Hi,
Simple instruction : I want to take my wife and child (currently 13 months old) on an overseas holiday next year. It has to be nice - no dirty resorts & drunk backpackers, but apart from that the mandate is pretty open
Ideally I want somewhere I can kite straight from the resort, with some waves. Not into freestyle or flat water.
My wife wants to go to Fiji, but Ive checked and Tavarua is booked solid until November 2014, Namotu & Lomani don't take kids.
So, I'll put the question to the SB crew - where should I go ?
Select to expand quotejgfoster said...
Rottnest ?
Nice, double the cost and none of the facilities.
Spose you save though, boat fares are only half the cost of flying to Fiji 
Second vote for Mauritius. St Regis has just taken over and refurbed a hotel at Le Morne, went and had a look, very nice, but exy. Could walk to the kite launch spot from there. Kited there in June, great spot. 
Cocos Island ?? I havnt been there but Jezz from 2nd Wind raves about it ..sounds unreal !! Not sure if it kids friendly . Contact Jezz @ 2nd Wind for more info ..
Select to expand quoteMonkers said..
Cocos Island ?? I havnt been there but Jezz from 2nd Wind raves about it ..sounds unreal !! Not sure if it kids friendly . Contact Jezz @ 2nd Wind for more info ..
Unfortunately you can't kite the waves at Cocos - great for surfing though
Also not a lot for spouse & kids to do if they don't kite
We just got back from Lord Howe. It's one of the best holidays we've ever had. A little expensive but really, really nice.
Lord Howe is like a cross between a laid back Aussie country town, a tropical resort and a mountain national park.
You don't get the cross cultural experience of overseas (but you never do in a resort) and you don't get the Fijian aunties to look after your kids. The tour operators come and introduce themselves but there's no hassling for money and we got plenty of help and advice for free. We only paid for the formal tours we went on.
The weather is not hot, but it's pleasantly warm during the days if you find a spot out of the wind.
Lord Howe is possibly not kiteboarding paradise, but it's pretty good. The lagoon takes W-S winds, which are common over winter. You can blast up and down the reef and play with the waves. We used 7-10m kites.
Gday James
It's all family holidays from here on eh. While you guys are in the NW I'll be in Bali - I miss out on the boys trip but at least I'll be surfing over shallow coral reef 
I reckon Maldives is the go. Stay in a resort, beautiful beaches, plenty of surf, not sure about wind though - you'll have to look into that one. Not cheap.
Ben
Horrocks Beach! cant beat it. Family friendly and has waves. Stay in the caravan park or Horrocks beachside cottages. Same distance too launch site or kids playground. Magic!
Thanks for all the ideas - Mauritius looks amazing, Maldives would be also be a winner but not sure about the wind. My wife is a non kiter, so Coco's is not going to work, neither would Sri Lanka from what I can gather. Has anyone stayed at the Malolo Island Resort in Fiji ? Saw a vid on youtube last night and it looks pretty good - 20 min boat ride to the breaks. Horrocks looks pretty interesting - Ive organised a boys trip to Quobba and Gnaraloo at the end of September, might check it out on the way there.
Lord Howe is a surpise - this post has some nice pics (www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Kitesurfing/General/Lord-Howe-Island-Winter-Kite-Surfing-Rundown/) . In June / July it's not going to be that warm is it ?
Select to expand quoteswinginginthewind said..Monkers said..
Cocos Island ?? I havnt been there but Jezz from 2nd Wind raves about it ..sounds unreal !! Not sure if it kids friendly . Contact Jezz @ 2nd Wind for more info ..
Unfortunately you can't kite the waves at Cocos - great for surfing though
Also not a lot for spouse & kids to do if they don't kite
I've always wondered about cocos... why can't you kite waves there, but can surf (pardon my ignorance). What's the surfing like there? Any more info appreciated... :-)
Also, +1 on mauritius.
Select to expand quotekitegirl21 said..swinginginthewind said..Monkers said..
Cocos Island ?? I havnt been there but Jezz from 2nd Wind raves about it ..sounds unreal !! Not sure if it kids friendly . Contact Jezz @ 2nd Wind for more info ..
Unfortunately you can't kite the waves at Cocos - great for surfing though
Also not a lot for spouse & kids to do if they don't kite
I've always wondered about cocos... why can't you kite waves there, but can surf (pardon my ignorance). What's the surfing like there? Any more info appreciated... :-)
Also, +1 on mauritius.
The main surf breaks would be offshore with the prevailing winds. Surf is good, depending on swell size and direction, a couple of left handers.
Select to expand quoteDANEgerous said..kitegirl21 said..swinginginthewind said..Monkers said..
Cocos Island ?? I havnt been there but Jezz from 2nd Wind raves about it ..sounds unreal !! Not sure if it kids friendly . Contact Jezz @ 2nd Wind for more info ..
Unfortunately you can't kite the waves at Cocos - great for surfing though
Also not a lot for spouse & kids to do if they don't kite
I've always wondered about cocos... why can't you kite waves there, but can surf (pardon my ignorance). What's the surfing like there? Any more info appreciated... :-)
Also, +1 on mauritius.
The main surf breaks would be offshore with the prevailing winds. Surf is good, depending on swell size and direction, a couple of left handers.
got ya. thanks. will look into it, looks like such a beautiful place!
Mui Ne In vietnam, 18 klm of beach ,plenty of resorts to choose from , cheaper than bali but better 3 to 5 star accomodation and food ,drinks great wind ,waves from beach in front of over 30 resorts
Only expensive part is airfare about $1300 from perth .
Select to expand quotejamesperth said..
Has anyone stayed at the Malolo Island Resort in Fiji ? Saw a vid on youtube last night and it looks pretty good - 20 min boat ride to the breaks.
Hi James
I stayed at Malolo Island Resort for a week with the family back in Oct 2011.
I had maybe 3 days kiting, not sure what time of year is the best for wind?
But as far as a family location it was great, the kids and missus loved it.
I never went out to the breaks, but easily organized apparently. You can also jump on the day trip to snorkel island (basically a sand bank), and do a downwinder back to the resort if wind is blowing the right direction.
I just kited straight off the beach in front of the resort, I was the only kiter staying there at the time.
The current can rip past there at times, so you need to be sure of the wind strength and your abilities.
The watersports guys will keep an eye on you and probably come rescue you if you got into trouble 
Its not really a "kiting" destination, but it can work. Beaches are narrow at high tide, lots of coral, shells etc.
I tethered launched in front of the staff quarters away from the guests on the other side of the jetty.
I'll send you a PM with a few pics, so you have a better idea.
Cheers
Its no longer a secret, probably never was, but, yes, Mauritius 10/10. Try and do a downwinder with a boat in 20km of waves from the Movenpick resort, back to Le Morne, truly uber!
Select to expand quoteHopey said...jamesperth said..
Has anyone stayed at the Malolo Island Resort in Fiji ? Saw a vid on youtube last night and it looks pretty good - 20 min boat ride to the breaks.
Hi James
I stayed at Malolo Island Resort for a week with the family back in Oct 2011.
I had maybe 3 days kiting, not sure what time of year is the best for wind?
But as far as a family location it was great, the kids and missus loved it.
I never went out to the breaks, but easily organized apparently. You can also jump on the day trip to snorkel island (basically a sand bank), and do a downwinder back to the resort if wind is blowing the right direction.
I just kited straight off the beach in front of the resort, I was the only kiter staying there at the time.
The current can rip past there at times, so you need to be sure of the wind strength and your abilities.
The watersports guys will keep an eye on you and probably come rescue you if you got into trouble
Its not really a "kiting" destination, but it can work. Beaches are narrow at high tide, lots of coral, shells etc.
I tethered launched in front of the staff quarters away from the guests on the other side of the jetty.
I'll send you a PM with a few pics, so you have a better idea.
Cheers
Load some picks up here I want to see too. Sounds interesting.
Going to the third time to Mauritius with the Family in two weeks. Great for family and waves.
Just looking for some new ideas similar requirement to James. Easy for family and spot on your footsteps and world class waves. Any ideas?
Thanks,
Marco
Select to expand quotebearbusa said..
Mui Ne In vietnam, 18 klm of beach ,plenty of resorts to choose from , cheaper than bali but better 3 to 5 star accomodation and food ,drinks great wind ,waves from beach in front of over 30 resorts
Only expensive part is airfare about $1300 from perth .
+1 for Mui Ne.
Spent 10 days there last January at a beautiful little place called Mia Resort. Beach front bungalow, kiting out the front every day, enough shelter from the wind to keep the wife happy, 7yo and 6yo had a ball. Food is fantastic and it's an easy 5hr train ride from Saigon. There are some wave kiting options about 20-30 km further up the coast on a less populated stretch of beach with 3m windswell common.
Select to expand quotejamesperth said..
Thanks for all the ideas - Mauritius looks amazing, Maldives would be also be a winner but not sure about the wind. My wife is a non kiter, so Coco's is not going to work, neither would Sri Lanka from what I can gather. Has anyone stayed at the Malolo Island Resort in Fiji ? Saw a vid on youtube last night and it looks pretty good - 20 min boat ride to the breaks. Horrocks looks pretty interesting - Ive organised a boys trip to Quobba and Gnaraloo at the end of September, might check it out on the way there.
Lord Howe is a surpise - this post has some nice pics (www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Kitesurfing/General/Lord-Howe-Island-Winter-Kite-Surfing-Rundown/) . In June / July it's not going to be that warm is it ?
Mauritius is epic. The set up for waves there is perfect. That's where I really cut my teeth on the wave thing and it's still my benchmark.
There are lots of things to do in the area when the wind isn't up and the culture/history of the place is cool. You could also pop over to Reunion Island.
I stayed in a unit in La Gaulette and hired a ute from the guy who owned the property. Took that thing everywhere.
Select to expand quoteiandvnt said..
Campervan + NZ, nothing better on earth.
Campervan and West Coast of France comes pretty close. So does a van and Tassie.
