There’s nothing like the thrill of strapping a flyboard on to your feet and flying effortlessly over the water, while challenging gravity. Flyboarding is an amazing extreme sport that enhances any vacation. Like any extreme sport, there will be some restrictions and limits for safety reasons.
Most companies have minimal Flyboard restrictions, but there are some weight, height, and age limits.
| Flyboard Restrictions | Weight | Height | Age |
| Minimum | 80-100 lbs. | None** | 10-12* |
| Maximum | 300-330 lbs. | None** | none |
*Minors under 18 will need to sign a parental waiver.
**There are no height limits, but shoe bindings generally fit shoe size 6-14.
Flyboard restrictions will vary depending on flyboard rental company policies. But there are some general guidelines that are common across the board no matter where you go. If you are thinking about adding flyboarding to your vacation experience, here are some more answers to questions you may have about it.
Is there a weight limit for flyboarding?
There is no real weight limit for flyboarding. Though the official maximum weight limit of the Flyboard is 300 pounds and some rental companies use that as their maximum weight limit as well.
But if you plan on buying one for yourself or find a rental company that doesn’t have weight limits, then you shouldn’t have any problems. Flyboards are also one of our 11 ways to make money with your jet ski, so these charts will come in handy.
The reason there isn’t any real weight limit is because of how the Flyboard works.
Flyboards are attached to a Jetski through a 60-foot-long hose. Through a series of patented adapters by inventor Franky Zapata of Zapata racing, this hose diverts the thrust put out by the Jetski to the Flyboard and allows the rider to control that thrust.
As the personal watercraft (PWC) provides all the propulsion for the flyboard, you are tethered to the PWC and float along effortlessly behind it. So how high or fast you fly depends on the power and the size of the PWC.
For example:
| Physical weight | PWC Horsepower | How high you fly | How fast you go |
| 255 lbs. | 100 HP | 13-16 ft. | 8-10.5 MPH |
| 255 lbs. | 255 HP | 29.5 ft. | 18.5 MPH |
Many rental companies have minimum weight requirements that vary between 80 to 100 pounds for safety reasons.
The amount of control needed to maintain balance while using the flyboard and to handle its maneuverability requires a degree of strength and confidence. Most children who weigh under 80 pounds are too young to comfortably handle the Flyboard. Hence, the weight restrictions.
How old do you have to be to flyboard?
To flyboard with confidence, you have to be old enough to comfortably handle the hydro flight experience. It is recommended between the ages of 10-12 because not every child is ready to handle flyboarding.
And like any extreme sport or experience, rental companies will require the parents to sign a waiver for participants under the age of eighteen.
There are no maximum age limits to flyboard, however you should take into account any underlying medical conditions such as
- heart ailments
- back problems
- pregnancy.
Flyboarding could adversely affect these conditions.
Flyboarding is a fun sport for all ages. There are older people who have tried flyboarding and picked it up quickly, well into their 70s and 80s.
Is there a height limit for flyboarding?
There are no official height limits for flyboarding. Because it’s not a person’s height that’s taken into consideration, but their shoe size.
A flyboard attaches to your feet like a pair of ski boots or roller skates, so the flyboard boots come in standard sizes to fit most people.
Most flyboard rental companies will carry standard bindings that fit a normal woman’s shoe size 5 and up, or a normal man’s shoe up to a size 11.5-14.
They may also have special inserts or neoprene socks that can help fit the bindings to a smaller shoe sized if needed. Or they may have a custom boot to fit larger sizes. It just depends on the company. If this is a concern for you, ask the company if they can accommodate your shoe size.
Flyboarding bindings, like the Pro Series from Zapata Racing, work by strapping your feet into an open toed boot, similar to a ski boot. The boots are attached to the flyboard. Depending on your level of familiarity, you can shift your stance or the direction the boots are pointed.
Since this is the only way you are attached to the flyboard, it’s important to make sure you can be securely strapped in.
Are there other flyboard restrictions or requirements?
There are some other flyboarding restrictions and requirements you may need to take into consideration before adding it to your vacation package.
You don’t necessarily have to be a good swimmer to flyboard, as you will be wearing a life jacket. And your partner on the ski will never be further than 50 feet away from you.
A flyboard gets its power through a long hose attached to a jet ski, and diverts the thrust from the PWC to push water through nozzles on the bottom of the flyboard.
To operate the flyboard, you will have to swim out behind a jet ski with your feet level and legs closed so the PWC operator can power the flyboard. The minimum required depth for basic flyboarding above the water is 8 feet. Unless you are diving in and out of the water, and that needs to be a minimum of 12 feet.
Note that this is deeper than the minimum required for regular jet ski riding, which is 3 feet. The extra depth is to prevent injuries when falling or diving.
The flyboard will also propel you through or under the water like a dolphin, so you need to be confident in your swimming skills.
Flyboard rental companies will require you to wear gear that either they provide, or you bring, such as
- Personal Flotation Device that is Coast Guard certified.
- A water sports style helmet, preferably one that protects your ears from directly impacting the water.
- Wetsuits for very cold water or during the wintertime.
Make sure to thoroughly read all of the fine print before booking that Flyboard experience. Some companies may require you to have good travel insurance or other types of insurance that covers sporting accidents.
You will always need to maintain at least a fifteen-foot distance from the PWC and be aware of any objects or obstacles around you. You must maintain at least 200 feet of distance between yourself and other PWC and flyboarders.
Only one person can use a flyboard at a time, but large parties of people can be accommodated depending on the flyboard rental company and the location. As flyboarding can only happen in large, open bodies of water.
How safe is Flyboarding?
Flyboarding is a very safe sport as long as you have certified instructors.
To become a certified professional instructor in Flyboarding requires several hours of training and various certifications to include:
- First Aid and CPR
- Boat safety course relevant to the state or country you live in.
- Logging 10-20 hours minimum on the Flyboard itself, including videos of yourself showing improvement as you practice.
- Go through a full day instructor training course.
These certified instructors are passionate about the sport and want to make sure that beginners have a great experience. The instructors are the ones who not only show you how to perform the basic maneuvers, but they are also the ones who will be driving the PWC and controlling how fast and high you can fly.
For those who are just beginning or trying out the flyboard experience, the instructors will typically keep you around 5-10 feet above water for safety. So that if you fall, it isn’t very far.
Flyboards generally weight about 100 pounds and it takes about 5-10 minutes to learn the basic maneuvers. These include how to navigate in and through the water.
You don’t need to be afraid of sinking in the water because flyboard is buoyant and floats in water. And since you’ll be wearing a flotation device, there is no chance that you’ll be pulled under with the weight of the board.
The instructors who accompany you during your experience constantly observe your progress and if they see you struggling or think there’s a chance you can hurt yourself, they’re trained to control the throttle and gently lower you to the water. You can read about How hard flyboarding is in my post.
Final thoughts
Flyboarding is a thrilling sport that can add hours of fun to your vacation. Although there are some restrictions, including weight, height and age limits, that you should take into consideration before adding it to your vacation plan.
Be sure to listen to your instructor and follow all directions. You can pick up the necessary skills fairly quickly. All of us were able to go from constantly falling to getting considerable air time and height after only 30 minutes of practice.
So give it a go next time you see them for rent. You’ll have a blast!
