Learn to Surf at Ala Moana, Filmed From the Board
A ninety-minute surf lesson that stays clear of Waikiki. Michael McChrystal teaches at Ala Moana Beach Park, on the stated grounds that the Waikiki lineup is too crowded for a beginner to catch much, and a GoPro rides on the nose of the board so the session comes back to you as video.
Michael McChrystal teaches this lesson himself, under the name The Surfing Sensei. He meets students at Ala Moana Beach Park, on the stretch of sand nearest the volleyball courts and Kewalo Basin.
The beach is the whole pitch. The listing describes the spot as a local break away from the Waikiki crowds, and says the goal is to have students catch as many waves as possible in the time available.
Sessions run every day at 7:00, 9:00, 11:00, and 1:00.
Boards, rash guards, reef shoes, and the GoPro cameras all come with the booking.
The operator's own reservation page calls the lesson semi-private and caps a session at five people, while the listing description puts the format at two students. Both numbers come from the same business, so plan around the larger one.
Confirmation is instant, and booking closes twenty-four hours before the start time.
Surf Lesson Without the Crowds Including GoPRO VideosNinety minutes at Ala Moana Beach Park in Honolulu, semi-private, with boards, rash guards, reef shoes and GoPro footage included.www.viator.comWhy This Lesson Skips Waikiki
Ala Moana Beach Park is a city park on the water, west along the shore from Waikiki. The meeting spot is the end of it nearest Kewalo Basin, by the volleyball courts.
The operator gives the same reason on its own site that the listing gives: Waikiki is busy, and it prefers to teach where a beginner can get waves. Everything else about the lesson follows from that choice of beach.
The session starts on the sand. The listing says the beach part covers the basics of surfing, how a wave works, and surfing etiquette, and that the water part is spent catching as many waves as the time allows.
The Camera Rides on the Board
The GoPro comes with the lesson at no extra charge. The listing says videos and pictures are included, and the camera sits on the nose of the board facing back at the rider, which is why the operator's own photos share one angle: board in the foreground, rider above it, wave behind.
Editing happens after the session. The clips arrive by email, so there is nothing to download at the beach and nothing to carry into the water.
Who the Water Suits
The listing requires that you be able to swim, and rates the session at a moderate level of physical fitness. It also advises against the lesson for travelers with spinal injuries, for pregnant travelers, and for anyone with poor cardiovascular health.
The age bands on this booking form run from ten to sixty, with nothing above sixty. The operator's own reservation page opens at age seven, so the two channels do not line up, and the form you fill in here is the one that decides.
Before You Book
Cancelling at least twenty-four hours ahead returns the full amount. Inside twenty-four hours, nothing comes back. The listing also marks this as a trip the operator may call off for bad weather.
A few practical things:
- Four start times a day, at 7:00, 9:00, 11:00, and 1:00
- Ninety minutes on this booking, which the operator's own site puts at ninety minutes to two hours
- The lesson meets at the beach, and there is no hotel pickup on this booking
- Instruction is offered in English and Japanese
The seven o'clock session puts you in the water early and back on the sand by half past eight.
Most of the day on Oahu is still ahead of you by then, and the video turns up in your inbox later to show how it went.