Hi guys, I've got an important question to be answered:
I'm going to travel from the Dominican Republic (Puerto Plata) to the US (New York City) with an airline called Jet blue. I haven't been with these guys before. Either their website and hotline operators are a bit misleading.
The problem is: can I bring my equipment with me. It will be in the usual bag 150cm by 40 by 25 (maybe30cm). They say it can go for 50 bugs. But it won't fit their rules for oversized baggage.
I am very keen that some of you guys have used this airline before to fly from Puerto Plata back to the US. Your comment will be appreciated.
Bye,
Steffen
PS.: Will be on kite beach Cabarete from 14. of March - see you on the water.

It will be fine as far as I know. I have traveled Jet Blue many times there and back with bags with bigger dimensions than that. You'll have to pay the 50 bucks though. However, make sure its under 50 pounds. Puerto Plata has restrictions keeping weight to 50 pounds. On the website it says kitesurfing gear can be up to 100 pound but this is for other places, not Puerto Plata.

Here is the line from the Jet Blue website

Kite Surfing Equipment

Kite Surfing and Windsurfing boards, when properly packed to prevent damage to the board, sail, boom, related equipment and to other baggage, are accepted upon payment of applicable fee. Items weighing more than one hundred pounds (100 lbs) will not be accepted as checked baggage.They are excluded from the size limitations, but count as one bag for the purposes of the free baggage allowance.

so don;t worry about dimensions, however the 100 lbs weight limit does not apply in Puerto Plata. I know this for a fact even though Its not on website. It has to be 50 lbs or less. I've been stopped for being even 5 lbs over 50 and had to shove a kite in my carry-on.

Hey ITN,
thank you, that is really reassuring. I guess it will be alright then.
Bye, Steffen

Hi Steffen,

I just wanted to find out how your flight went from Puerto Plata to NYC and vice-versa?
I am asking because on the website of JetBlue airline they say they accept kiteboarding equipment EXCEPT from/to Dominican Republic.

Please get back to me
Marc

Hi there, as mentioned in the post before I intended to travel from Puerto Plata, DR, to New York City.
I can tell you: there haven't been any problems with the oversized luggage. I went to the counter, checked in the luggage, paid $45 for my additional oversized bag - end of story.
I wish you good winds and travel safe.
Bye,
Steffen

Cabarete - Dominican Republic

February 2012 - me and my wife headed for a Kiteboarding vacation to the Dominican Republic. Cabarete it is believed one of the kite boarding hot spots of the Caribbean. Wind and sunshine as well as reasonably priced accommodation and food should attract kiteboarding dudes and ladies from all over the world.
I am one season into Kiteboarding and my wife is a non-boarder. And she stayed a non-boarder even though she had lessons with one of the leading local schools.

My review starts with how to get there:
We flew in over Frankfurt/Germany with an airline called condor. It was a pleasant enough flight. If you get the chance to pick the comfort class you'll be fine. There is also an advanced economy - and the economy class. Therefore, you will get there easy enough.
As we had to fly back to Dublin, we chose for the return flight a stop in New York City. It gave us the nice option to stay for a weekend at the Big Apple. In addition to the usual luggage for vacation, we took a mystic kite quiver bag 150 by 50 by 40 cm with us. The price for the transportation of that quiver bag was: Dublin to Frankfurt with Lufthansa no additional costs, Frankfurt to Puerto Plata/Dominican Republic no additional cost (maybe depending on the class), Puerto Plata to JFK Airport New York City with JetBlue $45 and JFK back to Dublin the bespoken bag travels for 35 Euro.

Accommodation:
You can find there everything apart from five star hotel. We went with a reasonably priced option just outside the vicinity of Cabarete. Air conditioning wasn't needed and we got in contact with the nice crowd living there all of whom haven't been Kiteboarder.

Transportation:
No problem. The car is to be hired at the airport maybe in advance via Internet.
Filling up the car later was was an experience. It is not a big deal if you can afford to be snatched by 10 bucks. And if you don't mind get stopped by a paramilitary party which may or may not be friendly enough to ask for some money. We have been told later on that maybe $10 would be enough for them to let you pass that out hassle. They let us go anyway without getting any money as we didn't understand the local Spanish and sticked to the English/German language.

Eating out:
There are lots of different restaurants along the street and the beach.

Now - last but not least Kiteboarding:
For the ones who are still with me, Kite Beach in Cabarete itself is a crowded place when the wind is blowing. You'll meet Kiters from Europe as well as from North America. You'll spot the local riders recklessly riding close to the shore line, the kite above the heads of the beachgoers. That is not always pleasant to see or even safe. Not to mention some swimmers in front of the hotels. On the main kite spot u have quite a bit of waves thankfully breaking faraway out on the riff. But it is still quite wavy. So to speak not really a spot for beginners. Even though the kite schools teaching on the spot.
Okay - Wind. Out of 12 days it blew only three days strong enough to go up wind. The wind was steady though but simply not strong enough. Usually it picked up a bit after 2pm. But, certainly not strong enough to get a good ride out of it. Two days riding on Cabarete's Kite Beach - one day barely going upwind in marginal conditions with heaps of Kiters around me. And another one in even more marginal conditions with no fun at all. So, what's the other day like out of the three with wind. There is the spot a little west of Cabarete called La Boca, that means river mouth, the little river there creates a flat water spot one side with the beach like shore and mangroves on the other side with mud and stuff and some branches sticking quiet out in direction of the flat water. Therefore, you have to know what you're doing. I enjoyed my day kiting out there very much.

Conclusion:
It is not easy to go on a kite vacation if there is no wind. It might not have being the high season for kiteboarding. Anyway, it is still a hit or miss if you go somewhere with your plans depending on the weather.
A teacher at a kiteboarding school should put lots of emphasis on safety. Every student should be treated with lots of respect taking on this (still) extreme sport.
Mainstream tourism is dead in Cabarete. It looks like Kiteboarding keeps the village alive.

See you on the water
Steffen