Courteous and great staff, amazing, smart instructors, fun and safe learning surf experience!read more

I was really disappointed with our experience at San Diego Surf School. My husband and I booked a…read morebeginner surf lesson because we had never surfed before and wanted to learn the fundamentals from a professional instructor. Unfortunately, that isn't what we received. Our instructor told us he was just visiting from out of town, and it felt like he wasn't prepared or invested in teaching. To start he was late, when he did show up we received very little instruction before going into the water and were never taught many of the basic skills that beginners should learn, including proper paddling technique, how to pop up on the board, or even how to safely fall off the board. As beginners, that was especially concerning because safety should be the top priority. Once we were in the water, we were practically left on our own. Instead of receiving coaching, corrections, or guidance throughout the lesson, we were left trying to figure everything out ourselves. We paid for a surf lesson, not just a board rental. After the lesson, I reached out to the owner to explain our experience. To their credit, they responded promptly and admitted that our lesson was not taught according to their beginner curriculum. They explained that beginner lessons are supposed to include ocean safety, surf etiquette, how to safely fall, paddling technique, popping up, and active coaching throughout the lesson, all of the things we expected but didn't receive. However, the resolution they offered was only 50% off another lesson. While I appreciate the acknowledgment that our lesson fell below their standards, I don't think it's reasonable to ask customers to pay again even at a discount to receive the instruction they already paid for the first time. They also mentioned that they couldn't offer a complimentary lesson because they wanted to ensure their instructors were fairly compensated. As a customer, I believe it's just as important that clients receive the quality of service they paid for. We chose this school because of its great reputation, which made this experience even more disappointing. Hopefully this was an isolated incident, but I think future beginners should know that our experience was far from the comprehensive lesson that was advertised.

I had an absolute BLAST during my surf lesson with Sea Side Ryde in Coronado. The instructor/surf…read moreschool owner is extremely knowledgeable in surfing and made me feel comfortable as a beginner in the water. I highly recommend booking your next surf lesson with Sea Side Ryde!

Was a great experience and a great beginner lesson. Highly recommend taking lessons with this…read morecompany.

Our hotel made a reservation for kayaks at Everyday California, but they leased it up, reserving…read moreone kayak for four of us. Josh, the manager, was understanding and gave us a bunch of options that worked with us and our plans for the day. He was patient, understanding, and more than accommodating. They turned what could have been a bad day into a great one. Thank you!

Rented a kayak without realizing our party had already booked them separately. My mistake--I…read morereached out within 8 hours to explain the duplicate booking and ask about a refund. Was told "no refunds, but you can use it as credit." Went in person to see what alternatives they had. They suggested using the credit toward a different activity, but only during their off-season in 3 months--and I'd still need to pay full price on top of the credit. In their busy season right now, the credit is essentially worthless. This feels intentional. They keep the money from the duplicate rental, trap the credit behind their busy season, and force me to either eat the loss or wait months for a partial remedy that still costs me. No acknowledgment of the inconvenience or willingness to work with a customer who caught their own mistake immediately and asked nicely. If you rent from them, expect inflexible refund policies and credit terms designed to benefit them, not you. I won't be going back.

Fantastic and amazing…read more Focused on education and safety. I wish I could give it more than 5 stars.

Wife and I went for private 90 minute lessons with Chris and Wednesday it was Awesome!! Those two…read morerock (there is a grumpy older guy instructor who was rude when we first showed up DONT GET HIM). So the. We went on with our lesson and it was fabulous those two and photographer were amazing. Five plus stars for them but this is for the owner of the company first impressions are what counts that other guy my wife said "did you already pay? I don't want him" that is saying something and in the word of business and now social media you don't want that type of exposer. So either talk to Bill or whoever his name is and ensure he doesn't interact with customers.

I booked this for my kiddos for two of their birthday experiences when visiting from AZ. We had a…read moresmall issue with booking what were able to get it all figured out. Carlos was awesome with my 3 kids! He gave them great cues and was super patient and supportive. My kids had an absolute blast and just "going to the beach" will probably never cut it again!

I had a lesson with Alex, and he was really great with the stage I was at. I need some help with…read morewave selection, reading, timing, etc., and a lot of instructors just revert to working on the first-time beginner stuff. Alex helped me with what I was trying to work on and let me keep some stuff in his car, because I was traveling without one for part of my trip, which I really appreciated!

Jake is a great coach! He helps with ocean knowledge, wave reading as well as technique…read more I felt like I was at a plateau forever, and within a few coaching sessions, Jake has helped me progress with better bottom turns, connecting maneuvers, and bogging less rail haha. He breaks things down in a way that is simple to implement, without feeling overwhelming. He also coaches in an encouraging way that keeps you motivated! Which is great for us self critical folks. I'm excited to keep working with him and improving!

Really not a great experience trying to work with Jake Halstead and his Beyond Surf company. I…read morebought a pack of lessons last year and haven't been able to get through them because of the number of cancellations from his side, almost all the morning of--when we're supposed to be meeting up around 6 or 7am. Many of the excuses don't feel real, especially because most sicknesses or hospital visits would be known the night before. I feel bad about writing a negative review on here, but it looks like he recently took down his own Google business page, and I don't want other people getting into the same mistakes. Photos listed are from texts back and forth. Morning of cancellations: August 4th - kid in urgent care - told morning of August 20th - kid kept him up all night - told morning of December 1st - slept poorly - told morning of March 3 - kid kept him up all night - told morning of May 17 - told that the coach was looking for me, then told that the coach was actually not looking for me and was away at the hospital Swell based cancellations: July 25th - canceled for no swell - happens August 16th - canceled for no swell - happens August 18th - canceled for no swell - happens Sept 21 - cancelled for no swell - happens Sept 23 - cancelled for no swell - happens October 30th - cancelled for no swell - happens December 19 - cancelled for fog - happens May 16th - asked to move to the 17th for better swell - happens Jake has told me that they do not offer refunds. So given that policy, I'm hoping to help other people see that it could be tough to get the lessons you paid for.

Had an amazing time in my surfing lesson. Keaton gave me great tips and by end I was able to catch…read moresome good rides.

We stopped in here a couple of times. Each time was a wonderful experience. Cool and friendly staff…read moreand decent pricing. What more can you ask for? I even snuck back in and grabbed a couple of souvenirs to bring home:)

My three kids had a great time at surf lessons today with Russell!! They each got waves upright on…read morethe board multiple times! Ages 21, 21, and 14. Everything went so smooth and could not have went better!

Awesome surf school! Took a group lesson for our whole family - we "old" parents and our 13 and 15…read moreyear old kids. Our daughter got up on the board and rode to shore on her first go! The rest of us soon followed. Friendly, positive instruction from our instructor Sunny and just a good time overall. Highly recommended.