Surfing for Beginners: From Surf School to Your First Wave

Why start at a surf school

Do you need lessons to start surfing? You don’t need any credential to surf just for fun. Still, the French Surfing Federation (FFSurf) is clear: you learn at an affiliated club or an accredited school [1]. The way I see it, the reason has less to do with technique than with everything around it: the beach, the other surfers, the ocean that day.

The safety sign the federation publishes starts with three conditions: knowing how to swim, surfing with a leashThe cord that connects the board to the surfer’s ankle., and preferably wearing a wetsuit [2]. Then come the rules for beginners: stay in the whitewaterWaves that have already broken and roll toward shore as foam. or the small waves, use a foam board, stay out of the shore break, and protect your head when you fall [2].

That’s exactly the framework a school provides. The rules of Germany’s surfing federation, the Deutscher Wellenreitverband (DWV), make it concrete: beginner lessons on lifeguarded beaches, in water no deeper than the hips, in surf of 5 feet (1.5 m) at most, with every student’s swimming ability checked as a requirement [3]. Surfing England, the national body in England, also trains its instructors to teach beginners in waist-deep water, in groups of no more than 8 [4].

Choosing a school: the credential, the card, and the label

Surfing may have a reputation as the sport of freedom, but like everything else, it starts with a little paperwork. In France, what the text says is clear: article L212-1 of the sports code reserves paid surf instruction, from intro sessions to full courses, for holders of a professional credential listed in the code, such as the BPJEPS vocational diploma in “surf et disciplines associées” [5]. What that means for you: an instructor who charges for a lesson has to hold one of those credentials.

The proof is posted on-site. Once their credential and background have been checked, paid sports instructors in France receive a professional card, renewed every 5 years; a copy of the card and of the credential must be posted where the public can see it, wherever the activity takes place [6]. The card carries a QR code, and the French Ministry of Sports lists every instructor with a valid card online: its sports instructor search portal lets you look up a name [6].

The “École française de surf” label, created by the FFSurf in 1995, adds a quality charter on top of that legal minimum: accredited schools issue the federation’s progression passports and “École” memberships, and hire only state-certified instructors [7]. The label isn’t mandatory; it’s a commitment the school makes to its federation, and you can ask to see it.

What changes from one country to the next

Elsewhere, the logic is similar, but the gatekeeper changes. In England, Surfing England accredits schools and has issued its own surf instructor certification since spring 2023, which requires a current beach lifeguard or surf lifesaving award [4, 9]. In Germany, the “DWV-anerkannte Surfschule” label is renewed every calendar year: each location is run by the holder of a level B surf coaching license, lessons are taught by an instructor with a DWV level C license, or by holders of an equivalent credential, and all instructors hold the DLRG Silver lifesaving award and first aid training [3].

In the US, North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, shows how a city can regulate the schools on its beach: a $100 annual permit, one instructor for every 8 students at most, and instructors certified in CPR and first aid [10]. Rules like these are set locally, so check with the city or county that manages your beach. In Portugal, the national federation publishes a list of the schools registered with it [11]: the first thing to check before booking a surf camp there.

The first lesson: from the whitewater to the pop-up

A lesson starts on the sand. The DWV requires its schools to cover a minimum of theory in every beginner course, no matter how long: the international rules of surfing, including right of way and how to avoid collisions. Over a weeklong course, weather, waves, tides, and currents get added [3].

In the water, you stay where the waves have already broken, and you learn the pop-upGoing from lying down to standing on the board as the wave pushes it; the French call it the take-off. in the whitewater before trying it on a wave that hasn’t broken yet. That’s the whole idea behind the Pass’Surf, the progression shared by FFSurf-accredited schools in France, which has 4 levels [8].

The passport costs €10 on top of the lesson, then €2 for each additional course; every level your instructor signs off stays on record online and carries over from one accredited school to the next [8]. The DWV even trains instructors who specialize in teaching beginners in wave pools, another way in, far from any tide chart [12].

The beginner’s board, wetsuit, and leash

A first board is foam, long, and floaty. Schools recognized by the DWV must use soft “malibu” boards with beginners, in sizes from 7 to 9 feet, matched to each student’s age, weight, and height [3]. For later on, figuring out the right volume for your weight and level gets its own guide: choosing your surfboard volume, and the volume calculator gives the number in two answers.

A wetsuit isn’t required, but the FFSurf considers it the better choice [2], and its thickness depends on the water temperature: see our guide to wetsuit thickness by water temperature. The leash, on the other hand, isn’t optional: “I always surf with a leash,” says the federation’s sign [2].

Right-of-way rules: one wave, one surfer

At the peakThe spot where the wave starts to break., surfers wait their turn, and the basic rule fits into four words on the FFSurf sign: “one wave, one surfer” [2]. Surfing England publishes very similar rules [13]. Here’s what both organizations ask:

• The right of way goes to the surfer closest to the peak, the one farthest inside the breaking wave, as the FFSurf puts it [2, 13].
• You don’t take off on a wave someone is already riding: that’s a drop-inTaking off on a wave in front of a surfer who’s already riding it and has the right of way., ruled out by both organizations [2, 13].
• You don’t paddle around other surfers to cut ahead of them at the peak, which Surfing England calls snaking [13].
• You call out where you’re going, “left” or “right,” so others know [13].
• To get to the lineup, you paddle around the zone where the waves are breaking; caught inside, you paddle back out through the whitewater, not across the shoulderThe part of the wave next to the peak that hasn’t broken yet., so you don’t ruin the ride of the surfer on it [2, 13].
• You never let go of your board, whether you’re diving under a wave or kicking out of one [2, 13].

For a beginner, that last rule matters from day one. A board you let go of keeps going with the wave, at the end of its leash, toward whoever is behind you: I can’t think of a better reason to keep it close, even in the whitewater. The other rules really kick in at the “Wave” level of the Pass’Surf, the one about sharing the peak [8].

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Reading a beach before you paddle out

Before you look at the waves, look at the bottom. Surfing England describes three kinds of waves: ones that spill gently onto a gradually sloping beach, great for beginners; hollow, powerful waves that break over reefs or sandbars; and ones that dump all at once on the shoreline or in very shallow water, best left to experienced surfers [14]. Those are the “rouleaux de bord,” or shore break, that the FFSurf sign tells beginners to avoid [2].

The type of break matters too. A beach breakA wave that breaks over sand, changing shape with the sandbars and the tide. breaks over sand; a point breakA wave that breaks along a point, a river mouth, or a reef. breaks along a point, a river mouth, or a reef, and in the UK those spots are often harder to reach, not lifeguarded, with currents and rocky bottoms [14]. Finally, the tide changes the shape and power of the waves, as well as the strength of the currents [14]: before a session, check the tide chart, then the swell and wind forecast.

In France, the federation gives two tips before you paddle out at an unfamiliar spot for the first time: ask local surfers or a specialist source, and never surf alone [15]. It names the Pays de la Loire region on the Atlantic coast, from Les Sables-d’Olonne along the nearby long beaches, as ideal for beginners, since its waves are less powerful than in Brittany or Aquitaine [15].

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Flags and zones: where boards belong

In France, flags on lifeguarded beaches follow decree no. 2022-105 of January 31, 2022, in force since March 1, 2022. On the flagpole, green means “lifeguarded swimming with no apparent danger,” yellow “lifeguarded swimming with limited or marked danger,” and red “no swimming”; two red-and-yellow flags, planted near the water, mark off the lifeguarded swimming area [16].

Boards don’t belong in that area: “Respect swimming zones,” says the FFSurf sign, which shows a buffer zone on each side, then a surfing zone marked with checkered flags [2]. The checkered flag isn’t in the decree [16]. In France, the mayor controls swimming and water activities launched from the shore, out to 300 meters (about 980 feet), and sets the lifeguarded zones and hours [17]: to find out where boards are allowed, ask at the lifeguard station or the town hall.

In the UK, on beaches guarded by the RNLI, the national lifesaving charity, red-and-yellow flags mark the area for swimmers and bodyboarders, and black-and-white checkered flags the area for surfboards, stand-up paddleboards, and kayaks, where you never swim [14]. In Germany, the DLRG gives the checkered flag the same meaning, a water sports zone closed to swimmers, and notes that the green flag has no official meaning there, while it does in France [18, 16].

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Rip currents: how to spot them, and why not to fight them

A rip currentA narrow, fast current that carries the water brought in by the waves back out to sea. carries the water that waves push onto the beach back out to sea. According to the National Weather Service, rips typically form at breaks in sandbars and near structures like jetties and piers; they move at 1 to 2 feet per second on average, but have been measured as fast as 8 feet per second (2.4 m/s), faster than an Olympic swimmer [19, 20]. A rip doesn’t pull you under: it pulls you away from shore, and it’s panic and exhaustion that cause drownings [21].

The numbers show where rips rank among beach hazards. NOAA estimates that rip currents kill about 100 people a year in the US [20]; in the UK, more than 60% of RNLI lifeguard incidents involve rip currents [21].

On France’s sandy coastline, people call them “baïnes,” meaning “little basins” in the southwest, “bâches” in the north, or “pouldours” in Brittany. The SNSM, France’s sea rescue service, explains how they work: waves and tide fill a hollow in the sand until it overflows, and that overflow creates a strong current heading out to sea that even a very good swimmer can’t fight [22]. It adds that no one ever knows exactly when or how fast it will happen, and that baïnes keep moving, even for people who’ve known the beach for years [22].

To spot a rip, the National Weather Service lists four signs: a narrow gap of darker, calmer-looking water between areas of breaking waves, a channel of churning, choppy water, a difference in water color, and a line of foam or seaweed moving seaward [19]. That’s the trap: lots of people get in the water where there’s no whitewater, which is often exactly where the rip is [21, 22]. The same agency advises asking the lifeguard, when you get to the beach, about the rip currents expected that day [23].

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After surf school: surfing without an instructor

When can you surf without an instructor? The FFSurf progression gives a benchmark: surfing independently is its final level, after the one where you learn to read the water and choose your session [8]. Even then, the federation says never to surf alone [15], and to pick waves that match your level and uncrowded spots [2].

That leaves insurance. Outside lessons, the FFSurf offers a “Surfingfrance” membership for €45, good for a year, so you’re insured when surfing on your own outside a club in France; it doesn’t let you compete or teach [25]. The other route is membership through an affiliated club, which offers, in the federation’s words, community, training, and competition [25].

Worth watching

Surf Life Saving Australia trains your eye on real beaches to spot a rip: darker, deeper water, fewer breaking waves, a rippled surface, and foamy water flowing out past the waves.

The video is hosted by YouTube (Google): nothing loads until you play it, and Google may then set cookies.

Arnaud Couderc

Fact-checking, regulations, and safety

Arnaud Couderc reviews our contributors’ articles and writes for Outfarer about regulations, safety, fishing, the ocean, and outdoor activities. He traces every rule back to its official text and every number to its source, so you head out with solid benchmarks.

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