Latest Craze among Costa del Sol's Water Sports Enthusiasts

If you see a row of people at the Playa de Carvajal en Fuengirola, standing on surf boards with knotted brows, trying ever so hard not to fall off while paddling like mad, you have come across the resort's Paddle Surf School, the latest water sports craze to reach the Costa del Sol.

A cheap and cheerful Way to explore the Coast

It costs EUR 15.00 per person to hire a board and paddle for practice without an instructor. For those still too wobbly to progress beyond the shallows closest to the beach, there are 45-minute group lessons, which cost EUR 25.00 per person and after a short while, participants should be able to venture out for ca. 600 metres on their own.

Already hugely popular at the rugged Costa Calida, stand-up paddle surfing is now taking the resorts around Marbella by storm. Water sports enthusiasts who have moved to Marbella or Fuengirola to lead an outdoor life and follow their dream of spending more time on their boards, riding the waves, might scoff at this latest craze, but for those who find conventional surfing too scary and wind- or kite surfing too exhausting or technical, this is a happy compromise.

Aloha Surfers

Paddle boarding originated in Hawaii, where it is known as "Hoe he’e nalu". It has been popular in a number of countries since the 1960s and anyone who's ever watched the 1960s children's TV programme "Flipper" will remember one small boy having his paddle board pulled through Florida waters by one trusted companion, a Bottlenose dolphin called "Flipper".

Originally, the paddle board craze came about, because Hawaii's experienced surfers wanted to take photographs of tourists' exploits. The intrepid surfers stood or knelt on their boards, paddled out into the surf, leaving the largest breakers behind to take photographs of tourists trying to surf for the first time. Not for mischievous pleasure, mind, but to sell the pictures back to the tourists as a memento of their time on Hawaii.

Easy to learn, cheap to do

Paddle surfing has won in popularity because it is so  much easier to learn, cheaper to buy equipment and less exhausting. It's easy to take boards into the secluded coves and rest for a while and it takes not a lot of effort to paddle along the coast for a period of time to explore the coast above and below the water surface. Paddle surfing is also safer than wind or kite surfing, and certainly less dangerous than surfing breakers.

It also has the advantage that it can be done anywhere where there is a stretch of water as paddle surfers do not rely on favourable winds like wind-or kite surfers do and there's no requirement for a surf or rolling breakers either, which limits conventional surfers to the areas they can enjoy their sport at. Tarifa is most notably one of the most popular surf spots in the Mediterranean for exactly those reasons, good winds and excellent surf conditions.

Ready for Take-off within 15 Minutes

Most people are able to learn how to balance on their boards and remain upright within 15 minutes or so. It might take a few falls and dips into the water, but it takes far less time to acquire the necessary skills than conventional surfing. Everyone has a fantastic time, paddling along the coast and trying out their paddling prowess against the competition.

SUP or stand up paddle boarding can be enjoyed at many different along the Costa del Sol now, including Tarifa, Estepona, Algeciras and Sotogrande. Half day board and paddle rental costs around EUR 40.00 per person.

At Fuengirola places can be booked via www.place2ride.com or by calling tel. 610 993 882. In Sotogrande Club Mistral runs SUP courses and provides equipment hire, see their website: www.clubmistralsup.com/en.