and of course, the riders!

Be sure to reach out to our team and secure your reservations at Dolphin Beach Hotel and Blowfish for both of these events. We can’t wait to welcome you!