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When you see a picture of a superyacht, it’s almost always anchored in a dead-calm sea, somewhere that looks a lot like paradise, right? And that’s all very well and good, but for those of our charter clients who love wind and wave sports like surfing, sailing, windsurfing or kiteboarding, that flat water doesn’t exactly call out ‘thrills and adrenaline’.
We have great news! These five charter destinations will fill your craving for wind and wave sports.
The places on this list all have those stunning, calm anchorages, fantastic food, and all the superyacht luxuries you could dream of. However, hiding on the other side of that picture-perfect island, that lagoon, or outside that barrier reef is a perfect left-hand break or a trade wind that will have you suspended high above the sea on your kiteboard, or crouched down in the middle of a blue-green barrel.
Let’s get into it.
Don’t let those calm lagoons deceive you: as well as stunning cruising conditions, incredible diving, and a serious reputation for luxury, the Maldives also has some of the best waves in the world. Offering consistent barrels and long waves, the Maldives is known for its consistency of surf conditions and dazzling options — with over a thousand islands, you’ve sure got a lot of choices between breaks. The even better news? The Maldives is also a paradise for kitesurfers and windsurfers as you skim over those epically beautiful lagoons.
Best for intermediate and advanced surfers.
Where to charter a yacht for a Maldives surf trip? There are many choices, with surfing spots across the Male, Central, and South Atolls. The Male Atolls are the most crowded, with famous breaks like Pasta Point, while the Central Atolls are quieter. The South Atolls are the most remote and undeveloped —a paradise of empty breaks and desert islands to explore at leisure.
Best time to charter a yacht in the Maldives for a surfing holiday
April and October are the prime surfing months, with some surprisingly good, if less reliable, waves you can experience in March and November.
Is the surf not pumping? Assuming you can’t find another break with better conditions, which you almost always can, it’s time to strap on the dive tank, book yourself into the spa, laze on a desert island or dine at an underwater restaurant. You’ll always find happiness in the Maldives.
Surfer? Windsurfer? Kitesurfer? Sailor? It doesn’t matter. If wind and waves are what you seek, you should set your course for the Caribbean island of Barbados, where the ENE trade winds mean the island’s east side experiences great waves pretty much year-round. In the winter, northerly winds also light up the north and west side with clean, perfect waves, while the west side has some pretty epic waves that can sometimes be inconsistent.
Best for intermediate to advanced wave-riders.
Best time to charter a yacht for wind sports in Barbados
Good conditions year-round, but for kitesurfing/windsurfing, the best conditions are experienced from December to May, while for surfing, November to June offers peak surf.
Are the waves not pumping? Gorgeous Barbados has much in store for a yacht charter, from superb diving to beautiful beaches. Bliss out at the luxury hotels of the West Coast, explore plantation houses and colonial forts or take a rum tour. You can also charter in Barbados and visit St Lucia, another good wind sports location and one of the most stunning superyacht playgrounds in the Caribbean.
The winds of Greece and the Caribbean might be better known for sailors, but there are few pleasures greater than setting your course from Tahiti to Bora Bora and letting the ESE trade winds whisk you through the Society Islands. French Polynesia isn’t just heaven for sailors: this region is a wind sports paradise, offering a stunning range of lagoons and surf breaks for kitesurfing, windsurfing, or surfing the infamous Teahupo’o break. Surfers will delight in powerful, consistent, year-round waves with deep barrels. At the same time, windsurfers and kiteboarders can ride waves or glide across turquoise lagoons against film-set backdrops of volcanoes and coconut palms.
Where to go for a French Polynesia wind sports holiday
Tahiti is the most well-known for surfing and wind sports. Still, there are 118 islands in French Polynesia for you to explore, including the remote Tuamotu Atolls, offering outstanding wind sports and surf breaks known only to locals.
When to charter a yacht in French Polynesia for a wind sports holiday
There are good surf conditions year-round, with the best conditions from March through October, while the peak for wind sports, including sailing charters, is May to September, when the trade winds blow.
No wind or waves? You’ll be ok. Find yourself a coral reef to dive into, book an overwater spa, bathe in a rainforest waterfall —or just bliss out on some of the most beautiful scenery on this earth.
Mauritius is kitesurfing heaven due to some pretty epic wave riding and its enormous lagoon in the shadow of Le Morne Mountain. Nobody ever forgets their first time riding that Mauritius lagoon as you glide over the corals and look up to the vast mountain, accelerating the effects of the trade wind. This lagoon has some pretty exhilarating currents, creating the famous optical illusion of Mauritius’ underwater waterfall, so you must be an advanced rider to kitesurf here. There’s also some great riding out beyond the lagoon for wave riders. Good news for surfers - there’s a famously good surf break at Tamarin Bay.
Best for advanced kitesurfers.
May to September is the best time to charter a yacht in Mauritius for a kitesurfing holiday.
Are conditions not right? Jungled, mountainous Mauritius is a stunning place to explore, and we strongly recommend hiking up to the top of Le Morne Brabant mountain to view the illusion of the underwater waterfall — or get a helicopter. Explore the colonial waterfront, get pampered in a luxury plantation spa, scuba dive the incredible reef, or laze under the coconut palms.
Cabos San Lucas may be famous for its nightlife and ultra-luxury hotels. However, it’s also the jumping off-ground to some of the best surf and kitesurfing destinations on earth, promising haunting desert scenery and cool little beach towns. The Baja Peninsula has been a famous surf destination since the 1940s, including the infamous Scorpion Bay and Baja Malibu. The region has also exploded onto the kitesurfing scene with unbelievably good kitesurfing at La Ventana and Punta Abreojos on the Sea of Cortez and Punta San Carlos on the Pacific side.
Best for all competency levels at different places.
The best time to charter a yacht for a Baja California Mexico surfing holiday is from March to November. The best time for a Baja California kiteboarding/windsurfing holiday is the opposite season, from November to March, although some locations are year-round.
Are conditions not quite right? Baja California is an adventure playground — whether your idea of adventure is diving with sea lions, quad biking through the desert, or living the high life in Cabo.
There are so many yacht charter destinations that also double as fantastic wind sport and surfing locations without losing anything of what makes superyacht charter so unique. To organise your dream surfing, kiteboarding, sailing or windsurfing holiday, contact the charter team at Bluewater.
