Beginner surf breaks South Sumatra
If your surf instructor is pushing you into waves, you don't know the rules of the lineup, you ditch your board all the time, you're not a beginner, you're a learner. If you're just a learner our advice is you're not ready for a surf trip to Sumatra. You'll be putting other surfers safety at risk and not welcome in an already crowded lineup. If you don't listen to this advice don't complain about the abuse you'll receive in the lineup nor expect anyone to put themselves at risk to save your ass.
Best place for a beginner to stay
You'll save yourself a lot of running around if you assess your skill level and then base yourself in the most appropriate location. The distance between Tanjung Setia and Krui town is 35km taking about 30 minutes on a scooter at a speed not putting your life at risk. You really don't want to be running up and down the coast and missing the optimum time to hit the surf.
As a beginner base yourself near the surf breaks around Krui town which will also give you easy access to Krui Left, Lintik and Mandiri Beach. When conditions get flat around Krui Town you can head to Ujung Bocur checking out Lintik and Mandiri Beach on the way.
Beginner goto waves
Our selection of beginner waves in the Krui and Tanjung Setia area.
Krui Left
Krui left is a classic Indonesian reef break. It's the perfect place to develop your skills.
The paddle out is easy and there are no dangerous rips. You can sit out on the shoulder and wide clean-up sets are uncommon. On a high tide there's lots of water over the reef, the take off is managable followed by a long wall to practice turns. As the tide drops out it gets hollower and faster so you can stay out until the conditions get too challenging.
Read more about Krui Left surf break.
Lintik
A left hand reef break at the north end of Mandiri Beach the waves here are usually pretty easy going.
When Krui town waves are flat and the wind is wrong at Mandiri Beach there can be fun little empty waves at Lintik.
10 minutes south of Krui Left you can check it out on the way to Mandiri Beach.
Read more about Lintik surf break.
Mandiri Beach
With it's sand bottom and large selection of left and right peaks on a small day Mandiri Beach is a great place to practice your take offs.
When the swells not getting into the breaks around Krui town or the tide too low Mandiri Beach is a quick 15 minute scooter ride away.
Get an early morning surf in at Mandiri then hit Krui Left when the tide best suits your skill level
Read more about Mandiri Beach surf break.
Volcano's Left
On a HUGE swell (Ujung Bocur is totally MAXED OUT) this long left hand reef break can have fun waves.
A great spot to learn how to put yourself in the right position and dig in with those final powerful paddles strokes before the take-off.
You'll need to go deeper to get onto this wave, while being aware of incoming wider sets. Has a nice backdoor tube at the end when it's really cooking.
Read more about Volcano's Left surf break.
Ujung Bocur / Karang Nyimbur
A wave suitable for beginners when the surfable wave face is 1.5 mtrs or less and tide above .6 mtrs and rising.
Don't paddle out on a bigger day. You'll not be welcome and be putting others safety at risk.
Watch for 20 minutes to ensure no double overhead waves are coming through.
Can be a discouraging spot for beginners, sitting on the shoulder waiting forever to get left over scraps.
Read more about Ujung Bocur surf break.
Ngambur Beach
A beach break with some sections of reef so the quality is dependant on the sand build up. This spot is a long drive when Mandiri Beach has better waves. Honestly this spot is hardly worth the drive, something to do if you're bored and want to go explore the area.
Wind is usually onshore by 10am. Before you head out carefully check the beach for crocodiles (not joking).
Read more about Ngambur Beach surf break.