Greece
Lefkada
White cliffs plunge into water so absurdly turquoise it looks digitally altered from every angle.
The white cliffs shear away into water so absurdly turquoise it looks colour-corrected — Porto Katsiki, Egremni, each one a limestone wall dropping into a lagoon of concentrated blue. Lefkada is technically a peninsula, connected to the mainland by a causeway, but nobody who stands above Egremni thinks of it as anything but an island.
Lefkada's western beaches are formed from eroded white limestone that produces the intense water colour the island is known for. A swing bridge at the northern tip opens to allow boats through the Lefkada Canal, making it one of the few Greek islands reachable by car. Vassiliki Bay on the southern tip has hosted windsurf world championships, and the afternoon thermal wind known as the Eric is used as a teaching model for wind dynamics across Europe. The Kathisma coast on the western side channels consistent winds for kitesurfing from May to October.
Couple
The cliff-backed beaches at Porto Katsiki and Egremni, sunset from the western lighthouse, and village tavernas in Agios Nikitas.
Friends
Windsurfing at Vassiliki in the Eric wind, kiteboarding at Kathisma, and beach-bar days on the western coast.
Family
The eastern beaches are calmer and shallower than the dramatic west, the drive-on access makes logistics simple, and Nidri harbour has boat trips to nearby islands.
- Porto Katsiki and Egremni beaches are formed from eroded white limestone — the water colour ranges from cyan to deep turquoise depending on the angle of light.
- Lefkada is technically a peninsula — a causeway connects it to the mainland and a swing bridge opens to allow boats through the Lefkada Canal.
- Vassiliki Bay on the southern tip has hosted windsurf world championships — the afternoon thermal wind known as the Eric is used as a teaching model across Europe.
- The Kathisma beach area channels consistent winds along the western coast — reliable conditions for kitesurfing and windsurfing from May to October.
Lentil soup from the local Eglouvi lentils — tiny, peppery, grown on a high plateau and prized across Greece.
Grilled whole fish at Vasiliki harbour where windsurfers dry off and pull up chairs.
Plettenberg Bay
South Africa
A 9km trail around Robberg Peninsula where seals, sharks, and whales circle in the water below.
German Channel
Palau
A reef passage dynamited by German colonists for phosphate cargo, now a manta ray highway.
Tamarindo
Costa Rica
Sunset surf sessions where pelicans dive-bomb the lineup and howler monkeys heckle from shore.
Santa Maria
Cape Verde
Trade winds blast a long golden beach where kitesurfers trace arcs above turquoise Atlantic rollers.
Milia
Greece
An abandoned Cretan hamlet rebuilt from stone into an off-grid eco-settlement deep in chestnut forest.
Pelion
Greece
The centaurs' mythic homeland — chestnut forests and stone villages sliding from peak to shore.
Chania Old Town
Greece
A Venetian harbour glowing at dusk where lighthouse and minaret share the skyline in tangerine light.
Anafi
Greece
A monolithic rock taller than Gibraltar guards the quietest island in the Cyclades.