What 25 Years of Teaching Taught Us About Finding the Best Surf School Barbados
Author : Surfin Barbados | Published On : 16 Feb 2026
Because 2025 marks a quarter-century of observing coffee-carrying guests depart with board wax in hand and a return flight booked home.
Why “Best Surf School Barbados” Isn’t a Title We Take Lightly
There are fourteen surf schools operating on this island. Some are hotels with a couple of soft-tops. Some are solo instructors with a WhatsApp number. Then there's us - a family-run operation which started in a garage repairing boards, outgrew that, and grew into a Surf Shop Barbados locals actually use.
When you walk into our Hastings Main Road location, you're not stepping into a tourist concession. You're stepping into a working surf shop where Bajan surfers buy their FCS fins, where the ding repair rack is always full, and where the person serving you probably shaped their first board before you learned to drive.
What actually makes a surf school the best:
- Instructors who surf all year round, not just tourist season.
- A board quiver of 200+ options or so 5'5" to 11ft
- Maximum 4 students per instructor—always
- Same-day on-site board repairs available.
Case Study: The Guest Who Almost Didn’t Come
There are fourteen surf schools operating on this island. Some are hotels with a couple of soft-tops. Some are solo instructors with a WhatsApp number. Then there's us - a family-run operation which started in a garage repairing boards, outgrew that, and grew into a Surf Shop Barbados locals actually use.
When you walk into our Hastings Main Road location, you're not stepping into a tourist concession. You're stepping into a working surf shop where Bajan surfers buy their FCS fins, where the ding repair rack is always full, and where the person serving you probably shaped their first board before you learned to drive.
What actually makes a surf school the best:
- Instructors who surf all year round, not just tourist season.
- A board quiver of 200+ options or so 5'5" to 11ft
- Maximum 4 students per instructor—always
- Same-day on-site board repairs available.
The Difference Between Teaching and Mentoring
Anyone can tell you where to put the feet. A Best Surf School Barbados instructor notices that you're holding your breath, notices that you're white-knuckling those rails, notices you're staring at your feet instead of out at the horizon. Our lessons don't require any scripts or cue cards. All our teachers have is a mental checklist: which surf worked, which break worked for you, which Dad joke worked for you.
At Surf Shop Barbados, we have over 200 boards in stock because we understand the reality of the situation – one shape doesn’t fit all. We've got the performance short boards through to the 11ft long boards because we take our guests seriously when they tell us their level of expertise. We've got the facilities to repair the boards ourselves because we're surfers at heart first and business owners second.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. How would you know that this beginners' surf class in Barbados was for you?
A. Anybody able to swim 25m, not afraid of the water, and willing to try out surfing is welcome at our school. Everything else is taken care of.
Q. Would you bring a surfboard?
A. The surfboard you'll be using for the surf lesson will be provided by us; its selection will be based on your height, weight, and skill level.
Q. What is the difference between the 3-day camp and the 5-day camp surf camp option?
A. Three-day surf camp would give you a good foundation of knowledge about surfing under the sun and how to do so. The five-day surf camp would also improve your capability to surf ocean waves but in a different way; it helps you understand what to look for while surfing and how to turn your surfboards.
