Ever since I crossed surfing off my bucket list and found out that I am actually not that bad at it, I have searched to find the best beginner waves in Bali. This research is young, limited and not extensive, but I hope can help those aspiring surfers out there. Please pardon this newbie for not using real surfing terms.
Note: these places below were all visited and reviewed 3 days in a row during May 2014 around the 3-4pm timeframe (except for Serangan was 11am).
Double 6 Beach (Seminyak Beach etc) – this is the place where I learned to surf and would recommend it for first timers. The waves are not too strong (though it might look choppy) and they break very softly. So for a complete beginner, if you fall (and you will) then you will most likely have a soft water landing. The bottom is also sandy, so you don’t have to worry about corals too much. The other factor that make it easy is that you don’t have to paddle too much as the waves are near the shore and not too deep. Hence, you can push your boards, wait for a good wave then turn it around and jump on just before catching it (cheat code). The disadvantage though would be that the waves are quite choppy and frequent, be prepared to battle your way into finding some good waves. Just a brief note on the area, these waves are not specific to Double 6 but along the stretch of beaches from Kuta to Petitenget. Take your pick.
Padang-Padang, Uluwatu – I visited this beach because a friend of mine researched online and found out from some reviews that Padang-Padang beach caters to both expert and beginner surfers. My personal opinion is that this is not a beginner wave. The surfing area is quite far from the beach so you will need to paddle yourself there and I found the wave to be quite strong and sure enough one toppled me so bad that I am still marked with my first surfing wound from 3 weeks ago. In saying this though, I managed to get some good rides (and some painful ones), so if you are brave and want to speed up your learning curve, head here. Also don’t know if it was just luck factor, but I also got badly sting by a jellyfish a few times here. Oh, be aware to surf at higher tide as it has bottom coral topography.
Serangan Island – I visited this place based on a recommendation from an Italian surfer who have lived in Bali for over 3 years. He thinks Kuta/Seminyak beach is the easiest for beginner but recommended Serangan as another option when we pester him to come up with another location. Upon arriving, I can see how the waves structure is similar to Seminyak though it is located further in, higher and with coral bottom. I visited this place at around 11am so maybe the wind wasn’t too friendly, but had some decent rides. I will visit this place again in the future and make further note.
Batu Bolong, Canggu – based on my research, this would be my ultimate surfing beach for beginners in Bali, that the first time I was there, I crowned it my best surfing day ever (it was my 8th surfing day). The waves are quite far in the ocean so there will be lots of paddling, they come in slow series and a long upwelling. I managed to ride 9 out of the 10 waves I attempted on, and each time, they last over 5 seconds.
That would be my brief reviews on beginner surfing beaches in Bali. Like I mentioned, it’s young and limited so I hope to return to Bali and do more research. If you have other information, please let me know so I can put it in my list.
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