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feelviana
FeelViana is our playground on the west coast of Portugal. The eco spa hotel is on a stunning sandy beach and is perfect for our Windwise coaching experiences.
Expect full Windwise coaching, Freeride blasting, optional wave sailing, multi-sport activities, spa and taste sensations – Perfect for non-windsurfing partners too.
Based on shared room & excluding flights
Feel fabulous on and off the water
Conditions: Huge bay, with a mix of flat water, potential down-the-line-waves
Water state: Flat water & waves if swell is working
Wind direction: Northerly thermal
Wind strength: F4-5++
Sail range: 4.5-6.5m
Windsurf centre: JP/Pryde/North
Course criteria: Waterstart + sail sub 130L board
Non-windsurfing partner rating: Perfect!
Other activities: SUP, surfing, winging, horse riding & eBiking
Windsurfing + Foiling + Winging + eBiking + Spa
FeelViana on the West Coast of Portugal is really something special. It suits our windsurfing adventure style trips perfectly.
The mornings are always light winds, so we mix things up with our coaching programme and optional sports adventures.
It’s ideal for those traveling with non-windsurfing partners who want a luxurious spa hotel and plenty of extra entertainment.
Fabulous windsurfing, multi activities, gastro dining and great hotel.
Windsurfing + Surf + Foiling + Spa + Yoga
A fabulous playground…
FLAT WATER & WAVES
This trip ticks every box
Your Windwise experience in FeelViana will be a mix of super welcoming socials, proven professional coaching. We’ll develop your knowledge, confidence and skills on the flat water and offer optional wave experiences in the waves.
Additional adventures and activities include:
Simon Bornhoft’s expert experience, 1-2-1 guidance and the proven Windwise Skills Training System provides the very best in professional coaching.
Gain confidence and new skills
Nail those corners
Windwise expertise throughout your holiday, all at a pace to suit you.
Need to be able to water start and sail a sub 130L board. If you can sail on the sea you’ll be fine.
Our approach to guarantee a professional coaching experience that includes:
It’s easier than gybing!
Freeride blasting and very accessible waves
We’re with you all the way
We’ll develop this fundamental Windwise skill and ethos, that is the DNA of windsurfing progression. It’s the missing link for all your windsurfing moves!
Become better looking!
How to create your ultimate counterbalance.
Specific consistent foot & hand placements
Learn the DNA of how windsurfing transitions
Learn how to truly use body mechanics
Rig@90 + Talk to the mic + Rig rotators + Upwind downwinders
Action packed with Windwise skills and drills to suit your needs, increase your knowledge and abilities together with loads of personal attention to get the most out of your time on the water.
Light wind mornings so we do a mix of either windsurfing or alternative sports like Foiling + Biking + SUPing + Winging options too.
The Windwise Way
We checked out FeelViana in May 2022/2023 and had an absolutely amazing time. So much so, it’s now on our annual tour and we feel it’s the perfect location for our Windwise Adventure style trips.
It’s also perfect for non-windsurfing partners and is a short hop from the UK.
The hotel is super cool, plus the fab food, classy sunset cocktails, chill out spa, yoga and the whole Windwise group vibe make it a great experience.
We love this place and so will you
It’s a fabulous place to stay and play
Castelo de Viana is a non-touristic town, close to Porto and Punta Lima (the oldest town in Portugal).
The FeelViana hotel (a couple of kms from Castelo de Viana town) is really something special. It’s nestled in a wooded nature reserve and right on a stunning white sand beach.
We do a mix of eating in at FeelViana, plus we’ll take you to some local eateries in Castelo de Viana that offer delicious fresh fish, seafood platers, local meats and an abundance of tapas style dishes.
The hotel atmosphere is very chilled and relaxed, with open plan views, chilled out pool side seating decking.
We’ve always experienced truly great food/staff/service and loved the local imaginative dishes, inventive cocktails.
Plus it’s one of the best breakfasts you’ll ever have in a hotel.
Feelviana is where we’ll enjoy post sail beers, team talks, video playback, communal breakfasts, plus enjoy all the sporting and spa facilities.
As well as the truly stunning windsurfing location we have loads going on.
Light wind mornings for extra activities
The beach is a gorgeous expanse of foot friendly sand, with a gently shelving launch. There’s a large harbour wall to windward which creates protected Freeride conditions, which is perfect for skills training, blasting, gybe practice and flat-water wave riding practice.
Then, there’s optional waves (swell dependant of course) for those who want to learn or enhance their Freewave / Wave skills. They tend to be larger the more downwind you go.
Protected harbour & waves
A great place to get into wavesailing
Waves range in size depending on the swell forecast.If you can sail south coast conditions, then you can sail FeelViana.
We go end of May-early June, because you get a decent chance of getting wind and waves.
There’s a local rescue boat and you’re near a coastguard station in the harbour.
Protected harbour & waves
Upwind of the centre is a large harbour wall that creates a protected area for Freeride blasting. This is where you can blast about and really get some decent runs in.
If the swell is large, you can get smaller waves coming in close to the breakwater, but they are rarely difficult and are well spaced out.
Just in front of the windsurfing centre you can get some the smaller waves, which are always easy to launch through.
This makes launching easier and you can select where you want to sail, based on your experience and how you improve.
To get the down-the-line larger waves you usually head slightly downwind of the centre, as in this photo.
Below is a list of everything you need to know about your holiday in Feelviana.
Go step-by-step through everything and use it as a checklist: Flights – Transfers – Accommodation – Communications – What to Bring.
Outbound
Inbound
Group Transfer
Private Transfers
FeelViana Hotel
Telephone
It is compulsory to have third-party and personal insurance for the duration of the course, covering injury to self and others.
Travel insurance is also recommended to cover any possible issues that may arise.
RYA insurance definitely does not cover you overseas for rental gear, third party accidental cover or kit damage.
There is an option to take out local insurance for damage to the hire. Or you could use Safety Tool which is about €40 per year.
If you don’t already have third-party windsurfing insurance, you can contact Insure4Sport for year-round cover. This covers you for kit and 3rd party insurance.
Warm on the land and windy on the water!
Please let us know if you have any special dietary requirements or health issues we need to know about.
Simon Bornhoft / Windwise – by Ian Phillips of www.kuchi.solutions
About Windwise
You’re getting the knowledge, expertise and enthusiasm of one of the worlds most experienced coaches, Simon Bornhoft.
Simon has personally coached well over 6,000 windsurfers. He’s seen, tried and coached just about every single windsurfing style, tip and technique out there.
His intuitive ability to instantly identify where things are going wrong, is matched by the ability and desire to give you the exact solution, skill set and the quickest progression path to match your level, style and aspirations.
The Windwise system has been published in articles all over the world. But there’s nothing better than getting it live on the water with Simon and his team.
Check out more about Simon and his team here.
If you’re new to the sport or you’re looking to lock down the real basics, these courses are perfect for you.
Run by our trained Windwise coaches, they can assist you through the beginning and early stages of the sport using proven Windwise windsurfing coaching techniques to speed up your learning curve. We have 1 to 2 day windsurfing courses and our very popular overseas windsurfing holidays.
Introducing, explaining and building the essential windsurfing skills using the Windwise coaching system.
Simon Bornhoft we’ll help you develop and improve all areas of your windsurfing. Quick beach and waterstarts, relaxed stances, quality control, the earliest of planing, controlled harnessing and blasting in the straps, better upwind sailing, quicker tacking and learning how to gybe.
Want to break that plateau, extend your wind range, increase speed and consistency in those gybes and learn other achievable short board skills and moves? Then this is the course for you.
Simon Bornhoft will guide you through sailing smaller boards, tacking in stronger winds/lower volume boards, cranking up those carve gybes, control-jumping over chop, or having some fun with optional feasible freestyle like flat water wave riding, duck gybes, helitacks, up and downwind 360’s etc.
If you’re looking to get into waves or develop existing wave sailing skills you wave then our Freewave & Wave courses are the perfect environment to take you to the next level – which is far more accessible than you might think.
We run through high wind control, sailing sub 100L boards, uphauling, tacking and hovering on semi submerged boards.
Common questions
If you’re new to the sport or you’re looking to lock down the real basics, these courses are perfect for you. Run by our trained WINDWISE coaches, they can assist you through the beginning and early stages of the sport using proven WINDWISE windsurfing coaching techniques to speed up your learning curve. We have 1-2 day windsurfing courses and our very popular overseas windsurfing holidays.
Booking conditions
Windwise will do their best to ensure your safety and enjoyment on the water. There will be times when you’re being coached individually and in a group. There will also be times when you are freesailng by yourself, just like a regular windsurfing holiday-resort.
Windsurfing is, potentially, a dangerous sport and you must agree to sail in a responsible manner and in the designated areas outlined to you in resort.
In the event that Simon Bornhoft is not able to make the clinic/holiday or course due to illness or unforeseen circumstances, your Windwise booking and holiday are still valid and the course/holiday/adventure will still go ahead and another Windwise coach will be provided for you.
Being a small operation we have to pre-pay hotels and centres to get rates, plus there are associated costs for putting these courses on overseas.
So if for any unforeseen reason you’re unable to attend the clinic or experience holiday cancellation, airline cancellation, personal health issues, injury or any other personal reason or unforeseen circumstances that prevent you from joining the course, you will still be required to pay for your holiday. You can transfer your place to another person, but if you need to cancel and cannot find a replacement we will offer compensation under the following guidelines.
