Paragliding
in the UK.
UK paragliding is shaped by the weather — windows are short and rewarding the people who learn to read them.
Patient flying,
generous schools.
The Long Mynd, the South Downs, the Brecon Beacons and the Pembrokeshire coast all hold their own among coastal and ridge-soaring sites. Most pilots start with a BHPA school here before flying abroad; the training is internationally well-regarded for exactly that reason.
Common questions,
answered briefly.
Who is UK paragliding for?
Most reasonably fit adults — there's no minimum strength requirement, but you need to be able to run a few metres into wind with a pack on. The BHPA pathway is structured for beginners with no flying experience, and most schools start students from scratch. Tandem flights with an instructor need no training and are a good way to find out if you like the sensation.
Where can I paraglide in the UK?
The classic British sites are the South Downs (eastward chalk ridges), the Long Mynd in Shropshire, the Pembrokeshire coast, the Peak District (Mam Tor, Bradwell, Stanage), the Lake District, and Scotland's flying ranges. Coastal cliff-soaring is most reliable; thermal flying inland needs the right summer conditions. The BHPA Sites Guide lists every flying location with the local club contact.
When is the best season?
April to October for the longest flyable windows. UK paragliding is weather-led — short windows of good conditions, often planned across multi-day courses to catch them. Summer for thermal flying; spring and autumn for ridge-soaring; winter for the rare clean cold days. Patient pilots fly all year.
What does it cost to get started?
Elementary Pilot and Club Pilot courses with a BHPA-registered school run around £1,000-£1,400 combined, spread over 8-10 training days. BHPA membership and insurance is around £150 per year. A complete second-hand kit (wing, harness, reserve, helmet) starts around £1,500-£2,500. Tandem flights with an instructor — no commitment — cost around £130-£180.
How do I get started?
Book a one-day taster with a BHPA-registered school. Peak Airsports, Green Dragons, Sky-Surfing and Active Edge all run intro days that include a short solo flight. From there, the Elementary Pilot course (4-5 days) and Club Pilot course (further 4-5 days) take you to the rating that lets you fly without instructor supervision.
Active Edge Paragliding
Active Edge Paragliding operates principally from sites in the Yorkshire Dales, with regular trips to Scottish, Welsh and overseas venues. The Dales sites — Buckden Pike, Wether Fell, the Mallerstang…
Airways Airsports Paragliding
Airways Airsports operates from Darley Moor Airfield near Ashbourne in south Derbyshire — a flat lowland airfield site rather than a traditional ridge venue. The school covers hang gliding, paragliding…
Airworks Paragliding
Airworks Paragliding operates from the South Downs near Laughton in East Sussex — one of several long-running schools clustered around the southern chalk ridge between Brighton and Eastbourne. The South…
Axis Paragliding
Axis Paragliding is based near Abergavenny in Monmouthshire, on the south-eastern edge of the Brecon Beacons National Park. The school is well-positioned for training on the Black Mountains ridge, the…
Cloud 9 Paragliding
Cloud 9 Paragliding is based in Illogan near Redruth in west Cornwall — the only dedicated paragliding school in the far south-west. The Cornish coastline gives some of the most…
Cloudbase Paragliding
Cloudbase Paragliding operates from Membury Airfield in Berkshire — a former WW2 USAAF airfield off the M4 between Hungerford and Lambourn. The school covers paragliding and powered paragliding training across…
Cloudbusters Paragliding Centre Paragliding
Cloudbusters is based at Tinto Hill in South Lanarkshire, about 30 miles south of Glasgow — one of Scotland’s longest-running paragliding schools and the natural choice for central-Scotland learners. Tinto…
Crickhowell Paragliding
Crickhowell sits at the eastern edge of the Brecon Beacons National Park, where the Usk Valley narrows between the Sugar Loaf and the Black Mountains. It’s the natural base for…
Flying Fever Paragliding
Flying Fever is the Isle of Arran-based paragliding school, operating from the rolling slopes above Kildonan on the south coast of the island. Arran has been called “Scotland in miniature”…
Flying Frenzy Paragliding
Flying Frenzy is a Dorset-based paragliding school operating from sites along the south Devon and Dorset coast — principally West Bexington, the Isle of Portland ridge, and the chalk hills…
Green Dragons Paragliding
Green Dragons is the largest paragliding school in southern England — based on the North Downs near Caterham in Surrey, about a 35-minute drive south of central London. It operates…
High Adventure Paragliding, Isle of Wight
High Adventure operates from the Isle of Wight, with its main training site on the chalk downs above Brighstone on the south-west coast. The Isle of Wight gives unusually consistent…
Leavesley Aviation Paragliding School Paragliding
Leavesley Aviation Paragliding School operates from Bishops Castle in south Shropshire — on the Welsh Marches between the Long Mynd and the Welsh border. The terrain is undulating upland farmland…
Mid Wales Paragliding Centre
The Mid Wales Paragliding Centre operates from the upland country around Welshpool and Newtown — a quieter region than the Brecon Beacons but with reliable ridge sites and a strong…
Northumbria Airsports Paragliding
Northumbria Airsports operates from the Cheviot Hills in north Northumberland, with its main training sites on the College Valley and Yeavering Bell ridges. It’s the only dedicated paragliding school in…
Parapente Paragliding Peak District
Parapente Paragliding Peak District is one of several schools operating in the southern Peak. Based around the Mam Tor and Hope Valley ridge sites, the school covers the standard BHPA…
Peak Airsports Paragliding
Peak Airsports is one of the UK's longest-established paragliding schools, based in the Peak District since the 1990s. The school runs from Mam Tor and a network of ridge sites…
Pembrokeshire Paragliding
Pembrokeshire is one of the UK's premier paragliding regions — a network of coastal and inland ridge sites strung along the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park. The combination of clean Atlantic…
YX Paragliding
YX Paragliding operates from the Horseshoe Pass area above Llangollen in Denbighshire, north-east Wales. The pass sits at 410m and forms a natural ridge venue with clean prevailing-wind fetch off…