Surfing Lessons
4 hours
Free cancellation
Not sure? You can cancel this booking up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund.
Recommended by 96% of travellers
96% of reviewers gave this product a bubble rating of 4 or higher.
from
AU$85
per adult
Soul Surf School
Soul Surf School
5
8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Monday
8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Tuesday
8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Wednesday
8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Thursday
8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Friday
8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Saturday
8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Sunday
8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Full view
About
Soul Surf School is a Surfing Australia approved surf school based in Byron Bay, NSW Australia. We are centrally located in our beach hire/surf shop on Byron Bays' famous main beach ( 14 Bay St ) All of our surf coaches hold current Surfing Australia coaching accreditation, and all of our management team have a minimum of 10 years surfing experience. Soul Surf School offers programs to complete beginners, intermediate and advanced surfers of any age (minimum 5years). We are the only Byron Bay surf school to have surf school permits to teach personal private lessons & group lessons in both Byron Bay, Lennox Head, Ballina & Tweed Heads shires . We are dedicated to finding the best, fun and safest waves daily and we have over 15 different locations at our fingertips, ready for the ultimate learn to surf experience.
Byron Bay, New South Wales, Australia
Awards
Travellers' Choice
2024
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Surfing Lessons
2 hours
Free cancellation
Not sure? You can cancel this booking up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund.
Recommended by 100% of travellers
100% of reviewers gave this product a bubble rating of 4 or higher.
from
AU$280
per adult
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
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5.0
1,155 reviews
Excellent
1,096
Very good
36
Average
7
Poor
11
Terrible
5
Jules
Sydney, Australia53 contributions
July 2020 • Couples
My boyfriend and I did the day tripper option and had Tommy as our surf coach. We hadn’t visited Byron before a felt this was a good way to get to know the beaches.
We had a fantastic day and were glad we chose the private option rather than a group lesson. My boyfriend and I were at quite different levels (he has surfed a lot whereas I’m a relative novice). Tommy managed both our ability levels really well, choosing boards that would be best for us and he was very positive and constructive with his feedback. He took time to get to know us and overall was an awesome coach!
Although it takes some time to drive to the beaches and choose the right spot, the coaches are doing their best to choose the best options for the conditions and so we didn’t mind this at all. We would highly recommend a private lesson or day trip with Soul Surf.
We had a fantastic day and were glad we chose the private option rather than a group lesson. My boyfriend and I were at quite different levels (he has surfed a lot whereas I’m a relative novice). Tommy managed both our ability levels really well, choosing boards that would be best for us and he was very positive and constructive with his feedback. He took time to get to know us and overall was an awesome coach!
Although it takes some time to drive to the beaches and choose the right spot, the coaches are doing their best to choose the best options for the conditions and so we didn’t mind this at all. We would highly recommend a private lesson or day trip with Soul Surf.
Written 2 July 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi Jules,
So glad to hear you had such a great time on your day tripper with Tommy! This is a great package with one lesson in the morning, lunch and a lesson in the afternoon :)
It's great to hear you got to check out a few different beaches and learn a lot from Tommy. He is a local surf coach and has been surfing all his life, so he really knows his stuff!
Keep surfing!!
Lydia, Soul Surf School.
Written 23 July 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
daveybjerna
Portstewart, UK4 contributions
Feb 2021
My kids took a two hour surf lesson yesterday with Matt. They had a fantastic time over at The Gap. Matt has a great easy way of communicating with the kids, putting them at ease and informing them what to do, or adjust to get the best experience. Both my kids were stood upright riding white water in no time, and both thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Matt stayed on past the 2 hours for a bit longer as the kids were having so much fun, and we really appreciated his generosity. We will definitely be back for more lessons with Soul Surf to improve my kids' technique and confidence. Thank you for a fantastic afternoon.
Written 26 February 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hey Davey,
Thanks for your lovely review. Stoked to hear the kids were having the best time.
Matt is happy to teach the kids anytime!
Cheers!
Matt and the Soul Surf Team
Written 11 March 2021
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Charlotte H
1 contribution
July 2020
Thankyou so much to Tommy for an incredible and fun lesson! I loved it and him(haha)! An absolute legend of a coach and I feel like I learnt so so much.
He really went out of his way to make sure I had a great time and had me standing up almost straight away.
Thankyou for being so patient and for cheering me on.
I feel like I have so much more confidence in the water and can't wait for next time.
Highly recommend Soul Surf School and recommend requesting Tommy if you are booking a private lesson.
He really went out of his way to make sure I had a great time and had me standing up almost straight away.
Thankyou for being so patient and for cheering me on.
I feel like I have so much more confidence in the water and can't wait for next time.
Highly recommend Soul Surf School and recommend requesting Tommy if you are booking a private lesson.
Written 14 August 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi there,
Thank you for surfing with us and for taking the time to leave us a review - we really appreciate it!
Tommy is an awesome instructor and is so patient with everyone he teaches. That's epic to hear that you stood up straight away - well done! With our patient coaches and our awesome lesson boards we aim to get everyone up and surfing on their first lesson.
We look forward to taking you surfing again soon!
All the best,
Lydia & The Soul Surf Team
Written 8 February 2021
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
MalTorero
Sydney, Australia191 contributions
July 2020
This was great for our 7 year old daughter to learn. We started with the 5-day package but after 2 group lessons, decided to move to private lessons as the instructor Kyle who was looking after our daughter was such a good match that we thought it would be even better 1-1. Kyle is just superb and would recommend him highly for anyone's children. (I'm sure he's great with adults too.)
Written 21 July 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi Mal,
Thanks so much for taking the time to leave us a great review. We are very happy to hear that your young one had a great time with Kyle!
We would love to take her out again if you guys are ever back in the Bay, In the meantime, Keep Surfing!!
Kind regards,
Tommy
Soul Surf School.
Written 12 August 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
jbradfield1990
Bradford, UK20 contributions
Dec 2019
Definitely recommend Soul Surf School, the guys were really cool, gave us loads of time to practice and plenty of time in the water. We only did the half day lesson which was around 4 hours in total, but as it was our first time surfing it was just the right amount of time. Just wish we had more time in Byron Bay to do more lessons!
Written 24 January 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi J,
Thank you for taking the time to leave us this great review!
We are very pleased to hear that you had a great experience for your first time surfing! It only gets better and better from here :)
Thanks J, we would love to take you surfing again if your ever back in Byron!
Tommy & the Soul Surf team.
Written 29 January 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Reagan M
1 contribution
Jan 2020
Amazing experience with Soul Surf School! I've had a couple lessons before but really wanted to build on what I learned and become more consistent. I did four lessons and each day allowed me to build on the skills I learned on the previous days. We went to a beach with great waves that wasn't crowded which made it easy to learn! Kyle was an amazing instructor and made everyday super enjoyable! Thanks for the awesome experience!
Written 15 January 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thanks so much for taking the time to leave us a review!
So glad to hear that you had an amazing experience with us and could work on your existing skills in our lessons! We have 3 instructors with a full group and split the groups into ability to make sure that if you have surfed before we are not going through the basics all over again!
Keep surfing! If you're back in Byron we would love to get you out there again!
Thanks again :)
Written 20 January 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Rom
1 contribution
Mar 2021 • Solo
Could not recommend or thank the Soul Surf team enough. My private lessons with Matt were the highlight of my week holiday in Byron and well worth paying the little extra. I've surfed with other schools before, but progressed so much quicker with Matt. In the first lesson I was popping up on my board, and by my third day was learning to read the waves, paddling into them and turning the board. He was personable, encouraging and full of knowledge. Already planning my next visit and continuing my lessons with these guys! Yieww 🤙
Written 19 March 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hey Romely, thanks so much for your 5 star and awesome review! Our Matt is a legend :) Glad you enjoyed and we're looking forward having you back here soon! In the meantime: keep surfing, cheers!
The Soul Surf Team
Written 3 April 2021
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
floparsonson
London, UK31 contributions
Aug 2020 • Couples
Highly recommend Soul Surf School as a beginner surfer. Went for four lessons and was standing up on the board halfway through the first lesson thanks to clear and well delivered teaching from Danny. Next three lessons were with Kyle who was amazing at catering to the different levels within the group and helped develop my confidence on the board. Each time we were taken to a different beach (which was almost always completely empty which was amazing). The groups are kept to maximum 6 per instructor and split by ability so no one is left behind. Beaches are also picked for best conditions on the day so you know you’ll be at the best spot!
Written 18 October 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi there,
Thanks so much for taking the time to leave us a review, we really appreciate it!
Stoked to hear that you were up and standing half way through your first lesson with us, that's awesome! We are very lucky to be a mobile surf school with a range of beaches to chose from, so we run the lessons wherever the conditions are best on the day. I'm glad to hear that you got to surf at 3 different beaches on your lessons with us.
We always make sure we have a good ratio of instructors : surfers on the lesson, to ensure the group can split up into different groups of ability, and to make sure everyone receives plenty of feedback.
Keep surfing!
All the best,
Lydia & The Soul Surf Team
Written 8 February 2021
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Roy
1 contribution
Feb 2023
Its a rip off. They put you in an already expensive hostel and add like 20 bucks a night for themselves. Ended up packing about 100$ a night in a hostel that was asking for at most 80$.
You're better of booking the hostel yourself and doing the lessons separately.
Lessons are pretty good to be fair. although its a shame not all instructors take you out the back to catch some green waves. Of course this depends on the conditions but I got the feeling some instructors are quicker in going out the back than others.
Worst part was when they wanted an additional 25$ for the photo's they took of me while surfing, while I already overpaid way to much for the surf and stay package.
Was quite funny when they offered a 25% discount because I was on a surf and stay package though....
You're better of booking the hostel yourself and doing the lessons separately.
Lessons are pretty good to be fair. although its a shame not all instructors take you out the back to catch some green waves. Of course this depends on the conditions but I got the feeling some instructors are quicker in going out the back than others.
Worst part was when they wanted an additional 25$ for the photo's they took of me while surfing, while I already overpaid way to much for the surf and stay package.
Was quite funny when they offered a 25% discount because I was on a surf and stay package though....
Written 9 February 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi Roy,
Firstly if you had an issue with what you where charged I would have appreciated you speaking with us in our shop and asking us for a price break down which we would have been more than happy to give you.
Please see break down below.
Hostel $80 per night = $400
5 day surf lesson = $275
5 day hire package = $150
Plus breakfast boxes included ( the hostel does charge us $8 per day)
Total $825
The package you booked was $750 plus credit card charge that we don’t receive which goes to the Rezdy booking system payment gateway.
So I’m just trying to figure out how we ripped you off?
We are a small locally owned family business so bad reviews do impact us not only in a way of hurting our business but also on a personal level as we don’t want people walking away from our business with a negative experience. So I hope us clarifying your costs changes your view on us “pocketing an extra $20 a night” which is untrue.
With the photo package, for your information also $25 a night is cheap considering it costs us $150 a session to send a photographer to the beach to get shots of your session yet on average we only sell max 5 photo packs per session so we actually loose money on this service and we only offer this service so students have shots and memories of their experience.
In terms of where we house our surf and stay guests at The Surf House; we use this hostel as it is the best hostel in town and we want our guests to be close to our store and be in the best location in town.
Had you booked with our competitor in Byron Bay you would have paid $705 and stayed in a 10 person tent out of town.
Kind
Regards
Sean
Owner
Written 15 February 2023
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Serena_xue
Madonna Di Campiglio, Italy228 contributions
Jan 2020 • Friends
For me and my friend was the first time on a surf board and we had a very good time. We booked the 2 day group lessons (120$) for the afternoon session. The school drove us to Lennox Beach, out of the crowd, and divided us into small groups according to the level. Our instructors Jack and Jordi were helpful, passionate and knowledgable. They taught us the basis of surfing and explained us how to face tides and waves in order not to get in troubles once in the sea. Highly recommended! Thanks Jack and Jordi for the fun and the patience.
Serena & Chiara :)
Serena & Chiara :)
Written 13 January 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi Serena,
Thanks so much for taking the time to leave us a review, we really appreciate it!
Stoked to hear that you had a 'fun-tastic' time - love it!!! Glad you learnt a lot from Jack and Jordi, we're lucky to have a great team of instructors who are so passionate about what they do!
We make sure to teach you about surf conditions to make sure that you are comfortable to go surfing on your own after a surf course with us!
Enjoy the rest of your trip... We'd love to get you out there again next time you're in Byron!
Keep surfing!
Lydia & The Soul Surf Team!
Written 20 January 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
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