Piantarella

With its exceptional watercolours and temperature, Piantarella could hold its own against a fair few Caribbean beaches. Launch from the slipway and sail towards the sandbank to practice waterstarts, gybing and much more in the lagoon. Take care though; it’s shallow enough to catch your fin in places. Ideal wind is north-east to easterly, which starts blowing nicely in the morning and then dies down in the afternoon. Katabatic westerlies generally blow stronger than on the west coast. Mistral isn't great though: as soon as you get out of the wind shadow, it hits you full force – and if something goes wrong you're soon in open seas. Another problem is it’s jam-packed in summer.