Praia do Arpoador, in Tutóia (Maranhão): calm water between the sand and a wide sandbank, bathers at the water's edge, palm trees in the foreground and two kites in the air over the dunes in the distance.

Kitesurfing destinations · Maranhão

Kitesurfing at Arpoador (Tutóia)

Praia do Arpoador in Tutóia, Delta do Parnaíba (MA) — not the one in Rio.

Sheltered water, Jul–Jan season.

Water: ShelteredA sandbank holds the sea back before the beach; waist-deep at low tide.
Wind and season: Jul–Jan · peak Sep–NovSide-on, from the east/northeast, per schools and guides; 18–⁠28 knots in season.
Level: First lesson to wavesWaist-deep at low tide; waves at high tide for riders.
Tide: Shapes the seaLow tide: flat between banks; high tide: waves.

Launch: Main beach, in front of the school; no named launch.
Watch out: The beach route to Arpoador and Praia do Amor is only passable at low tide. There, low tide can come later than the tide curve shows. Book there and back with whoever takes you.

Bar height: % of days with 12 knots or more

This month

NovemberPeak season

93% of days with 12 knots or more

Closes the peak.

Ask about kitesurfingon WhatsApp

Sending the message does not book anything: it starts the conversation.

We live and ride in Atins, to the west, and connect you with riders here.Alessandro and Itana, founders of Rota Insider

Wind today Where to ride Schools Getting there Downwind

In this guide

Ask about kitesurfing

Kitesurfing conditions at Arpoador (Tutóia) today: wind, tide and moon

The figures below come from a forecast model: on the beach the wind usually blows harder, and the season's 18–⁠28 knots are the school's reading. Windguru, Wisuki and Windfinder have no spot for this beach: their “Arpoador” is the one in Rio de Janeiro.

Daily edition

Wednesday, November 11

All times are local (UTC−3, same as Brasília)

Wind and window for the town of Tutóia, not for Arpoador beach.

Daytime low tide

Forecast

11:40

0.7 m · high tide at 05:50, 2.6 m

Moderate tidesThe day's range 2.1 m

Wind in Tutóia: up to 14 kn gusts 29 variable direction (ENE)
Best window: none found Tomorrow: none found

Sunrise 05:26Sunset 17:40Moon 2% illuminated

Tide tip

Low tide: flat between banks; high tide: waves.

Tide-dependent: 4x4 Tutóia ➝ Caburé →

Kite in Tutóia: schools

Next 7 days

Peak wind and gusts (kn), and the first daytime low tide

Wednesday, November 11: wind up to 14 knots, gusts up to 29; first daytime low tide at 11:40.
Thursday, November 12: wind up to 14 knots, gusts up to 29; first daytime low tide at 12:15.
Friday, November 13: wind up to 14 knots, gusts up to 29; first daytime low tide at 12:50.
Saturday, November 14: wind up to 13 knots, gusts up to 28; first daytime low tide at 13:35.
Sunday, November 15: wind up to 12 knots, gusts up to 26; first daytime low tide at 14:25.
Monday, November 16: wind up to 10 knots, gusts up to 22; first daytime low tide at 15:25.
Tuesday, November 17: wind up to 11 knots, gusts up to 25; first daytime low tide at 16:40.

Wind forecasts get less reliable further ahead: check again closer to the day.

Open the Windy.app forecast (opens in a new tab) Open the full console

See tide and wind for the whole corridor

Wind: Open-Meteo, ECMWF IFS model, updated every 6 hours Forecast for a ~9 km square, centered 2.3 km to the SW of the place on the map. We fetched this forecast on November 11 at 20:49.

Moon and sun: astronomical calculation.

Tide. Calibrated at Luís Correia, 74 km away. The Navy tide table for Tutóia covers the bay, uses a different zero (heights about 19 cm higher) and runs about 28 min behind the curve on average. Not measured at Arpoador. Lagoons, river mouths and bays may not follow the open-sea curve.

How we calculate the tide

Heights in meters above the model's reference level. “Mean level” is the average of this day's extreme heights; it does not indicate depth.

We calculate the tide with the FES2022 model, calibrated for each place to a reference station from the FEMAR catalog. Where we can, we compare the curve with the Brazilian Navy's tide tables. On rivers and inland, the curve shows the coastal tide, not the water level there.

Strong, moderate or weak: the word compares the day's range with this place's usual range, not with other places.

The FES2022 Tide product was funded by CNES, produced by LEGOS, NOVELTIS and CLS and made freely available by AVISO.

DOI 10.24400/527896/A01-2024.004 · AVISO license

Our changes: we extracted 10 tidal constituents at 32 points, calibrated 8 of the 10 to reference stations and added a monthly sea-level table.

Best time to kitesurf at Arpoador (Tutóia), month by month

The house reading is July to January, peaking September to November. Use that window as the reference for choosing your dates, with no guarantee of wind every day.

% of days with 12 knots or more

January18–28 knots62%The end is disputed: the most recent external source runs to mid-month. Before you plan January, check with us that the school is open.
February to Juneno band31–60%Outside the season: no school or guide gives a wind band for February to June, the rainy season. In June the statistics already climb, but no source opens the season.
July18–28 knots66%The season starts in the second half of the month, per the 2026 regional report.
August18–28 knots85%The wind firms up on the way to the peak.
September18–28 knots98%The peak begins: the most consistent month of the year.
October18–28 knots95%Peak: steady wind almost every day.
November18–28 knots93%Closes the peak.This month
December18–28 knots88%Still windy. The school does not publish when its season ends: check with us.
100%50%0

Where to ride at Arpoador (Tutóia): beach and sandbanks

Two kinds of water: the beach in front of the school, sheltered by the sandbank, and the dune lagoons, which are for sightseeing.

Map of the Arpoador coast, in Tutóia: the beach at the point, the sandbank offshore and the sheltered water between the two, with the dunes of the Pequenos Lençóis behind and a river with mangroves to the west. — 1 Main beach and sandbank: the sheltered water lies between the two.The dune lagoons lie outside the map.Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

1in front of the schoolon the map

Main beach and sandbank

The school launches here; the day's tide decides where you enter the water.

2between the dunesnot on the map

Freshwater lagoons

Filled by the rains. They are for sightseeing, not kiting. To combine the lagoons and kitesurfing on the same trip, the window is usually July to November, sometimes June to December, depending on each year's water: ask us about your dates.

Praia do Amor, further along the coast, has open sea and waves; one source (2025) treats it as part of Arpoador. Check with the school whether the session includes that stretch.

Kite lessons and schools at Arpoador (Tutóia)

From a first experience to riding on your own: the school chooses where you ride, depending on the day's tide.

Kite School Tutóia

Kitesurf

Selected by Rota Insider

Talk to us

What to ask: Where the lesson launches from (Arpoador beach or the school's base in Tutóia town), which tide it runs on, how many hours until you ride alone and what happens on a day without wind.

We introduce the school, and you talk to whoever teaches you.

What to bring

Kites: The school picks the size for the day, depending on your weight.
Water: 26–⁠30 °C: no wetsuit, lycra for the sun.

Talk to us about kitesurfing at Arpoador (Tutóia)

We arrange your lesson with the school: we check the forecast and show you the total before you confirm. We also organize the 4x4 to the beach on the right tide and, on the downwinder to Atins, the support car with your luggage.

What are you looking for?Talk to us on WhatsApp

Tell us your approximate dates, your kitesurfing experience and what you would like to do. Whoever teaches you confirms the format, price, time and conditions.

How to get to Arpoador (Tutóia)

The beach is about 20 km from the center of Tutóia, only by 4x4 with a local driver and only at low tide, through the Barra neighborhood — about 20 minutes from the seafront. Do not take your own car: on the wrong tide a car can get stuck. The usual airports are Parnaíba and São Luís.

From Tutóia to Parnaíba (121 km): the route step by step →

Where to stay, transfers and times in the Tutóia guide →

Downwind from Arpoador (Tutóia)

One arrival in Atins along the Pequenos Lençóis coast, and two long crossings that pass through this beach.

Towards Atins

Arpoador (Tutóia) → Atins along the Pequenos Lençóis

One leg, no day count

The run from here follows the Pequenos Lençóis coast to Atins: it is one of the two coastal arrivals in the Atins downwind guide. We organize the support car with your luggage and, if you want to share costs, we try to fit you into a departure with other riders.

Inside the Delta protected area, kite maneuvers in the river mouths are prohibited; riding through is not.

See the Atins downwind guide

Barra Grande (PI) → Atins3 to 5 days · passes through hereThe Delta do Parnaíba crossing stops at this beach before the final leg to Atins; the Barra Grande downwind guide has both options.
Ilha do Caju → Arpoador (Tutóia) → Atins50 km · rest day · 65 kmThe final stretch of a safari published by an operator (read on 22 September 2026), ~240 km across Ceará, Piauí and Maranhão: one day to here, a rest day and one day to Atins.

Ask about riding or downwinders

See all kite destinations

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How this guide was prepared

Show sources and method

The guide combines research from external sources and information from the school with the knowledge of Alessandro and Itana, who live and kitesurf in Atins, to the west. For Arpoador (Tutóia) the descriptions rest on research, without an in-person check of each school or operator. Where there is no source, it says so. Every number carries the date of its source, with more weight given to the most recent.

18–⁠28 knot band and side-on wind from the east/northeast: the school's Brazilian website (2022 footer, read on 22 September 2026); a sponsored kite article dated 27 October 2022 gives 15–⁠30 knots, and an operator of downwind crossings (12 September 2025) and another operator's page (read on 22 September 2026) give 18–⁠30 knots for the whole season.
School: its website in Portuguese (2022 footer) and in English (read on 22 September 2026). In 2026 it gives lessons on Arpoador beach and at a second base in Tutóia town (the school's trip pages; a news report dated 22 October 2026). It appears without a name because the conversation goes through us: nothing here establishes a ranking, and we have not yet signed a partner school at Arpoador.
July-to-January season: a 2026 regional news report (second half of July to mid-January, with the high point from August to December), the school's instructor as quoted on 22 October 2026 (July to mid-January) and our Tutóia guide (updated 20 August 2026). The school's website says July to December.
Water and launch: a kite-travel operator (2023 page) and an undated spot guide (both read on 22 September 2026) — a sandbank that holds the sea back, waist-deep water at low tide, moderate waves at high tide; Praia do Amor as part of Arpoador in Tutóia: a kite guide dated 29 May 2025. Water at 26–⁠30 °C: kite-travel operator (2026 page).
Lagoons between the dunes: our Tutóia guide (updated 20 August 2026).
Access and tide warning: our Tutóia guide (updated 20 August 2026) and the school's English-language page (read on 22 September 2026).
River mouths: the management plan for the Delta do Parnaíba protected area (ICMBio, in Portuguese), rule 17, prohibits kite maneuvers in the river mouths; riding through is allowed. The plan names Arpoador and Praia do Amor.
Downwinders: our own Atins and Barra Grande downwind guides; one operator's itinerary read on 22 September 2026, with the 50 and 65 km legs. The crossing is a type of journey, not a product for sale: the operator confirms the itinerary, the support, the luggage and the calendar. Operators publish 45 km (12 September 2025), 60 and 65 km (read on 22 September 2026) for stretches of this coast; we do not add up a total of our own.
Forecasts: tide calculated by this site and open-data wind forecast, in today's conditions above.
Maps: data © OpenStreetMap contributors; the sandbank is in the map data, and the sheltered water is mapped from the sources.
What still has no source, and is not stated in the body of the guide: a kite-size guide specific to this spot; a report of how the wind fills in over the day; a name for the launch point; and the distance between Arpoador (Tutóia) and Atins, which each operator publishes for a different stretch. There is not yet a local source who can be cited by name.

Percentage: days when the average wind between 10am and 5pm reaches 12 knots or more, in the ERA5 reanalysis (Open-Meteo), over the sea near Arpoador, from 2016 to 2025. On the beach, the wind is usually stronger than the model shows. Knot band: local schools and spot guides, not from the same series.

The school's website mentions wind from July to December; the 2026 regional report runs to mid-January and puts the high point in Aug–Dec. The house reading is Jul–Jan, peak Sep–Nov.

Reviewed in November 2026 by Alessandro and Itana.

This is Arpoador in Tutóia, Maranhão, not Arpoador in Rio de Janeiro.