Continent |
Asia |
Country |
South Korea |
Next Big City |
Cheju City |
Next Town |
Seongsan (Songsan) |
|
Type: |
Ocean |
Rider Ability: |
Intermediate, Expert |
Features: |
Shop, Shower, Toilet, Parking |
Water
Type: |
Flat, Chop |
Hazards: |
No information |
Quality: |
Clean |
Best Tide: |
Tide independent |
Water depth ranges from 0.5-2 meters, depending on tide. The water is quite flat due to the bay and breakwaters.
Beach
Type: |
Sand |
Size: |
Medium |
Hazards: |
Rocks, Power lines |
Beach Users: |
None |
Sandy beach, quite long, but only about 30 meters wide. There are power lines about 50 meters from water for length of beach. Lava rock formations are present at each end of the beach, so kiters must stay well upwind and away from these obstacles.
Weather
Spring:
|
Normal |
Summer:
|
Shorts, Shorty |
Fall:
|
Normal |
Winter:
|
Thick |
Cheju island has four distinct seasons. Highs around 33°C in summer and lows around 1°C in winter. Wetsuit is required from October until May. Too cold for kiting in January and February.
Wind
Best Months: |
March, April, August, September |
Wind Type: |
Trade |
Best Direction: |
S, SSW, SW |
Main Direction: |
NE, SW, NW |
Cheju Island is known around Korea as being a windy place. It's best winds are during the fall and spring seasons (typically NW or NE winds, sometimes SW) with winds ranging from 15 to 30 knots - many days (maybe 2 or 3 days a week). Summer winds are lighter 10 to 18 knots (mostly from the SW), but only place in summer for wind in all of Korea. Sinyang Beach works best on South winds (souths are strongest here).
How to get there
Transport |
Car |
Access
|
Short walk |
Fly into Cheju City from Korea (Seoul, Pusan, or Jinju) or Japan, or take the ferry from several ports on the mainland. Flight is best option as it only takes 50 minutes for $130 round trip and no kite baggage fees. From airport, take rental car or taxi ($20) 1 hour east, or bus ($3) for 1.5 hours to Seongsan. Sinyang is a small sleepy town just south of Seongsan in a bay opening up to the south winds. The kitesurf/windsurf beach is not the town's main beach, it is on the east side of the bay - look for the two flags in the sand dunes.
Extra information
Helmet is necessary as there are the lava rock formations at each end of the beach. General rule of thumb is that if it is a south wind head to Sinyang, if it is a north wind head to Hyeopje.
Nightlife
Karaoke bars and Korean BBQ with Soju. Locals are very friendly.