Anyone have good suggestions for a Family holiday that will also involve kiting and or surfing? Been looking at Outrigger Fiji and nearly booked until I read Fozzy's post - www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=30161

Want to go between June and August for 2 weeks - stay at a fairly comfortable place for the wife and kids - all of whom like the water but dont kite or surf - but they just want to snorkel and veg out anyway...

There are some good deals in Fiji (Nadi) where I could do boat trips to surf and or kite???

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated

Thanks
Lance

cocos islands perhaps

I've been to Fiji but didn't have my gear with me. Lucky.... it was just as described in the other post you linked to. Over-rated!

New Caledonia?
Whit sundays?
Vietnam?
Thailand?
Philipines?
Sunshine coast?

mike

We go through the same thing every year. Where is somewhere warm, with waves, preferably with easy access to the kiting in front of where you stay, good tidal range, reliable wind and preferably within a short flight of the East Coast. Thinking about Bali this year. Mauritius is a pretty safe bet, but a long flight. Maldives is great if you are just as happy to surf as kite, but a long flight again. It would be really interesting to hear if anyone has uncovered any family friendly wave focussed gems in the South Pacific.

after a 3 hour session and leaving the rest to play. body wasn't up to holding camera still.
so you would notice when I sat it on the balcony rail.

did I say that was the 2nd 3hr session of the day.
did I say that was the 7th day in a row of Trade winds and 2-3 sessions per day.
Did I say a session means 5-7k cruise from outer reefs past islands into the home bay.

Did I say it was only half way through the 2 week Holiday.

simonmm said...

We go through the same thing every year. Where is somewhere warm, with waves, preferably with easy access to the kiting in front of where you stay, good tidal range, reliable wind and preferably within a short flight of the East Coast. Thinking about Bali this year. Mauritius is a pretty safe bet, but a long flight. Maldives is great if you are just as happy to surf as kite, but a long flight again. It would be really interesting to hear if anyone has uncovered any family friendly wave focussed gems in the South Pacific.

most Tropical South pacific locations with waves are reef breaks. and usually a boat trip out to them. Depends if your Family are all pro surfers.

Hi, this is Tony's wife, Sheryl. I just wanted to reply to Lance about the holiday destination - seems you didn't get a woman's perspective in your responses! I have been to Safari Lodge in Fiji several times and most times I have taken some of my family along. Last year I also took my daughter and my one year old grandaughter. The beach at Safari Lodge was just perfect for the children - its shallow, and safe and within walking distance from your rooms. From my perspective (I don't kite), I have a beautiful reef for snorkelling right at the end of the path from the lodge, there are day trips I can take with the kids if I get bored with just hanging around on the beautiful tropical beach, swinging in the hammocks reading or taking walks around the island. They can also have a trip into the local town and often can get a guide to take them through some of the local villages. Safari Lodge has a great rapport with the local people and we get some experiences that you wouldnt even be offered through the more commercial resorts. Last year, for instance, we all went on a 4WD trip up into the mountains and did a rainforest walk to a gorgeous waterfall where we all swam and had afternoon tea at the Fijian guide's home. They treated us like part of the family - not a bunch of tourists. It is a much more Fijian holiday than I have encountered in, say, Nadi, where it is really commercial and doesnt offer much that we dont have in Queensland. I could definitely recommend it as a place where you would all get what you want from a holiday - you could have unlimited kiting and your family could snorkel, vege or just wander around the beach to their hearts content. There are also kayaks and windsurfers available for a play around, and there is a jetty on one side of the island where you can snorkel with the fish and hand feed them - the kids thought it was wonderful. Anyway, just thought you might like a "family" opinion rather than a kiters!

Hi Sheryl - perfect and I have forwarded to Tania - and yes my issue has been family... heck I could live in a swag and just kite each day - but its not just me and I want the girls to have a great trip too!

Appreciate your response

Hey Tony that video was that down on the Coral Coast or off the islands? Did you get to have some surf also - or was it all flat water?

Is this the Safari Lodge that Sheryl refers too

June a good time of year to go there?

Cheers
Lance

Thought about Raro?

www.kiteboardaitutaki.com

and an IKO affilitaed school is starting up as well in June

warm, clear water, great kiting, safe, tons of other stuff to do, flights are not too long.....

well recommended; we went last year, twice!

RAL INN said...

simonmm said...

We go through the same thing every year. Where is somewhere warm, with waves, preferably with easy access to the kiting in front of where you stay, good tidal range, reliable wind and preferably within a short flight of the East Coast. Thinking about Bali this year. Mauritius is a pretty safe bet, but a long flight. Maldives is great if you are just as happy to surf as kite, but a long flight again. It would be really interesting to hear if anyone has uncovered any family friendly wave focussed gems in the South Pacific.

most Tropical South pacific locations with waves are reef breaks. and usually a boat trip out to them. Depends if your Family are all pro surfers.

Are you just trying to pimp your own holidays by dissing other wave destinations? There are plenty of mellower south pacific wave destinations (tide and condition dependent). Places like Sigatoka, Resorts Lefts and Namotu in Fiji alone can all have mellow waves on the day. Sure a boat is handy for many places (but not all) and you definately do not need to be a pro surfer to enjoy many destinations in the South Pacific. Having travelled and surfed for many years, the trick my wife and I have more recently found is finding kid friendly destinations rather than the usual backwater surf camps or boat trips. As such, that is why I was interested to see if anyone had uncovered any good kid friendly wave places. Anyhow, might be best if you stuck to the flat water stuff and left the whole wave scene to others more educated to comment.

Hi Sheryl - agree - not the type of response I was after...

Thanks for your information though - the wife is completing her research now... the kids are going to be happy either way Im sure

Appreciate your feedback

Lance

RAL INN said...

God you guys all need a lesson in growing up! I occasionally read these things when Tony has them open and it usually ends up the same childish sniping. Lance sounded like he wanted some real info on a family holiday and thats why I replied to him and to whoever you are - no, I am not "affiliated" with anybody! I go along to Safari Lodge for a holiday and I love it there - just wanted to share that with Lance. Dont remember asking any of you others to butt in? I don't know how anybody gets any useful information on these forums - youre all too full of yourself.

simonmm said...

RAL INN said...

God you guys all need a lesson in growing up! I occasionally read these things when Tony has them open and it usually ends up the same childish sniping. Lance sounded like he wanted some real info on a family holiday and thats why I replied to him and to whoever you are - no, I am not "affiliated" with anybody! I go along to Safari Lodge for a holiday and I love it there - just wanted to share that with Lance. Dont remember asking any of you others to butt in? I don't know how anybody gets any useful information on these forums - youre all too full of yourself.

Whoever you are, you replied to my enquiry with some useless information about needing to have a family of pro surfers to be able to head to any south pacific wave destination. To me this sounded like complete crap that I for one know as untrue. Hence it is quite easy to conclude that regardless of whoever you are you know **** about surfing in the South Pacific and/or are replying to enquiries such as mine to forward a vested interest you have. At the end of the day if you didn't want me to butt in to your little Safari Lodge love in, then simply don't reply to my posts and leave it to someone else who hopefully might have something more productive to contribute.

Simonmm I am not a pro surfer and only relate to surf conditions that also can be sailed or kited. So there maybe such places as you describe for purely surfing but the moment you look for unobstructed Trade winds in the tropics, finding a family friendly resort with a beach break you maybe in trouble. I have also spent an evening drinking on ellington wharf with an expat Aussie who is making cane hanging chairs that he sells to resorts on road trips, to support his surfing Habit. he surfs all over the Fijian islands and at that stage had done so for 14yrs. my statement is largely a quote of his views as well.



I also think you have been caught in the crossfire of Sheryls reply to Fozzy which she took as a personal attack.
My vested interest is only for the trips I organise for the last 2 weeks of each August.

we also organise trips and holidays to other places.

yeah, heres a pic of me in egypt from last weekend...check the pyramid

Like any wind destination you must go expecting no wind and if the wind blows its a bonus, I worked on nananu i ra for 6 months at morrisons teaching kiting and came to the conclusion its a pretty average place, very choppy when windy unless its low tide, then be careful as you only have centimeters of water above the coral, dont the wind tends to wrap around the point making it gusty. As for safari lodge, there has been enough said on here to sum it up.

Check out lizard island in far north queensland, so far it has never let anyone down that i know off. My first little foray into that area was sensational. even if the coast is not getting the wind it seems to be blowing out there. Perfect for kids, no culture though.

Bali wins for culture and and beauty but hit and miss for wind there too. was there for 10 days in the middle of the windy season and had no wind. Didnt care though cause i was having a ball anyway.

I lived in Sinai, Egypt for 3 years and it by far hands down without a doubt will provide you with wind, i would bet my house on it, unless you get the only 2 weeks in a year when its calm. I left cause the wind was driving me insane, then i learnt to kite. Been a mecca for windsurfing for 20 years. nuff said