Biarritz Surf Training

A surf school set up on the Côte des Basques beach in Biarritz, with instructors qualified by the French state, groups of eight pupils at most and courses for children in school holidays. It closes from December to March.

Who they are

Biarritz Surf Training is a company, SAS Biarritz Surf Training, that presents itself as a team of surf enthusiasts based for many years on the Côte des Basques, the Biarritz beach at the foot of the cliff, on the Boulevard du Prince de Galles. There it has its reception hut, with changing rooms and showers. Its instructors hold the state surf diploma and are also lifeguards (maîtres nageurs sauveteurs), and the school is registered with the Departmental Directorate of Youth and Sports under number 06496ET0144. The website does not give the founders' names or the year of opening. It works with the Sooruz brand for suits and equipment.

What it offers and when

The school gives surf lessons and courses, and also bodyboard, in groups or privately, for all levels, in sessions of an hour and a half. There are courses for children, teenagers and adults; those for children, from age 5, are organised in school holidays. For those who live locally there is a club option, with ten lessons of an hour and a half, one a week for a term, except in July and August. They also run outings for schools, companies, groups of friends and stag and hen parties, and hire boards and suits without a lesson. They also run the Biarritz Surf Lodge, on the rue Pierre de Chevigné, with private studios and apartments for 2 to 4 people and optional lessons; to stay at the surf camp with a course the minimum age is 14, and for accommodation alone, 18.

The lesson season runs from April to November; the school closes from December to March. There is no fixed timetable: lessons are scheduled according to the tide and the swell, and at the Côte des Basques the best waves usually arrive with the tide half rising.

Equipment, ages and safety

Equipment is included: boards of 5 to 9 feet depending on the level and a wetsuit suited to the season, which is rinsed and disinfected daily with an environmentally friendly product. Groups are eight pupils at most. To sign up you must be at least 5 years old, able to swim 25 metres, have no medical contraindication and hold civil liability insurance that covers surfing. The school has its own professional insurance. If the beaches are closed or the sea is dangerous, the lesson is cancelled and a credit is given for the amount paid, which can be used later or a refund requested.

Bookings, cancellation and languages

You book online on the website, with a 30% deposit and the rest before the first day; by phone you must pay everything in advance. You pay by card, cheque, holiday vouchers or in cash. Cancelling more than 30 days ahead recovers the deposit; less than 30 days loses it; with less than 24 hours, or if you do not show up, you pay everything, except for justified medical reasons. They answer on +33 6 85 72 79 82, also by WhatsApp, and on the landline +33 5 59 23 15 31. The website is in French, English and Spanish, although it does not indicate in which languages lessons are given.