Formentera: the sailor's paradise.

Formentera is not only a place not to be missed for lovers of sun and sand, it is also a paradise for lovers of sailing and kayaking. Its 69km of coast, of which 40 of which are sandy coast, and its location to the south of the island of Ibiza make it a dream setting for enjoying sailing. The distances are short enough so that you can move from the south of the island to the north in a couple of hours, or make an unforgettable trip to the island of Ibiza in just 2 hours.

The turquoise blue of its waters, the alternation of the vertical walls of cliffs and beaches of white sand form an idyllic landscape for sailing. The clarity and colour of its waters mean that sailing less than a mile off the coast seems like flying metres high above a blue colour in which the brownish shades of the rocks alternate with the dark greens of the banks of posidonia.

As for sailing for lovers of dinghies, the island offers the opportunity to find a la carte conditions. This is a phenomenon you can only find on some Caribbean islands and on Formentera. The prevailing winds are from an easterly direction in summer and a westerly direction in winter. The island has a beach 3km long with water on both sides facing north to south, with an intermediate step between the island of Formentera and the islet of Espalmador. Because of this, the wind means that, during the summer, the eastern face of the beach has waves and the western face has constant wind from the land, with little surf and calm sea. But, sailors who prefer gusty wind and rougher conditions can find them by sailing just two miles to the north or south of this beach. To the north, around the islet of Espalmador and to the south, around the cliffs of Punta Pedrera.

During the summer, the winds are usually light or average, from 5-15 knots. But they are never less than this and rarely greater. During the winter it is different, as the two extremes – calms or storms with winds greater than 30 knots – can be encountered. The latter are more common than calms.

In summary, it is a paradise for family cruising and for beginners in the summer and for expert sailors in the winter.

This island offers just as good conditions for practice as for the technical perfection of this sport. Its conditions are so wonderful that the best woman sailor in the world of all time (Teresa Zabell) decided to come here to set up her training base. This confirms the island as one of the best anywhere in Spain for high-level sailing, and it would be a shame not to make the most of it for this good purpose.