Watersports - Boating Kelowna

People have participated in water sports around the Kelowna area since 1906, the year after the City was incorporated. Regatta, typically centered around the beach at City Park, attracted contestants from up and down the Okanagan Valley and from as far away as Vancouver, to partake in swimming, diving and boat-racing events – popular water sports still enjoyed on the lake to this day. Today, you can also see many other, and newer, water sports including Wakeboarding, Wakesurfing, Windsurfing, Kiteboarding, Parasailing, Hydrofoiling, Kneeboarding and the popular family sport of Tubing.

The Early Days & Kelowna Regatta

Kelowna Regatta began as a great way to enjoy the lake, and grew over time with events including water skiing competitions and demonstrations, dragon boat and hydroplane racing and sailing regattas, all held directly in front of Hot Sands Beach at City park. Overhead were live air shows, which eventually included military jet demonstrations by Canada's Snowbirds. A carnival in City Park featured fabulous fireworks, and nightly spectacles around the pool and high dive platform. Sad to say, the main event grandstands burnt to the ground in 1969 and were never replaced.

Unlimited Hydroplanes have been racing off Hot Sands Beach and the downtown area for decades. If you’ve never seen this thrilling spectacle, you’re missing out on something amazing!

Watersports Now

Around Kelowna today you'll find many different water sports to enjoy on beautiful Okanagan Lake. In this section of the website we have information and videos about water skiing, wakeboarding and wakesurfing.