We’ve come to live with uncertainty this year.
I don’t take anything for granted and I celebrate each step we take towards a safer and more open world. My parents have high hopes that with everyones vaccinated we’ll see each other at this year’s family gathering. That requires international travel, so I’m not holding my breath.
Just as I’m longing to see my family, I’m dying for a warm and windy kitesurf holiday. These used to be the norm, a few times per year at least. In 2021, staycationistas will certainly make the most of UK’s South and West coasts, but many hopeful souls have started to gaze outwards, thinking it’s about time to pack the golf bag once again and hop on an international flight.
The UK is introducing the traffic light system; red, green and amber. There’s a lot to keep track of here. Rules of your home country, rules of the host country, whether you can cancel your flight last minute, and of course – is it windy?
With all this in mind, maybe a staycation is to prefer after all. But if you’re dying to get out there in your board shorts or bikini, to let the wind propel you across the water and forget about the madness for a short while, then here are my top bets on holiday destinations that should work for kitesurfers this summer.
Portugal
Portugal is currently on UK’s green list. You still have to show a negative RT-PCR test result for SARS/COVID-19 at the time of boarding. The test must have been taken within 72 hours of departure.
Portugal is Europe’s new hotspot for surfers, kitesurfers and digital nomads. It’s beautiful, has a rich culture and is good value for money.
Consider Portugal especially if you want to mix kitesurfing with surfing and maybe a bit of city tourism.
Read more about Portugal here.
Turkey
Turkey has a number of tantalising kitesurf spots and plans to open up the doors to tourism this summer. In order to keep the numbers down they enforced a lockdown during spring, and if the plan worked they might just see some well needed tourism this summer.
Turkey is probably the least safe bet on this list, but if well managed and a bit lucky you should be able to go and come back without any quarantine period.
Learn more about Turkey here or read my review of Gokova here.
Greece
Greece offers some of Europe’s best kitesurfing conditions in the summer. The best kite spots can be found on the islands like Rhodes, Lefkada and Paros to name a few.
Greece is welcoming you without quarantine if you’ve had a negative PCR test or both your vaccine jabs.
Cyprus
Cyprus is in a similar state as Greece and is currently amber for UK travel. Cyprus is less of a kitesurf destination than Greece, but still offers some great wave riding spots. The season is bang in the middle of the summer which makes it a good contender on this list.
Fingers crossed
Wind – check. Sun – check. Travel allowed – check. Cheap tickets – Check. No quarantine required – Probably check. This list is a moving target, but as it stands right now these countries could all be great options for a kite trip in summer 2021. Flight tickets are dirt cheap at the moment, but keep in mind that you might have to do a PCR COVID-19 test both before going and coming back, and these might set you back a fair bit.
One thing is for sure – If you manage to go you’ll have a lot more space on the water than you’d normally have!