Top Surf Travel Tips

Chris Thomson
www.errantsurf.com

So here I am sat in a beach side cafe trying to put pen to paper about some top surf travel tips. Outside on the eve of August a huge dark curtain of rain is slowly creeping up on the un-expecting tourists. No number of wind breaks and "half" tents are going to save them now.

A few of the smarter ones have noticed the impending doom and have started to round up the tents, the buckets and spades, the cooler box, the cheap body boards and Gran as she dozes in her wheel chair where it has been parked since this morning.

Before long the sun disappears and heavy drops of water start to fall on the hardened beach goers. Within moments it is complete madness. Like ants they pick up anything they can grab and all filter up to the bottleneck of the steps, into the carpark.


As the rain dances off the window my thoughts return to my surf travel tips article. This is the height of our summer. No wonder the British have always been great travellers. For the last seven years of my life I have, like many others in this neck of the woods, managed to escape our wintertime for warmer destinations. Which is understandable if our summers are anything to go by.

Surf travel is one of the best things in life. Except surfing it’s self, of course. It’s getting to that time of the year when our "summer" starts to become a distant memory and our hopes now turn to our winter surf trips.

To help things run a bit smoother I managed to pin down a few die hard, off the beaten track guys, a few sponsored surfers, a couple of surf company managers and one professional windsurfer. We put our heads together and have come up with your indispensable guide to surf travel!


1) Scan all of your important documents i.e. Passport, tickets, visa and insurance details and then e-mail them to yourself. This way if it really does Pete Tong you can still access your documents to get you home.

2) When budgeting for surf holidays don’t forget getting to and from the UK airport. This can be one of the expensive parts of your trip and can be easily overlooked.

3) The best way to score good waves is time. The longer you stay the bigger your chance of scoring those dream sessions.

4) Travel light. You can buy pretty much everything abroad and for a lot cheaper.

5) Check in early! The check-in person is in a better mood. They can’t claim the baggage hull is full and you can try and get an exit aisle seat (extra room).

6) When you turn up at the check in desk with your coffin full of boards you don’t want them to weigh it. This could turn out more expensive then them just charging per unit. A good one is too claim that the board bag is far too wet (helps if it is!) and would break the electronic scales. Hooking your foot under the bag to ease the weight off the scales works as well.


7) You can also claim that a triple board bag has only got "one" board in it. If you have a padlock on the case, it is far too much hassle and time for you to find key and open it up!

8) Another old favourite is too pick an "older" lady/man before you queue, throw in a bit of harmless flirting and bingo. No board charges!

9) Ask for a "special" meal when you book your flight as on most flights this guarantees being served first. Fear not, you don’t need to go the full Veggie options just ask for an extra bread roll or low salt option.

10) On scheduled flights if you are feeling a little peckish ask the cabin crew for an extra meal. Unlike chartered flights where each person is allocated a meal long before take off, scheduled flights always have a few kicking around. It pays to ask with a smile!

11) When you arrive make friends with the locals; it is the best way to find out about where and when to surf the local breaks. Be friendly and open.

12) When going to a poor surf country bring stickers, pens, and pencils for the local kid’s. It doesn’t take up much space in your luggage and your be a hit with the local kid’s. In turn when they grow older their view on visiting surfers is a positive one.

13) Surfing is life but it’s not the only thing in it. If it goes flat or you’re surfed out, go exploring!

So there you go a few pointers. Thanks to Emma Skinner, Feral Ben, Steveo, Lee Ryan, Tom Crawford, John Hibbard and Will Blair.

source : magicseaweed.com