Surf Camp
with Santa Barbara Surf School
4:1 Camper to Instructor Ratio for a more Personal Experience
Camp Available from 9am – 12pm or 1pm – 4pm every week throughout Summer
Our mission is to provide a positive surf learning environment; to educate, inform, and teach ocean awareness and beach safety. This Santa Barbara surf camp will provide quality surf instruction. In addition, we will also provide other water sport activities such as kayaking and stand up paddle boarding (SUP). You’ll find our beach camp will emphasize a safe and fun experience that guarantees a high level of success in learning to surf your first waves.
A Camp Lead by Experienced Instructors
About Our Surf Camp
Surfing is truly a one of a kind sport, bringing a huge smile to everyone that tries it. We’d love to introduce your kids to this experience! We’ve been teaching for nearly two decades and look forward to seeing you at our surf camp in Santa Barbara. Our private surf lessons are hosted just south of town. However, we chose to run our surf camp in the heart of the Santa Barbara waterfront on West Beach. This is a great location as it’s conveniently located next to downtown and allows us to offer more than just surfing. We will have beach games, stand up paddle boards, and kayaks on site to keep the kiddos entertained throughout the day.
Location
The summer camp starts and ends everyday at West Beach. Our stand is easy to find, just look for a blue easy up tent next to large white boxes. It is approximately 100 feet north of Stearns Warf and directly across from the Harbor View Inn.
More Than Just a Surf Camp. Welcome to a Watersports Camp!
Santa Barbara Watersports & Surf Camp Details
No waves? No problem. We provide kayaking, paddleboarding, and beach games in addition to surfing! This Santa Barbara surf and water sports camp is a 3 hour long beach camp from 9:00am to 12:00pm or 1:00pm to 4:00pm. We keep our instructor to student ratio at 4:1 so we can ensure every child is properly looked after.
This camp is perfect for those kids that are looking to get a mix of beach and ocean activities with an emphasis on surfing. The surf lessons will be held on sandspit beach, a world famous wave in the winter and a small gentle rolling wave in the summer. Beach games will be played on West Beach and our kayaking and paddle boarding will happen right off of the shore.
The Most Unique Beach Camp in Santa Barbara
This is not your average surf camp. At our Santa Barbara water sports and surf camp we provide multiple ocean activities for your children. Not only do they get to enjoy the thrill of surfing, in addition, they also get to experience kayaking and paddle boarding.
Sandspit Beach breaks along a man made island that is connected to the breakwall across the Santa Barbara Harbor. As a result, we’ll take a kayak or stand up paddle board (SUP) across the harbor to go surf. You can look at it like a mini surf trip! On our way there we will most likely see seals, sea lions, and native birds too! At last, once we land at Sandspit, we will start our surf lesson.
Since 2002, Santa Barbara Surf School has been teaching little kids to adults the joys of surfing. Providing fun and thrilling surf lessons with highly qualified and experienced staff.
Summer Program Specifics
Morning Slot SCHEDULE:
(activity lengths will vary by day)
- 9:00 check-in
- 9:10 sunscreen and wetsuits
- 9:20 morning stretch
- 9:30 beach and ocean safety talk
- 9:40 kayak and paddleboard fundamentals/safety
- 10:00 group water sports: Surf, Kayak, SUP
- 10:45 snack break/sunscreen application
- 11:00 group water sports: Surf, Kayak, SUP
- 11:30 out of water, kayak/SUP back to West Beach stand
- 11:45 surf camp chant, change and clean up
- 12:00 pick up
Afternoon Slot SCHEDULE:
(activity lengths will vary by day)
- 1:00 check-in
- 1:10 sunscreen and wetsuits
- 1:20 afternoon stretch
- 1:30 beach and ocean safety talk
- 1:40 kayak and paddleboard fundamentals/safety
- 2:00 group water sports: Surf, Kayak, SUP
- 2:45 snack break/sunscreen application
- 3:00 group water sports: Surf, Kayak, SUP
- 3:30 out of water, kayak/SUP back to West Beach stand
- 3:45 surf camp chant, change and clean up
- 4:00 pick up
Camp Details:
- Ages 6 yrs – 12 yrs old
- 9:00am – 12:00pm or 1:00pm – 4:00pm
- Price per camper is $375 for Monday – Friday
- West Beach (You will be meeting your camp leaders at our Stand on West Beach which is located on the beach directly across from the Harbor View Inn Hotel (28 W Cabrillo Blvd, Santa Barbara)
- Includes surfboards, kayaks, paddle boards and life jackets
- Wetsuits and boogie boards are also available
What Should Your Child Bring to Camp?
- Snacks
- Water
- Bathing Suit
- Towel
- Sunscreen
Safety First
Safety is our main priority while delivering a fun-filled beach camp. All of our instructors are AED/CPR certified as well as first aid certified with this purpose in mind. Our Santa Barbara surf camp will teach everything from how waves form, how to read them, how to surf them, etiquette, stand up paddle boarding, kayaking, and additional tidbits on marine life in the Santa Barbara channel. Our mission is to provide a fun surf, sup, and kayak environment while building surf knowledge. The hope is creating a solid foundation to advance your kids ocean sport skills. Additionally, ocean awareness and beach safety is at the core of that foundation.
For your child’s safety we do require that every camper knows how to swim.
Safety Measures:
- 4:1 Student to Instructor Ratio
- Lifeguard on duty daily at West Beach
- The camp will resemble more of a semi-private lesson
- Pricing has been raised in order to afford smaller groups and prioritize safety
A Watersports & Surf Camp Delivering both Education and Fun!
Santa Barbara Surf School provides:
- Warm full body 4/3 wetsuit and a softtop surfboard included!
- Basic fundamentals of surfing / SUP / kayak
- The ability to navigate various ocean conditions
- How to read the wind, tides, and ocean’s behavior before entering the water
- Exposure to diverse marine life in their natural habitat
- Sea Lions, California Brown Pelicans, Harbor Seals, Cormorants
- Opportunities to build confidence & self-esteem in the ocean from a young age
- 4:1 instructor to student ratio
- Options for specializing in their favorite water sport:
- Surfing, Paddle boarding, or Kayaking
- Free time to boogie board & enjoy the water
- Beach Games & Team Activities
- Shade for sun protection
- Supervision at all times!
Curriculum included in daily lectures:
- Ocean Awareness (tide, winds, and swell)
- Beach Safety
- Surfing Etiquette
- Santa Barbara Sea Life
- Santa Barbara Harbor History
What to Expect When Signing up for the Santa Barbara Watersports & Surf Camp
When attending our beach camp in Santa Barbara, you should expect the best surf and water sports learning experience. To ensure this, each of our instructors have 8+ years of surf and water sports experience and they look forward to sharing the stoke with your children. Expect your kids to be standing up and riding waves after their first surf lesson with our camp! By the end of the week they should be able to paddle in, catch, and ride waves on their own.
Not only will they be excellent surfers, in addition they will also be great at kayaking and stand up paddle boarding too. With our daily kayak/SUP paddle from our stand on West Beach to Sandspit, your children will be familiar with how tides, currents, wind, and swell all affect the ocean on a daily basis. It is also guaranteed that they will see marine life almost everyday! For this reason, our camp staff will go over educational facts about sea animals and even include some educational facts about the history of the Santa Barbara Harbor too.
On certain days, our beach camp will also have fun beach games and team activities for the children to participate in and enjoy as well!
2024 Summer Camp Dates Now Open
Camp Dates:
- June 17 – 21
- June 24 – 28
- July 1 – 5
- July 8 – 12
- July 15 – 19
- July 22 – 26
- July 29 – August 2
- August 5 – 9
Surf Camp | Monday - Friday | $375
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