- water sports
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An experience that is out of this world! It is one of the best things that I have ever done, exciting and yet peaceful. The sea lions were a blast and love nothing more than jumping all over the front of your canoe. It takes a good level of skill not to capsize. I thoroughly enjoyed this trip and would go back in a heart beat. If you're lucky you may even pass by Bill Gates' house; as he lives in the banks of the Puget Sound.
Seattle Kayaking
Remember what you used to want in an island holiday? Without hawkers, cars, motorbikes... Just a golden beach, clear waters, good food, a few drinks at sunset and activities to do when you get bored of swimming, snorkelling, reading, sleeping and sun bathing.
I was recommended a great little island only three hours from Singapore by a friend. Pulau sibu (sibu island) is exactly what those who have a phobia about big commercial resorts need. This small island only 6km by 1km, no roads or mains power.
The beaches are deserted, the locals friendly and the scuba diving in the Mersing Marine Park excellent because there is only 1 PADI Dive Centre on the island.
Sibu Island Cabanas on Pulau Sibu is a really close to Singapore making it a great location for a weekend short break.
As far as I know, if you want to go snorkelling you will have to take a boat. I did at Watamu. There is some snorkelling in large rock pools (Tiwi beach, south of Mombasa), which can be better than it sounds, but the reef is (as usual) a way off shore.
You may want to try Watamu beach between Malindi and Kilifi. Kilifi also has a yacht club that may point you in the right direction too!
Very simple and beautiful, go to Watamu, near Malindi in the north. It has the best easily-accessible marine park in the world, which you can swim out to from the beach or take a small boat. The reef is not far and you can swim beyond if your a good swimmer, the rest you just flow with the current.
There are great reasonably priced hotels and resorts and white coral sand beaches, no chavs from down south and you can get in a short safari as well. Should cost about £1,000 for ten days. Family friendly.
If you want something at medium cost, family friendly, snorkelling from the beach (or from plentiful cheap boats). Simple. Turtle Bay Beach Club, Watamu. Don't ask me, ask my kids! It's like their second home.
There are several places that offer great snorkelling opportunities along the Kenyan coast. Choose your time of year carefully though, to avoid the rainy seasons, which can adversely affect conditions and visibility.
My first ever experience of reef snorkelling was at Watamu; a small, laid back and relaxed village about two hours drive north of Mombasa. The snorkelling here is excellent. There is a nice hotel on the beach called Ocean Sports, or for a more Swahili feel, try Marijani Hotel in the village itself. It's less than two minutes walk from the beach.
Alternatively you could head south of Mombasa, to either Diani or Tiwi. Diani is a bit more developed, whereas Tiwi is very chilled out. It may be tricky to get to Tiwi Beach without your own transport, but there is snorkelling available off the beach there. There are various accommodation options in the area.
Near Tiwi and Diani there is also a Colobus monkey conservation project and a very large, community-run elephant sanctuary, which are also well worth a visit.
Snorkelling is also pretty good in some spots just north of Mombasa. There are some big hotels in this area, but they are generally quite expensive.
You could also try scuba diving while you're in Kenya, with it being one of the top-rated dive destinations in the world!
The white water rafting on the Soca River is among the best in Europe. The mountain scenery is spectacular.
There are fast and furious stretches of the river, and other places where it is calm and the most beautiful turquoise colour, overlooked by summer meadows and snow-capped peaks.
Although most people use Bovec as a base, there is a better place to stay: Tolmin. It's friendly and cheap.
An amazing crystal clear natural pool over 70m deep about 200m back from the beach and connected underground by passages. This geological oddity, a flooded cave with its roof collapsed, is as the name suggests full of colourful fish and good for subaqua exploration, or just a dip and a drink or plate of crocodile at the cafe nearby.
Bay of Pigs, coast road about 12km west of Giron, Varadero.
With credits crunching and economies sliding get on down to the north coast of Cornwall, arguably England's best slice of coast. I based myself at Newquay from where there is any number of adrenalin sports waiting to be experienced. I cantered on a horse across the Gannel estuary and beach Saturday morning, coasteered and zipwired along Lusty Glaze beach Saturday afternoon while Sunday wasn't lazy at all, being spent on fabulous Watergate Bay kitesurfing and bodyboarding. Superb!
You could try, as I did, www.visitnewquay.org, a great little site with all the info you need for a trip.
Based about one hour from Lisbon and 30 metres from the beach, this establishment offers everything from accommodation, camps, rentals, tours, surf-lessons and much more in Europe’s most consistent surf zone.
www.surfing-peniche.com
Gsm +351 918 520 532 or +351 966 223 271
This website gives details, maps, infos about all kitesurf beaches in Portugal - it's a great resource.
The beaches of Sintra in Portugal - only a short trip down the coast from Lisbon - have been a popular destination for British tourists since the Christian crusaders first sailed to the region in 1147, yet most visitors remain completely unaware of the easily-accessable delights of the area.
Praia da Adraga - wild and wonderful, Praia Grande - great surfing and body boarding, and Praia das Maças - body boarding and good for families, are some of the best. Lifeguards are on duty from mid June to mid September.
If you like walking, there is a walk that takes you to all the beaches along the cliff tops, with spectacular views of the Atlantic Ocean.
Last summer my family and I went down to Cornwall and my mum booked us on a sea kayaking and coasteering day at Porthpean Activity Centre (St. Austell).
They gave us wetsuits and life jackets to wear and then we walked through the village down to the beach where our kayaks were waiting for us.
We then kayaked along the coast for about half an hour. Then the instructors stopped us and said we could jump out and swim to the rocks. You could then climb up the rocks and jump off! My dad did it and said it was scary. I jumped in and swam around the boat. It was a bit scary as we saw a jellyfish near us and we were in deep water.
After this we kayaked onto a small beach where the instructors gave us snorkelling equipment and we swam out along the rocks until the water was about 10ft deep. I saw a huge dogfish and lots of other fish swimming around the rocks. It was amazing. We then kayaked on a bit further along the coast and landed on another beach for lunch.
The instructors were really good, they showed where to find crabs
and told us about the creatures on the beach.
After than we kayaked back to Porthpean, but my mum and sister got tired out and one of the instructors towed them back for some of the way. It was a brilliant day where I did things I had never done before.
(PS my mum said it was good value as it cost £19.00 for each of us)
From Finn Monaghan (age 9)
Just some great waves (hollow wedging beach breaks) to be had and a beautiful beach with bright blue water. It's packed in summer!
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