Summer Holidays: How to Introduce and Teach Your Children to Sea Surf

Water-sports are some of the most accessible adventure sports you can try, and some of the most engaging too. Not all of us are supremely comfortable in the water, but learning to swim is much easier than it looks – and much easier at an earlier age, too. As such, if your child has shown an aptitude, or even just a light hankering, for trying out surfing, there’s no better time to indulge them than this summer.

Sea surfing is a fun family activity, being an opportunity to bond as well as to burn some adrenaline (and a few calories besides). But how can you safely introduce this wonderful activity to the whole family?

Choosing the Right Beach

Learning the beauty and art of surfing starts, necessarily, with the location. You don’t want to be teaching your child in choppy waters, or amongst dangerous rocks – nor do you want to be relaxing between bouts in a less-than-comfortable seaside locale. 

You’re looking for a family-friendly beach with surfing conditions that suit the beginner, i.e.: calm, easy, but with some wave activity. A popular domestic choice for such purposes is Saltburn in North Yorkshire, which benefits not just from the dependable North Sea winds but also some of the best ice-cream-adjacent treats you’ll ever try. 

Surfing Lessons for Children

Of course, if you’re not an avid surfer yourself, you probably aren’t best-placed to be teaching anyone let alone your child. This might even be the case if you are a surfer! Sometimes it’s best to leave the teaching to the teachers, and ensure your child learns all the right habits early.

Lessons of this nature are easy enough to find, but this could also be a great opportunity to fold learning in with a holiday. Family activity holidays allow your kids to try a number of different sports, and to learn them all from professionals with the credentials to prove it.

Safety First: Essential Tips

Whether or not there’s a trained professional around to coach your child, you should still be cognisant of basic safety around surfing – and that your children have been drilled to death on them before they start surfing without you also on the board. Equipment safety is key, including the use of an ankle leash at all times to keep your kids attached to the board (and hence a lifeline for if they fall). Another crucial safety tip relates to the danger of rip currents, and how to spot them; rip currents are responsible for most RNLI lifeguard call-outs each year. 

Encouraging and Supporting Your Child

Finally, but no less importantly, your child will benefit greatly from your sustained support. Surfing isn’t always just for the summer, and this could become a serious hobby for your children if you let it. Advice goes a long way, but comfort and encouragement go a lot longer!