HOLBOX | THE EXPEDITIONERS | DESTINATIONS | Travel Guide to the World
By. The Expeditioners Roberto
Photos and videos by Roberto & Bella
WHERE: Holbox, Quinta Roo, Mexico
WHAT WE DID: Kiteboard. Kiteboard. and some more kiteboarding. The scuba diving and whale shark season is coming up though.
WHERE WE STAYED: Holbox is an un-discovered destination. Many locals say it is like Playa del Carmen 30 years ago. A tiny island with some 2000 inhabitants, the roads are made of sand, people walk around barefoot, with a bike, or they take a golf cart (which is what most locals have.) A big part of the island is protected land, and the beach is stunning. Fresh fruit is extremely inexpensive, and a freshly squeezed orange juice will only put you back a couple of bucks!
We arrived to a new and wonderful hotel (La Casa del Viento) owned by a super personable Fernando. Only a block away from the beach, and a couple of blocks from town, it’s perfect for the kiteboarder and beach comber alike.
Casa del Viento: http://casadelvientoholbox.com/
OTHER THINGS TO DO:
1. Kiteboarding – there are three different areas you can kite in Holbox : Punta Mosquito (which is accessible with Holbox’s kiteboarding school’s boat) then there is Las Nubes, which is accessible by bike or golf cart, or walking- -and finally the sand-bar, which is for experienced riders only as it is off-shore kiting out in the middle of the sea. There was a place which we loved to kite called Punta Coco, but apparently it is now forbidden there.
2. Whale Shark Tours are big here during the spring and summer months. The whale sharks congregate not too far off, making it an ideal launch point.
3. Beach walking and reading.
4. Sea-Kayaking
5. Paddle Boarding with Holbox Kiteboarding (for the non windy days)
6. Scuba Diving is also only during the summer months. The water here can be churned with a lot of sand as it is where the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean meet.
HOW TO GET HERE: Fly to Cancun. From Toronto, New York and the likes, a ticket is only $500US round-trip. Then you catch a bus/taxi to Chuiquila, and then a ferry to Holbox which runs hourly.
It has only been a few months since Bella and I got into kiteboarding/ kitesurfing – but we’re totally addicted to it. With frequency and stronger winds we’ve become better and better kiters. In Turks and Caicos we were able to improve significantly because of the shallow waters where we were learning. But add deep water to the mix, and it is a whole different story. Your kite will be pulling you down-wind while your board is up wind from you. Like a sail boat, you then have to body drag away from your board to zig zag back up wind to it. This can be quite intimidating at the beginning, but here in Holbox we’ve learned to be in a lot of deep water conditions, lose our board, and get back to our kite.
Yesterday was the first time that Bella and I launched from a boat. This requires preparing your lines and gear in advance–and making sure they don’t tangle–as it is tricky to fix your lines from boat. You also have to be able to kite upwind to get back to the boat, as it is off-shore kiting (yes, worse case scenario the boat will get you.) It was extremely exciting, and we had some gusts of wind the were super powerful. Happily, this just meant we got to jump higher!
Check-out the photos and videos below that Bella and I took here in Holbox.
