Hi I'm in the fortunate position to be able to live in one of these 3 cities. I'm hoping to get some feedback which one was best to both live AND kitesurf and why?
I'm guessing Western Oz has the best conditions but i'm also interested in the kite scene, the locals, ease of getting to the beach from the city, crowds, aggro etc
I'm an experienced kiter who is just about to move to Oz and into both flat water and wave kiting.
I look forward to hearing your comments. Thanks
Brisbane:
Spots: Sandgate, Brighton (kite beach), Woody Pt, Beachmere. (many more but havent kited them)
Wind: Nov-Mar, seabreezes, 15-20kts, usually consistent. No wind in winter except for a freak Westerly (which are awesome).
Kite scene: Good local support from shops/public. Everyone gives way. No agro (not that ive experienced anyway).
Ease of getting to beach: Mon-Fri from 3pm is a nightmare travelling north to Sandgate, traffic is congested on most roads north. About 30-35mins from the city. Afternoon sessions do-able if you can get out of work early. Sat & Sun is good - 20 mins from city.
Crowds: Mon-Fri usually empty, 10-20 kites max at any one spot. Sat & Sun - typical weekend warrior crowd, 20-30 kites (at each spot). Still easy to ride up or downwind of the bunch and have some flat water to yourself.
My rating is probably 6/10. Wind isnt great here, i would prefer more frontal wind, but at least we dont have sharks.
People don't live in Brisbane, they...exist/work there. On the other hand you can live on the Gold or sunshine coast and commute an hour to work. There you have the choice of waves or flat water, whatever turns you on. The season is the same as Brisbane.
And... sand at high and low tide, no mud beaches! Don't like the crowd, spread out.
But... stay out of the flags!
it all depends where you come from and how long you are staying. i personally dislike brisbane because its not actually on the coast and the water seem pretty grubby from the river and silt. there are no sand beaches unless you drive an hour north or south, which during work times blows out to sometimes double that.The closest beaches to kite , near redcliff for example are pretty muddy.
socially i think brisbane is lacking as far as good restaurants and bars are concerned unless you like beer battered chips with everything. As the fellow up above mentioned, wind is not ballistic there.The weather is pretty much always nice though.
Sydney, on beautiful beaches, but i think, though not sure , you cant kite in sydney harbour. botany bay is fine though as are some of the surf beaches. gets better wind than brisbane, and more kiteable directions, though not as good wind as perth.
socially sydney is great albeit quite expensive for accommodation and traffic can be a issue, bearing in mind that its is a MASSIVE city size wise and if you need to traverse it to go for a kite this is not to be underestimated.Its a stunning city and very vibrant, but you pay for it.
Perth, very isolated and has become very expensive life wise because of the mining boom. people there are not as friendly as you would have thought in my experience and most people that whinge and bitch alot on this forum are from WA somewhere, mostly perth. Folk at the beach havent been over excited at new comers in my experience and i have found that a bit of localism exists.
i have also found bars and restaurants disappointing there, very pricey for what you get although there are a few pockets here and there with some ok places, and the city is also physically pretty big so time to go from the city to the beach for example is long, as traffic can get horrendous there too, especially the freeways. The weather kitewise though, cannot be beaten and if you have weekends off there are some great spots to go north and south. It has sharks, big ones that eat people.
I have not lived in perth but go for work alot for extended periods , i find it like the truman show. i have lived in brisbane and became very lonely and could not wait to get out, which i did, to melbourne which i now love. i am from sydney so know what its like.
Can u keep a secret? - u cannot beat Perth for wind. But don't tell any1 I told u. Traffic is extremely mild during rush hour, compared to the east. And ppl have been friendly at every spot I've been here. Not sure I'd agree with the localism call.
Thanks for your really helpful responses guys. I was surprised actually, not what i thought at all. So far i'm thinking sydney. Even though it is expensive it seems to tick the most boxes. Shame there's not more wind though. How consistent are the sea breezes in Sydney this time of the year?
Last couple years summer time has been very hit and miss in sydney. on average you'll get out 3 or 4 days a week around this time of year.
...yes, Sydney is the way to go...we are an agro frustrated bunch of whinging localists here watching the big whities in the sea in the all too many windless days.... if it is not Sydney it must be Karratha...
Kiting 1. Perth 2. Sunshine/Gold Coast 3. Sydney
Lifestyle 1. Sydney 2. Sunshine/Gold coast (Brisbane no thanks) 3. Perth
Never seen any kite localism in WA or anywhere else on planet earth, well maybe a few shouts on the water to non considerate riders in WA when a friendly chat would have been better, but that is all.
No easy choice. Get deep fried in the windy desert (Perth), join the miami glitz of the Gold Coast, or suffer every day trying to drive to the only good one or 2 beaches in traffic (Sydney).
I like Melbourne for kiting and lifestyle but is is too fkn cold in winter. The small waves in Perth are real fun for downwinders but a deep reef stops big swell getting in normally which sux. If you also surf and are really into it, you would try not to live in Perth. 2 hour roadtrips north and south you got potential siiick big waves and wildlife paranoia
Melbourne for social life, resturants, cafes, bands, and sooooo much sport, love to visit the place.
Sydney (like perth) you need money, expensive.
Brisbane, crew dishing it, but I felt far more safer walking through the city at night there than perth or sydney.
Kiting...you can't beat the west, period (don't listen to any idiot who tells you otherwise). We are visited by euros every summer for that reason.
But perth is culturally lame, and the beaches are getting crowded.
Perth is crap. Wind is hopeless hot as all hell locals will stab you and steal your stuff plus its expensive. Go anywhere even Alice springs rather than wa.
I love Perth... lived here for 2,5 years now and it is really nice. Good weather, nice beaches, nice people, good jobs (that pay good money). It is however expensive to live in and does not have any culture (coming from Amsterdam I do miss that). Obviously there is good kiting here! can't say anything bout Brisbane or Sydney cause I haven;t been there but I do love Cairns! havent been kiting there though but I love the tropical weather, the beautiful daintree rainforest, diving the great barrier reef, the 'main meal and a pint for $10,00'. Downside of Cairns is though... everything is out to kill you! Sharks, box and ericanji jellyfish, crocs, spiders and snakes. It probably isn;t the best place for kiting either judging from all the jellyfish (you have to wear a fully covered stinger suit there while diving)
Once again, thanks for the heads up on the places guys.
It's interesting what you guys have to say but it is also all relative. I've kited and surfed all over the world for a long time and, up until now, i've been tied to London for work. I've spent 10 winters in London with solid traffic, 2 hours to the beach to squeeze in a sesh before it's dark at 4pm and it is seriously cold so ANYTHING will be better than that.
That said, i will miss the kiting here. One thing i will say for England is that there is lot of wind and although London is not next to kiting beaches there are some great spots within 2 hours in any direction depending on the wind. And the level of kiting here is high, even the surfers down in Cornwall are damn good - now I know what Aussies think of the standard of surfing in the UK but i disagree. Maybe thats a topic for another thread !
Perth is crap!, stay on the east coast. Seriously stay on the east coast or we will stab you!
go to perth. they need more kiters over there meanwhile I've had the beach to myself on 3 occassions this week in 20-30 knot conditions.(sydney area), should be another one today
i used to think western australia was the goldmine for wind in OZ.
you have so many options all a weekends camping trip from perth.
Lately Sydney or (sutherland area) has been crancking.
small swell, honking seabreezes and then southerly changes.
if its not windy, theres waves or the city to go and hangout at.
Sydney is also really close to every other town in australia, perth isn't.
anywhere will be a winner, just dont goto alice springs.
We have enough interstate sledging sessions on here without a topic like this posted. Talk about dangling a bit juicy bit of bait in the water. My question: Do you have to live in a city? Find a nice coastal spot within reasonable reach of the city with just a few friendly kiters around.
Yeah what poor relative said. Stay out of W.A.
Nothing to see or do here at all. No wind. Expensive. Vicious possessive teritorial locals.
If you really want to visit a kiting paradise (promise to keep this quiet now...) then
in the gulf of carpentaria is a little place called Karumba , maaate... what a place.
But remember strictly hush hush....
There is also Port Augusta....
So many places better than W.A.
Really its about time we closed the borders to keep the fiff raf from the east out...
