Frequently asked questions

Yes. It is the same head coaching team and the same system. Building on ten years of know-how since Indian Summer Bali opened in 2016, we have merged with our own surfboard and apparel brand, Vibes Surfboards. We now run as one brand, Vibes Surf, with Vibes Surf Camp and Vibes Surfboards side by side.

• The core curriculum carries on unchanged: longboard-only coaching, a 1:2 coach ratio, 4K 60fps video and drone analysis, and land training.
• Since the merger you also get our two shops in Canggu, Bali, and points that work across the camp and the surf shop.

Yes, points work both ways between the camp and the surf shop. Offering this is actually the main reason Indian Summer Bali merged with Vibes Surfboards under the name Vibes Surf.

• Camp → surf shop: points earned when you book and pay for the camp can be spent on surf gear at the Vibes Surfboards shop.
• Surf shop → camp: points earned buying gear at the shop can be used like cash on your next camp booking.

Ten years spent on longboarding alone, and coaching by shapers who build longboards and single fins themselves.

• Finding the real cause: in video review we pinpoint the root of habits you may not know you have: where you look, foot position, upper-body balance, take-off timing.
• From diagnosis to training: we don't stop at "get lower". We work out why the movement happens, then go straight into correction drills on the land-training tools we design, build and sell ourselves (on the Intensive program).
• A short, sure level-up: a few days of accurate diagnosis and tailored training is far faster and safer than a year or two of surfing with the wrong form.

Pick one of two, depending on your schedule.

• If you have time: we recommend the Intensive program with the Beginner Special. You'll build solid basics from the start.
• If your trip is short: there is the afternoon One Day Session, an easy taste of surfing in shallow whitewater.

Yes. In fact it's the program we recommend most for beginners. Intensive isn't only for advanced surfers: it's a full package built to raise your level quickly, and the detailed curriculum changes with your level. Beginners also get all of it, every day: an ocean lesson (1:2 ratio), 4K video review, land training, and drone and zoom-camera filming.

Programs at a glance

• Intensive: ocean lesson + video review + land training + drone filming. Recommended to get past the beginner stage and improve.
• Standard / Lite: less video review and training, for those who want to enjoy surfing more lightly.
• Surf Trip: guiding and transport for intermediate and advanced surfers who can paddle out on their own.

It varies a lot with your physical ability, fitness and how quickly you adapt. Progress differs from person to person, but if you follow the four weeks faithfully, choosing your own wave and paddling into a green wave without a coach's help is a realistic goal.

• Weeks 1–2: paddling balance, getting out to the lineup safely with push-throughs and turtle rolls, a stable pop-up, and the feel of gliding on green waves with a push.
• Weeks 3–4: reading the peak and the face of the wave, paddling up to speed and taking off yourself, basic trimming and rides of 20 seconds or more.

Because we correct your paddle angle and line of sight on video every day, you improve far faster, without bad habits, than surfing alone for months.

We'll teach you step by step how to understand and ride waves, but the camp is not a course for learning to swim or overcoming a strong fear of water. Many spots in Bali are too deep to stand, so if your fear of water is strong, please decide carefully.

If you're worried about the first day, we recommend adding a private 1:1 session with a coach.

Canggu, right by the camp, is one of the best-known longboard spots where beginners from all over the world learn the basics.

• Water too deep to stand is actually safer: on a shallow sandy bottom you're more likely to hit the bottom or your board when a wave rolls you. Learning to paddle out, push through and turtle roll in water of the right depth is safer, and you improve faster.
• Longer rides: beyond short whitewater, you get to experience the long glide that longboards are known for, and basic turns, step by step.
• We don't stick to Canggu: depending on the day's conditions, we move to beginner-friendly spots such as Kuta, Jimbaran, Baby Reef, secret spots in Sanur, and Nusa Dua.

A day is a 2-hour ocean lesson plus about 2 hours of 4K video review and land training.

• Ocean lesson (2 hours): you go in with a local professional coach in a small 1:2 group for close coaching.
• 4K video review: we go through the day's beach and drone footage frame by frame to correct your posture, line of sight and timing.
• Land training: you train your take-off posture and muscle memory on tools we designed and built ourselves.

Yes, drone filming is included for every guest.

• Ten years of filming know-how: our founder insists that "a guest's surf record has to be perfect", so we try to film as much as we possibly can.
• 60fps high frame rate: twice as smooth as the usual 30fps, so even small movements can be analysed without gaps, and it makes great slow motion for social media.

※ We can't fly the drone in rain or strong wind, near the airport or in no-fly zones. On those days we film from the beach with a telephoto camera so there are no gaps in your review or your record.

Every day's footage is sorted into your own folder and given to you as original 4K files.

• Your own folders: sorted by date, wave size and period, wind direction and strength, wave energy, location, and video or drone. The folders themselves become your personal surf logbook.
• How you get them: download from Google Drive, or copy them straight to your device over USB-C. Let us know in advance which you prefer.
• Make some space: original files are large, so we recommend clearing plenty of storage on your phone or tablet before you come.
• TIP: many guests bring an iPad, move their videos onto it, and watch them again before surfing the next day.

Yes. Vibes Surf Camp is run by shapers who design and build surfboards and fins themselves (shaping & glassing).

• Board shape: ride and learn how small curves in the rocker, rails and concave change speed and how the board turns.
• Fin setup: we explain simply, from a maker's point of view, how a fin's shape, angle and depth change noseriding stability and drive through turns.
• Materials: we explain how PU versus epoxy, resin and glassing thickness affect balance point and buoyancy, so you can choose the right board back home without mistakes.

We usually get in the water between 6 and 8 am. Depending on the waves and tide, you'll wake up around 5 or 6 am.

• Why mornings: there's no wind or a light offshore, so the waves are at their cleanest, and the lineup is less crowded and safer. You also avoid the strong midday sun.
• Schedule the afternoon before: we study the tide and swell charts and tell you the next day's wake-up and departure time, spot and review schedule during the afternoon before.
• Free afternoons: mornings finish on time, so you can plan your afternoons at ease: a massage, a beach club, remote work, cafés.

※ Please note that, depending on the tide, we may go in later or earlier than this.

No need to plan. After surfing we shower at the spot, change into dry clothes, and go to a different good restaurant every day.

• Walking into a cold air-conditioned restaurant in wet clothes is an easy way to catch a cold, so we always shower and change before eating.
• Our team takes Canggu food seriously and will take you to tried-and-tested places that suit your mood that day, from trendy brunch to wood-fired pizza and wine bars.
• Each guest pays for their own meal.

The camp is in central Canggu, right on the shortcut between Berawa's main road and Batu Bolong, so you'll be fine without a scooter.

• Rides come fast: a Gojek or Grab bike or car usually takes 10–30 seconds to find.
• Walkable: there are proper footpaths, rare in Bali, and three convenience stores, four cafés, a large supermarket and a laundry are all 2–3 minutes away on foot.
• Easy to get around: 3 minutes to Berawa beach and 5–10 minutes to the Batu Bolong area.

Waves you can ride long and steadily on a longboard come first. We look at the day's tide, wave size and wind direction, avoid crowded spots, and pick places where you can catch waves without a rush.

Yes. Bali has beginner-friendly waves all year round.

• June–August, dry season: even when the swell on the west side is big, the east side of the island has plenty of soft waves that are great for longboarding.
• November–March, rainy season: it's more passing showers than all-day rain. When the west wind blows, we move to east-side spots such as Baby Reef, Nusa Dua and Sanur for clean offshore waves. There's no extra transport cost for moving spots.

Yes, lessons go ahead in the rain. You get wet surfing anyway.

• Wind and waves are what matter: light rain often calms the wind on the water, leaving the surface smooth as glass: "glassy" conditions.
• The only exception is lightning: unless there's lightning close to the beach where we're teaching, every lesson runs as planned.

※ If you miss a lesson for personal reasons on the day, it can't be refunded or postponed.

You can get everything easily from the Vibes Surf online and in-person stores.

• Order ahead, collect on day one: order what you need together with your camp booking on the website, and pick it up at the camp on the day you arrive.
• Our shop by the camp: at Vibes Surfboards Berawa you can see and buy rash guards and swimwear, surf zinc, leashes, reef shoes and more.

Good to bring

• Rash guard & water leggings (not for rent): long sleeves and long legs protect you from board rash and UV. Leggings that fit well are hard to find in Bali, so bring your own.
• Surf zinc: regular sunscreen washes off quickly in the sea. We recommend a tinted zinc stick for your face, and bring cleansing oil or tissues.
• Your own leash: it's safety gear, so we recommend a strong leash that you look after yourself.
• Reef shoes: protect your feet at spots with coral or rocks.

The soft-top board you use in lessons is free.

• Hard boards (epoxy/PU): rented only to intermediate and advanced surfers who can control them safely.
• Video check before rental (soft-tops and hard boards): like a rental car, we film the deck, bottom and both rails of every board together with you to record any existing damage. This avoids disputes on return, so please keep the video until your last day.
• If damaged: charged according to the table below. Fees cover repair, delivery and the rental days lost during repair.

No. We only rent hard boards to surfers whose skills are safe enough for themselves and for the surfers around them. These are our basic criteria:

• Handling waves: can you deal with an incoming wave the right way?
• Checking around you: do you look around properly and make sure it's safe before catching a wave?
• Stopping safely: can you end a ride safely when you need to?

If you meet these criteria, we'll rent you a hard board.

We wrap them in bubble wrap and add a shoulder strap so you can take them on the plane as cabin baggage.

• Hand and foot marks: the mats we sell don't have hand and foot marks, but if you like, we'll tape them in exactly the same places as on the camp practice mat.

Book by 12 noon the day before to join the next day's lesson. We can only assign cars and coaches once numbers are confirmed, so we don't take bookings after that time.

• How to book: your booking is complete once you pay on the website. If you'd like to pay in cash, send us a message.
• Same-day booking: lessons run at 1:2, so a same-day booking is only possible when there's an odd number of guests and one spot is free. Even then, if one of those guests has added a 1:1 lesson, a same-day booking is difficult.

Yes. Depending on when you cancel, you can get a refund or change the date. The cut-off is 5 AM on the first lesson day (Bali time).

• 7+ days before: 100% refund
• 6–3 days before: 50% refund, or one free date change (use within 6 months)
• 2 days before: 25% refund · 1 day before / same day: no refund
• Changing dates: once per booking, until 5 AM 3 days before your first lesson, on the My Booking page.
• Weather: we don't cancel just because it rains. If the camp cancels for safety, we make the lesson up on another day.

For accommodation, the One Day Session, injury, force majeure and more, see the camp refund policy.

※ The camp does not provide travel insurance. Please get your own travel insurance before you come.

It's a small guesthouse with one men's dorm, one women's dorm and one private room.

• Roomy dorms: each sleeps six, but usually only one or two people stay, so it's as quiet as a private room.
• 30 more minutes of sleep: you leave straight from the living room, so there's no travel time. You sleep longer and surf in better shape.
• Training tools 24/7: even on programs without land training (Standard, Lite, Surf Trip), guests staying with us can practise on the training tools any time.
• Surf buddies: after lessons you talk surf in the living room and go for dinner or cafés together, and friendships come naturally.

Yes, please check before you book. There is one private room, and six beds each in the men's and women's dorms, so once they're full we can't take more bookings.

The private room in particular fills up fast since there's only one, so check as soon as your dates are set.

Packages with accommodation can be booked from a minimum of 2 nights.

• Check-in day: settle in and rest. Your first lesson starts the next morning.
• Check-out day: check out at 11 am after the morning lesson. Check-out is so we can clean the room, so you're welcome to stay in the shared spaces. Pack before surfing and leave your bags in the living room, then feel free to go shopping.
• No late check-out: if you want to rest in your room after surfing and shower before heading to the airport, please book one extra night.

If you land around midnight, you'll reach the camp at about 2 am. Going straight into the water the next morning without enough sleep raises the risk of injury.

If your schedule allows, we recommend resting well at a hotel near the airport on the first night and joining us the next day once you've recovered.

Beginners staying five days or more can also choose the Intensive Beginner Special. It starts the day after you arrive with a pool lesson, take-off training and a safety briefing after 10 am, so you can rest properly even after a late arrival.

Vibes Surf Camp is a foreign-owned company (PT PMA) with an official Indonesian business licence and surfing licence.

• Local law: under Indonesian law, all transactions and official invoices are in the legal currency, the rupiah (IDR).
• Card fee: the fee for card payments (3%) is charged separately at cost.