Surfing here is unhurried — the way learning something properly should be.
Beginner-friendly bays in the morning, longboard cruisers all day. Calm, forgiving water to find your feet — and the unhurried time to actually get good at it.
Cabarete’s bays face the right way for a gentle, wind-protected morning. We surf early, while the water is glassy and the crowd is thin, and save the talking and the video for the heat of the afternoon. Nobody is rushed up the levels before they’re ready.
Forgiving water,
real coaching.
Surfing is such a great watersport and when you are in the hands of true surf professionals, surfing is accessible for people of all ages — so never think you’re too old to learn surfing.
The Dominican Republic has perfect beginner and intermediate surf spots; water and air temperatures are warm year-round, so you can leave your wetsuit at home. This truly is the ideal learn-to-surf destination.
Our beginner surf coaching program is specifically designed for people with no previous surf experience and up to 14 surf lessons. We can cater for people with more experience, intermediate and advanced surfers, but send us an email with your requirements first to see about availability.
Another reason Playa Encuentro, where we go surfing, is so good is that it’s one of the most consistent surf spots in Central America. There are surfable waves year-round — normally we can surf about 350 days a year.
Wherever you start,
you’ll leave further on.
We grade every session to the person, not the group. Here’s roughly how the week tends to go.
Never stood up
Whitewater and the inside reform, soft foam boards, a coach in the water with you. By day three most first-timers are riding to the beach on their feet.
Catching green
You can stand — now we move you out the back. Reading the set, paddling for the unbroken face, the bottom turn that makes it a wave and not a ride.
Refining the line
Trimming, generating speed, cross-stepping the longboard. Video review picks apart the detail you can’t feel — the half-second that changes everything.
Everything but the swimsuit.
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Capped 1:4 coaching
Four guests to a coach, never more. You get the time and the eyes you came for.
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Video review
Every session filmed from the beach, then picked apart together over a cold drink.
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Boards graded to you
Foam, funboard, longboard — the right volume for your level and the day’s waves.
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Glassy morning bays
We surf the wind-protected breaks early, before the afternoon trades fill in.
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Theory at the table
Forecasts, tides, line-up etiquette — the parts that make you self-sufficient.
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Safety & etiquette
How to fall, where to sit, who has priority. Confidence built on the right habits.
Water, table,
rest, repeat.
The rhythm of the week is half the point. A loose template — the bay, not the clock, has the final say.
Dawn check
Coffee on the terrace while a coach reads the bay and calls the spot for the morning.
Morning session
Two to three hours on the glassy bays — the calmest, most forgiving water of the day.
Breakfast & rinse
Back for a proper breakfast, a warm shower, and the slow part of the morning by the pool.
Theory & video
In the communal hub: the forecast for tomorrow, and last session’s footage on the screen.
Free surf
Optional second session, a longboard cruise, or simply a swim. Your call.
Dinner together
One long table, the day’s waves replayed, plans hatched for the morning.
The morning, framed.
Before you
paddle out.
The things first-timers and returning surfers ask us most. Anything we’ve missed — write to us, a real person replies within a day.
Zero. Most first-timers start in the whitewater on a soft foam board with a coach in the water beside them — by day three the majority are riding to the beach on their feet.
No wetsuit, all year. The water sits warm enough to surf in boardshorts or a swimsuit and a rashguard, which we provide. One less thing to pack.
Whatever suits your level and the day’s waves — foam boards to find your feet, funboards as you progress, longboards to cruise. We grade the volume to you, not the other way round.
Not a chance. We move you out the back to the green faces, work on trimming, speed and cross-stepping, and film every session for video review — the half-second detail you can’t feel on your own.
Cabarete’s bays work year-round. Winter brings the more consistent swell; summer is mellower and ideal for first-timers. Tell us your level and we’ll point you to the right weeks.
Limited spaces available
Tell us your dates, which watersport you’d like to learn (or improve) and we’ll send you a custom price and availability quote; almost instantly. Hasta pronto.