PARAGLIDING IN THE UK

Both Airsports instructors and past students have flown all over the UK in the past 25 years amassing a wealth of knowledge about different paragliding sites, clubs and the local conditions.

BHPA
In the UK the British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association controls our sport though Paragliding schools, that carry out  teaching and provide you with a licence. Once licensed you can join a club giving you access to paragliding sites, extra coaching and social events.

A GUIDE TO UK PARAGLIDING SITES CLUBS
Throughout England Wales Scotland and Ireland there are many clubs to choose from with some being affiliated to each other. Once Club Pilot you would normally join your local club giving you access to local sites and this can cost £20 to £55 depending where you are. If you decide to paraglide at different sites in the UK then most clubs will charge a small daily fee.

Paragliders require hills to fly from and here in South East of England we have the beautiful South Downs stretching from Winchester to Eastbourne. If you live in London you may join one of the clubs in the South East and although small, record flights have been made here.
To the west of London you have the Thames Valley club based around Hungerford and Marlborough, paragliders regularly fly from here to the South coast, yes that's right on an aircraft weighing around 10 kilos.

In the Midlands we start to get mountains and there are several clubs in the Peak and Lake districts. Wales is very accessible, with London only 3 hours away, we have had many long weekends flying in South Wales around the Brecon Beacon National park. They have 19 sites so if the wind changes direction you just drive to another site. Long cross country flights have been made here and the airspace is not busy. Snowdonia in North Wales is absolutely fantastic but tends to be a long drive and the weather starts to dictate when to go there. 

Scotland has with out doubt some of the best paragliding in the world but the weather can be difficult at the best of times. This is just a guide but should you wish to make the most of this very special sport of ours we have friendly contacts all over the UK. A full list of UK paragliding clubs can be found on the British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association web site.