Looking for a vacation out in the resaonable price range to go surf. My wife does not but does enjoy the beach. What is a good place to go? Any suggestions would be great we are looking to go in the winter months maybe jan or feb. Any resort suggestions too would be helpful. I am currently looking at Puerto Rico and Costa rica but the price is steep. Thanks.
If your looking to go tropical, costa, is always a reliable trip. Puerto Rico can go off in the winter, but does have its down time. I would say your wife would enjoy costa more. Take a look at the Tamorindo area in costa. There are some nice hotels there and beautiful beaches and bars/restaurants - and you can always go cheaper.
no barbados experience for me. I've heard both good and bad reports. I believe you could make that a fairly easy by getting a place right next to soup bowls. The plane tickets are going to be more expensive to barbados tho... Tickets to costa and puerto are generally more affordable than most other destinations.
Barbados! Barbados is not cheep. Waves in winter are very choppy every day. There are fun spots on the west and south coasts and you can drive to all these spots in less then an hour and a half! Barbados is not cheep! Soup Bowls will kick your ass. Heavy. Fun. Not Cheep. People are very nice...nicest people on any trip I have ever been on! Not Cheep!
Barabados or PR I grew up in PR, so I'm obviously biassed. Mr. Admin, I want to take you to the south shore in the summer and show you what happens when the northern winter swells are gone. There is a beautiful phenomenon that is called the "vientos alicios" that change the weather patterns and bring these little things called hurricanes in from the east. Even when they don't bring 'canes, they bring descent swell to sharky's, inches and el cocal. Not to mention my home break of Palmas del Mar. Barbados has some descent breaks, but they aren't as consistent as the winter breaks in PR, although they can get epic. One of my favorite mid size spots is close to the hilton. it's called Akra beach. The upside to Barbados is the non agro crowd. Careful where you surf in PR. I've seen fights over 3 ft **** surf, or even the color of your sponge!
I've never surfed the south shore of Puerto Rico, but I've heard there are some gems! I think in general people underestimate the surf generated in the Caribbean sea. I've only surfed the West and Northwest coast, but I had a lof fun in PR. Mainly because when i was there, I surfed 2+ times everyday with minimal downtime like I've gotten elsewhere. I've seen it a bit agro out in the water, but I've never had any probs.
if you're up for a european adventure i would head to portugal, specifically the area from lisbon to peniche. Just got back and had a fantastic time. The food was fairly cheap in Peniche as was the accomidation. The coast is diverse enough that the only wind that isn't offshore is a westerly and it picks up plenty of swell. There are all sorts of waves there from heavy shark island like reefs to mellow points to steep beachbreaks. One thing to note is the tidal swing in this area can be drastic (12ft+), especially during a full moon, so you need to be fairly dialed-in on the tides. Def need a car to get around as well. Since your wife dislikes the beach there are other touristy activities in lisbon and the surrounding area that will keep her occupied (wineries in Northern portugal, medieval villages, and your standard tourist stuff in the cities) Check out penichesurfcamp.com for more info...
