First surf lesson in Siargao: what to expect

A first surf lesson with us in Siargao lasts two hours. You spend a few minutes on the sand, then head into small waves with a coach who stays next to you the whole time and pushes your board into the wave at the right moment. With us, the first stand-up usually happens in that very first lesson, but it isn’t guaranteed for anyone.

As for whether you need to swim: we found no surfing or lifesaving body that sets one universal rule. What we ask is that you feel comfortable in deep water, and that you tell your coach in advance if you have any worries.

What happens in your first surf lesson, step by step

The order is always the same, and the details change with that morning’s sea.

1. You send Michael a WhatsApp with the day, time and your level. On the morning of the lesson your coach picks a spot based on your level, the tide and the wind, and tells you where to meet. There is no fixed meeting point.
2. A few minutes on the sand: how to lie on the board, how to paddle, how to stand up.
3. You walk into the water together, into small waves. Your coach stays next to you until the end of the lesson.
4. He pushes your board into the wave at the right moment. From there, standing up is up to you.
5. After each wave you come back to your coach, get a short correction and try again.
6. You pay at the end of the lesson.

Our two-hour lesson costs ₱1,200, board included. On good-wave days, when we take a boat to a spot offshore, there is an extra ₱300. The rest of the details are on the prices page, and you can see how lessons work for kids and adults on the surf lessons page.

About that first stand-up: this is what we see in the water. We found no study or professional body that publishes a figure for the time to a first stand-up. Even if you don’t stand up the first time, the lesson isn’t wasted. You paddle, fall, come back and go again, and in two hours at sea there are plenty of rounds like that.

Do you need to swim, and how fit do you need to be?

We looked through surfing and lifesaving organisations for an official swimming requirement before a lesson, or a minimum swim distance, and found none.

For us, it’s enough to feel comfortable in deep water, to float and to get back to the surface after a fall. The board floats and is tied to your ankle with a leash, and your coach is next to you. If deep water worries you, say so in your WhatsApp message, because the coach picks the spot in the morning according to your level.

Fitness: according to a 2024 systematic review in the journal Sensors, surfing is mostly paddling and waiting, with short, intense efforts on the wave. The review looked at surfers in competition and training, not beginners. In a first lesson, from what we see in the water, most of the effort goes into paddling, in the shoulders and arms. You don’t need an athlete’s fitness, because you rest on the board between waves. Surfing England, England’s national surfing body, recommends a gentle warm-up before you get in. Tell your coach beforehand about any shoulder or back pain.

The pop-up, and which board suits beginners

The pop-up is the move from lying down to standing. In general terms: you lie on your belly and paddle, and when the wave catches you, you put your palms next to your chest, push up, bring your feet onto the board in one motion and look ahead. The mistake we correct most is looking down: if you look at your feet, you fall.

According to Surfing England’s guide, you practise the sequence on the sand and only go into the water once it flows. At this stage you train in the whitewater of a wave that has already broken, with no need for big waves or water deeper than waist height. With us, the practice on the sand is those same few minutes at the start of the lesson.

The same body recommends a large, stable board for beginners, ideally a soft top, meaning a board with a foam surface. On a separate page it says a longboard of nine feet or longer suits beginners, and a mid-length board of seven to eight feet is also good for newer surfers. The more volume a board has, the easier it is to paddle and catch waves. The extra reasoning is ours: according to the studies in the next section, a surfer’s own board is the most common cause of injury, and a foam surface absorbs part of the blow.

Reef, cuts and sea urchins: how people really get hurt

In an online survey of surfers published in 2002 (Nathanson et al., 1,348 respondents and 1,237 acute injuries), lacerations made up 42% of acute injuries, contusions 13%, sprains and strains 12% and fractures 8%. And what caused them? The surfer’s own board in 55% of cases, another surfer’s board in 12% and the sea floor in 17%. Respondents self-selected, and this is not a sample of beginners.

A 2020 systematic review (McArthur et al., 19 studies) pointed the same way. Skin injuries were 46.0% of injuries, and the most common mechanism was a blow from the surfer’s own board: 38.6% overall and 73.4% in data from medical facilities alone. The review covers different populations, from contest surfers to everyday surfers, so you can’t read beginner percentages from it.

The sea floor matters. In a study of surfers at 32 contests (Nathanson et al., 2007), the risk of injury was 2.6 times higher over reef or rock than over sand, and 2.4 times higher in head-high or bigger waves than in smaller ones. These are contest surfers, so we only take the general trend from this study. Every wave around General Luna breaks over reef, even the ones that feel like a sandy beach. That’s why we pick a spot each morning, and you can read how it’s done in the guide to beginner surf spots. Beginner lessons have been banned at Cloud 9 since July 2025. We couldn’t verify who made the rule.

A cut from the reef

We have no official medical source for the order of steps for a reef cut, so here is only the general principle: stop the bleeding, rinse with clean water and check that no pieces of coral are left in the wound. Leave the rest to a doctor. According to the CDC, some people get sick with a Vibrio infection after an open wound is exposed to coastal water. The signs are fever, redness, pain, swelling, warmth, discolouration and discharge from the wound. The CDC says that when signs like these appear you should see a doctor or go to the emergency room immediately, without waiting, and notes that with V. vulnificus infection about one in five people dies. Our addition: tell the doctor the wound was exposed to seawater.

Sea urchin

According to the MSD Manual (updated January 2025), sea urchin spines should be removed immediately. Vinegar dissolves most of them, and several vinegar soaks or compresses may be all that is needed. Soaking in hot water often eases the pain. Spines stuck deep may need surgical removal. A 2019 review in the Journal of Dermatological Treatment adds that retained spines can cause a granuloma, and near deep structures can also cause arthritis and tenosynovitis, so it recommends that a doctor remove all of them.

What to bring to a surf lesson, and how to protect yourself from the sun

According to the Skin Cancer Foundation, sunscreen should be broad spectrum with SPF 30 or higher, and for long outdoor activity the foundation recommends a water-resistant SPF 50 or higher. You apply about one ounce, roughly a full shot glass, to the whole body, and reapply every two hours and right after swimming. Water resistant means effective for up to 40 minutes in the water, and the Skin Cancer Foundation stresses that no sunscreen is fully waterproof. In a two-hour lesson most of the time is spent in the water, so sunscreen alone won’t last to the end. Beyond sunscreen: shade, clothing, a hat and sunglasses.

According to the World Health Organization, at a UV index of 8 or higher it’s best to avoid being outside during midday hours, and a shirt, sunscreen and a hat are a must. The daily UV index reflects the peak level in the four hours around solar noon. We found no official UV value for Siargao, so it’s best to assume the sun is strong during those hours. A rash guard covers your shoulders and back, and you don’t need to reapply it every two hours.

We found no single official definition of “reef-safe”. According to NPR, Palau passed a law in 2018 banning sunscreens that contain any one of ten chemicals, including oxybenzone and octinoxate, taking effect in 2020. Read the ingredient list, and don’t assume a label on the packaging promises anything.

What to send when you book, and the words you’ll hear in the water

Lessons run in simple English. The button on our site opens WhatsApp to Michael with a ready-made message:

Hi Michael, I’d like to book a surf lesson with you.

After he replies, add the day, the time and your level. A full example: Tomorrow morning, we are two, we’ve never surfed before. Here are some useful phrasings:

In the water you’ll hear the same few words again and again:

And if something isn’t clear, you can always ask: Can you explain again? You can get to know the coaches themselves on the coaches page.

What to ask any school before you book

Our opinion: choose a school by the number of students per coach and how much time you actually spend in the water, and ignore the price or the lesson length in the ad. In a big group with a long walk to the beach, you pay for waiting. If a school won’t tell you how many students share one coach, don’t book with it.

And the opinion that costs us money: two hours is enough for a first lesson, and you don’t need a full half day when you’re starting out. On request we offer two lessons in one day, morning and afternoon, but on your first day we wouldn’t book both unless you really want to. After two hours of paddling, most beginners are tired.

Before booking you can take a look at the learn to surf page and check the FAQ to see whether your question is already answered.

About the authors

Francis, Michael and Glenn, the local surf coaches of Surfing Sirago in General Luna. Michael (26) was born and raised in Siargao and is a certified instructor with the Siargao Island Surfers Association (SISA). Glenn (38) has surfed since he was 17 and holds a SISA level 2 licence. For questions and bookings: WhatsApp Michael, +63 950 304 3184.

Frequently asked questions