SUP for Families and Children: Tandems, Kids' Boards and What to Buy

SUP is one of the few water disciplines a family genuinely does together. Here is how to arrange it and where not to economise.

What the range holds

• SUPKids Inflatable — 649 €, the brand's cheapest board.
• Junior Inflatable — 1 099 €.
• Junior Racer Inflatable — 1 429 €, for children who took up the sport.
• Tandem Inflatable — 1 799 €, for two.
• Whopper — hard from 1 149 €, for learning, up to 11'2"×36".
• Waterman Package Kids — 1 439 €, a package with sail.

Why "a smaller adult board" fails a child

The most common economy and the most common mistake.

One: board weight. An adult inflatable weighs 10 to 12 kg. A seven-year-old cannot carry it to the water or right it once flipped. After that they simply lose interest.

Two: stiffness under light weight. A board designed for 80 kg behaves like a log under 25 kg — it sits too high and catches wind.

Three: the paddle. An adult paddle is longer and heavier. A child paddles it crookedly, learns bad technique and tires twice as fast. Kids' paddles cost 79 € — not the line item to save on.

Conclusion: a kids' board is not "marketing for parents" but a different construction for a different weight.

The tandem: when it is justified

The Tandem Inflatable at 1 799 € carries two, and the decision is debatable. Honestly:

When it works:

• An adult with a child who cannot yet paddle.
• A couple where one paddles and the other is a passenger.
• Outings with a dog.

When it does not:

• Two adults who both want to paddle. Synchronising strokes is a skill of its own, and early sessions become an argument rather than a rest.
• When children already have their own pace: they want to steer, not sit at the front.

A practical alternative: instead of a tandem it is often smarter to buy one big board from 12'0" with high volume. It carries two, and when the child paddles independently it becomes your touring board.

The Whopper: a board for people who "cannot stand up"

Worth a separate mention — hard, from 1 149 €, in sizes up to 11'2" × 36".

Thirty-six inches is 91 cm wide. For comparison, the all-round iGO is 33 inches and the racing All Star 24.5.

Why that width. It makes the board nearly impossible to tip, which solves two problems: teaching an adult with no balance, and carrying a heavy rider.

Plain advice: if you are over 100 kg, or someone in the family is nervous of water, start on the widest board available. Disappointment with SUP is almost always born in the first twenty minutes of the first session.

Safety with children — no compromises

A vest on the child, always. Not "when far from shore" — always.

A leash on the adult always; on a child with a caveat. In moving water a leash can endanger a child if it snags. On open water without current it is needed: a board blows downwind faster than a child swims.

The distance rule: the adult stays between the child and open water, never the reverse.

Offshore wind means no session. It carries you away, and with children that is not up for discussion. How to read direction is in our sea breeze article.

How to kit out a family

Two adults plus a child under 8: one board from 11'2" for an adult with the child in front, a second for the other adult. Add a kids' board when the child asks to go alone.

Two adults plus a child of 8 to 13: two adult boards plus a SUPKids or Junior.

One adult plus a child: a tandem or a wide board from 12'0".

A child taking up the sport: the Junior Racer.

Common questions

Can a child use a smaller adult board?

No. It is heavier, too stiff under light weight and comes with an adult paddle. The child tires and loses interest.

Is a tandem worth buying?

If one of the two is a passenger, yes. Two paddling adults find synchronisation hard.

Which board is easiest to learn on?

The widest. The Whopper reaches 36 inches — nearly impossible to tip.

Does a child need a leash?

On open water without current, yes: the board blows away faster than a child swims. In current a leash can be dangerous.

At what age does a child need their own board?

Judge by whether they can carry the board to the water and handle a paddle sized to their height, not by age.

Where to look

SUPKids from 649 €, the Tandem and the Whopper. To read: how to read a size and our Starboard review.