Surfing Waves

Hi everyone,

I am planning to go to Indo next august.

I am a improver beginner, have been surfing sri lanka for a month or so last year, specially point breaks (small ones..), but also occasionally some beach break.
Unfortunately, I dont get chance to surf regurarly, so i didnt make any progress since last summer. That's why i am in search of easy waves, not too powerful or technical, like max 3-5 ft, not too shallow and (possibly, of course!) not too crowded. Very hard ay??

I have never been to Indonesia.
People say that in august it's goin to be PACKED almost everywhere, but specially in Bali.
Since, i am not a fan of the big crowds, both inside and outside the water, i am trying to find out an alternative to bali and its crowd.

Surfing this forum i've read of two potential alternatives like Nusa Lembongan (small island near bali) and Batu Karas (Java).
Nusa Lembongan seems to have only one problem, the variety of the suitable spots. It has one suitable spot for beginners (Playgrounds) and other spots that are for intermediates/advanced (Shipwrecks, Lacerations..). Also, looking at the swells in the same period of the last two years, i found out that the size is often overhead. This means that, with this measure, beginners like me can only surf Playgrounds (which therefore will probably be crowded!).
Batu Karas seems to get less swell than the Bali area, which is ok for me. There are only couple of spot suitable for beginners, Batu Point and Batu Reef. Also, 1hr from Batu there are beachbreaks at Pangandaran, but seems to be nothing special.
In overall, Batu Karas seems to be a very good place for surfing mellow waves, but since it is not so famous as Bali, it is difficult to find first-hand reliable information, like experience of people who has recently been there.
I dont know how is the surf there (sell, wind, crowds..), if there are boards to rent, if the place is nice and stuff like that..

Now that i said everything I know..I have questions for you....

First of all, can you suggest any other good alternative to bali for a beginner/intermediate?
Also, do you have any info/tip about Nusa Lembongan and Batu Karas?

Thank u so much...may the swell always bless u

Hi,

1) August is prime surfing and swell month for Indo, so it will be busy and the waves are pretty consistent in size as well, so it's not ideal to go as a beginner.
2) Nusa Lembongan is a mad house at that time of the year - all tour boats stop there on the way to Sumbawa and further afield, so not only do you have the surfers in the island (plus locals) but the surfers on the boats as well and you are right, there are 3 waves (and 1 on the other side of the island) and Playgrounds gets superpacked. Not a good choice.
3) Batu Keras is a good solid option. The Bay faces east which means the southwest swells wrap around the bay and are much smaller than what you get in other spots, fun, mellow waves, rarely more then overhead (if that) and not so powerful. There are plenty of nice and basic hotel options and you can take surf lessons or just hire a board. As a beginner to intermediate you would be happy with the waves on offer.
4) Kuta Beach - Lombok and Ekas further east along the coast are also two more mellow options for the beginner/intermediate crowd with good infrastructure, slightly less crowds and playful waves that are not hard core. Board rental and surf schools also available.
Enjoy your trip.

The Lombok / Kuta Lombok Grupuk and inside Ekas are good options there is a short air trip to Lombok less crowded!.

Enjoy!

Hey!!
Thanks a lot guys..i'll keep you updated!!

Batu is great if you want to learn how to surf. Friendly locals and cheap accommodation just at the beach.I spent amazing 3 weeks there with support of friendly locals check out this guesthouse just at the beach.

Hey, i spent 3 weeks in bali last august and loved it! Recommmend avoiding kuta toally.. I sayed 2 weeks in the chillhouse in changuu amd they were brilliant. It is luxury so bit more pricey but 2 students per teacher, in spots, that are not crowded at all or unknown and amazing food and accommodation. Tempted to go back actually but thinking should go somewhere new! The last week o went to lembogan? Rally cute island but found playgrounds really busy and was preety big swell for near beginner like me? After wiping outnreally badly a few times, i had to content myself with SUP but it was a particularly big swell for lots of people (saw 5 broken boards in one session) so may have been just that week . Had relaxing week though and accommodation cheap and right on the beach...was a good end to the hol (no partying really on island if that is what you like though unless you drop in on some of the diving groups!

Were you in aruam ay around august by any chance? If so, any advice for solo female traveller, accommodation and size of waves ok for learning?
Thanks!

Southern mainland Sumatra is supposed to be less crowded if you're prepared to travel further a bit further, not sure if there are any suitable surf spots at that time of year tho. There are some pretty reasonably priced surf camps: http://www.paradisesurfcampsumatra.com/accomm/

(I've never been to Sumatra but have a fair bit of time researching it as I'm planning to go there in 7 months time)

Hi Henry,
Southern Sumatra doesn't really have beginner waves, especially not in August, as it is exposed to the South West swells that hammer the Indonesian coast line at that time of the year. I would not recommend any beginner going to Sumatra (especially since you haven't been there).
The area around KRUI attracts lots of intermediate surfers from Europe and some other nationalities. It's not as crowded as anywhere else but it is also a mission to get there. Really nice, long waves with some size to them. Worth going. Enjoy your trip.

I suggest you listen to Aqualife, Krui is your best bet during May to October and at that time of year, depending on your belief in your skills you will get some of the best waves in your surfing life so far.
You will also get some of the best hammerings in your surfing life so far too

One thing, when exactly are you planning to go?
7 months from May is December, wet time , tropical downpours , a lot less waves poor surf season and high malaria, dengue, typhus season. Hard traveling overland. A lot mof camps and surfing facillities are closed down for those very reasons
Danger warning for you

Sorry I was a bit vague there, I'm going to be going travelling for 3-4 months leaving in about 7 months so jan/feb time the plan was to start in Nz, then Australia, to Fiji, cook islands then Indonesia. So I would end up in Indo in April, which I think is the end of the wet season?

Although I'm now looking at a completely different alternative of travelling through central America, something like Guatemala, El Salvador, Costa Rica then Panama as I think it would work out cheaper.

They're the most eastern Islands in the Indonesian Archipelago could be fun don't know about cheaper, but a good trip none the less

I just want to thank aqualife for her brilliant advice..i have been to bali (bukit and medewi), lombok (kuta and grupunk) and batu karas.
Had best surf in batu karas and also in lombok!!
was able to get mellow easy waves even on bigger days..really happy with that.
totally agree with avoiding bali in august for beginners. if it gets big then it's hard to find a place where is okay to surf, and when u find it, it's generally overcrowded with many ppl and schools..
also, medewi is a very good and mellow point but i left it pretty soon as i didnt want to pay the bribe to local assholes. they come to sell you a tshirt from their "surfclub", pretending that they help local population. By the way the t-shirt costs 20 usd (wtf!) and if you politely refuse to buy they try to hassle you and threaten you inside and outside the water.
In this way they are just ruining the good vibes and discouraging people from going there.
batu karas is really good for surfing mellow waves, but probably the best time to go is march, as the winds are more favourable than in august.

Luney, if u go to arugam bay i suggest whyskey bay. It is near pottuvil.
There are two right points that work well and are really approachable for beginners.
There is a bar over there, it's called Sababa and is the best place i've been in lanka. just overlooking the points, has beds on the floor, good music, top food and nice staff.
Near that bar there are a few cabanas and i suggest you sleep there...amazing! far from crowd, close to the ocean, pretty affordable and..u wake up at the point and possibly you have roughly 1 hr of solo surfing, until people from arugam bay get the tuk tuk and come there
have fun

Hi,
I am so glad you had a good trip! Feedback is much appreciated too. I don't like Medewi for the reason you mentioned. The guys who hang out there are not very mellow in or out of the water at the best of times. Anyway. Great that our advice helped!

I've been to Medewi a few times, and whilst the guys there do indeed try and sell you their surfclub t-shirts, I didn't think they were overly aggressive in or out of the water (I didn't buy one). Whilst they do try to push them onto you, I just take that as the Indonesian way, rather than anything malicious. I also didn't have any problems in the water, other than with the general crowding (and the severe diarrhoea my friend and I got after surfing a few days there haha)

always good to get away from bali crowds. <edit> There are quite a few good options