Surfing Waves

Hi, I need advice on what board to buy my 16 year old son who wants to start surfing. (Will be his Christmas present.) He skimboards and wants to start surfing. We don't live at the beach so it will be as often as possible going to the Outer Banks, NC and sometimes Virginia Beach, VA a few weeks in summer and weekends in spring and summer. He is just under 6 ft. tall and weighs 225 lbs. He is somewhat athletic, and has the will to try anything! He doesn't want a long foam board, even though that seems best for a beginner surfer. He wants a smaller board and a harder board if posible, but these seem to be for experienced surfers. What type of board would be best? Thank you!

OHi and welcome, sadly I have to tell you there is a slight problem buy boards for totally beginners who want fashionable short boards to start out! He is young enough to make a go of that especially if he can skimboard into waves and surf , if he basically just thin water skims that is another thought altogether!
A solution would be to have some surf lessons before choosing any board, these will exposing him to paddling 90% of surfing! At ba school they may offershort boards to try so he can have an idea what to think about.
If you can go to surf shops and check out what is available.
BTW you have done the right thing asking here , without asking it all could have gone sideways!

90 percent of the physical part of surfing is paddling, so if your son is a swimmer then he may be good to go for a shorter board. There is a whole other aspect to surfing often ignored and that is learning about the ocean. How are the waves breaking? Where should I paddle out through the waves? How do I paddle out through the waves? Where should I lineup to catch a wave? But if your son is used to riding waves with a skimboard he may have some knowledge of waves and how to deal with them. But skimboarding is a good skill to have as good balance is required. The soft or hard board thing is about safety. Hard boards are more dangerous to the rider and to others in the ocean. Being familiar with the ocean is the most important aspect of learning to surf in my estimation. Surf lessons are good to help learn about the ocean as well as learning the skills and finding out what kind of board to use if the instructor will let you use shorter boards. It's much more difficult to catch waves on shorter boards initially. Longer boards paddle faster and are able to match the speed of the wave easier but with a shorter board you have to be more exactly in the right place to catch a wave and need to be more paddle fit.

Most likely he knows what he wants. He probably has his heart set on a particular brand and model. When I was growing up 70’s, I wanted a Mongoose BMX bike, had my parents got me a Huffy, I’d be appreciative but ultimately disappointed.
How about giving a gift card for the purchase of any surfboard he wants, up to say $600. That way he can get what HE wants.
Also, a lot of boards do not include fins/skews. So it will be up to him to go with the lower price FRP “plastic” fins or pay up for the more expensive types.