What to expect when you arrive at Freewave Surf Academy….Well, firstly you will need to make sure that you arrive at Widemouth Bach and NOT Blackrock Beach!! Widemouth Bay is made up of two beach carparks (Blackrock and Widemouth), we are located by the top of the steps to the beach located at Widemouth Beach Carpark (Post Code EX23 0AH). 

The carpark is made up of three areas:

The grassy field is on the left as your drive in and is the highest point of the carpark. It is a nice place to laze about by the car and has great views across the beach. This is near to the cafe but furthest from the stairway access to the beach.

The tarmac carpark is central to us, the cafe, the toilets and to the beach access. It is where you will  initially drive in. There are a few parking spaces that overlook the whole beach, however its the local early birds that usually get these spots!

On the right as you enter the carpark is the lower level carpark. It is a stoney/sandy carpark and has walk-on access straight on to the beach. This is usually a good place to find a space on a busy day.

During the 6 week Summer Holidays the farmer (across the road from the beach) opens up his field for camping and car parking. There is oodles of space here and its cheaper, however it is the furthest carpark from the beach.

You will need to arrive at the beach in good time to get yourself parked up and ready to arrive for your surfing lesson 5 minutes before your surfing session start time. You will need to a get a Pay and Display ticket from on of the many (sometimes broken) tickets machines. Alternatively there is a parking app called JustPark which will make it easier for your to pay and gives you the option to pay for your parking before you arrive (phone signal at the beach can also be intermittent and network dependent). Please be aware that the carpark can be extremely busy during hot sunny days in the summer holidays. Its a good idea to arrive much earlier than your  arranged session time to grab a coffee from the Widemouth Bay Beach Cafe and enjoy the beach.

Freewave Surf Academy Trailer

Once you have arrived please come on over and say ‘Hello’. There is usually someone at our beach trailer (see image below) which is located on the tarmac carpark at the top of the steps to the beach. This will be a good time to Check In, chat to the team and to see where you will be meeting your instructor.

When you arrive for your lesson you will need to Check In with the lead instructor by the van. If they are not taking you in the water then they will then introduce you to your allocated surfing instructor. Your instructor will then spend some time getting to know you and fit you with a suitably sized wetsuit and surfboard. You will be given an identity vest to go over the top of your wetsuit so that we know who you are with.

Then its down to the beach for a warm up, surf safety chat and to start your surfing session!

🙂