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.

Brennan and Justin were absolutely the best! They were incredibly patient and knowledgeable about…read morethe area and the different trails. We will definitely be coming back soon because of their hospitality.

10/10 would do it again! such a great way to explore north county…read more Brax & Brennan made our experience super easy. Directions/instructions were crystal clear.

Highly recommend Del Mar Surf School. My 3 kids were all up and surfing with in 30 minutes!…read moreEverything is included board, wet suit...everything! Great instructor...made our trip to Del Mar a blast!

I highly recommend Jenny from Del Mar Surf School. She was an excellent instructor and took time…read moreto make sure everyone was attended to. Our kids had a blast and even though we went a little over on the time allotment, Jenny didn't mind and was very nice about it. The package comes with the surf board, wet suit, great instruction and she even takes photos for you!

WARNING!!!! Took My Money, Canceled the Trip, Zero Accountability!!…read more Booking with Fulcrum Surf has been one of the worst customer experiences I've ever had. I paid several thousand dollars up front for a Kelly Slater Wave Ranch trip -- something special I had planned more than a year in advance as a Christmas gift for my fiancé. After the initial deposit, my card was hit with additional charges I did not authorize or approve beforehand. I assumed it was part of the package and kept going because I trusted the company and believed the trip was secured. Then they went silent. For months. When they finally resurfaced -- over a year after taking and holding my money -- it was to tell me the trip wasn't happening. No apology, no explanation, no alternative solution, and certainly no urgency. The trip that I had paid for in full simply did not exist anymore. Instead of refunding me, they offered store credit, as if I should be excited to keep gambling with a company that couldn't deliver the trip they already took my money for. I declined and asked for a refund back to my original form of payment, which is standard for any legitimate business. Since then? Radio silence. No refund. No acknowledgment. No accountability. Just a company sitting on my money, hoping I'll get tired and go away. In my opinion, this behavior is deeply unprofessional and completely unacceptable. A company that can quickly charge your card but disappears the moment they owe you money tells me everything I need to know. If you're considering booking with them, here's my honest advice: don't. There are plenty of surf travel companies out there that understand customer service, deliver what they sell, and don't leave customers chasing their own money for months. After everything I've experienced, I would never book with Fulcrum Surf again and would strongly warn others to think twice before handing over a single dollar.

Justin and Ari from Fulcrum might just be the best coaches in all of SoCal (and I've had a few!)…read more In a short time, they helped elevate my skills to a whole new level, transitioning me from a Wavestorm, to a mid-length, and now to a performance shortboard. Both place a big emphasis on form, incorporating both land and water exercises to strengthen the key muscle groups essential for shortboarding. In the water, they keep attention to the smallest details which is helping to fine-tune my technique - and the video analysis has been a game changer for my progress. Fulcrum sincerely cares about my progress and surf journey and I can't thank them enough.

Jake took me surfing and really showed me the ropes! He's awesome :)…read more Thanks Jake! I came with my wetsuit and he provided me with a board, we talked on the beach first and then went out and I caught some waves. I loved it!

From the owner: Lifelong surfer based in San Diego Surf lesson, with…read moreprofessional instruction, board provided, wetsuit, sunscreen etc. provided - $150 per hour Surf lesson + photo's of your surfing- $175 per hour Or Rentals -$50 surfboard for the day -$75 paddle board rental 15+ years experience surfing around the world Surfed the North Shore of Oahu, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Indonesia, Maldives, Peru, Brazil, and Australia. Lifeguard/CPR certified 5+ years coaching/teaching Bachelors and Masters from the University of San Diego Excellent communication skills and knowledge of the water. Teaching private/group surf lessons in San Diego All ages welcome, ages 6+ What you will get: A hands on introduction to surfing with professional instruction- 5-10 minutes of warm up/land training with pop-ups 1 hour surf lesson with tips for technique and maneuvering/controlling the surfboard in the ocean All day surf guiding-$600- Pack up the boards in the car, and we'll go surf/explore wherever the waves are firing for 6 hours + in San Diego With Group Lessons, it will still be $150 per person, and the total price will depend on how many people are in the group. Can't wait to surf with ya'll, shoot me an email or text me at 510-409-8777 to get started! Cheers, Jake

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:)

Instructor was a great guy, very funny and helpful, He taught me and my cousin how to stand plus…read morethe fundamentals of surfing on our first lesson

My 10 year old son came home from day 1 of Leucadia Surf School and said he had the greatest day…read moreever and had so much fun surfing. This camp is all surfing and no fluff. Wonderful staff, positive environment and safe. You wanna learn? Leucadia Surf School provides more time in the water surfing and doesn't gouge on price. For that, I am grateful.

In early April 2026, we took a surf lesson with Steve and had SO much fun. He met us (ages 44, 44,…read moreand 15) at the top of the steps at Stonesteps Beach and helped us suit up in comfy wetsuits. We were all first-timers from a landlocked state. Steve's instructions out on the water were easy to follow and he helped steady the boards to ensure we all got up! The ocean temp was perfect for a 75 degree sunny day- we were super comfortable. The ocean floor is very flat with no rocks or seaweed. Honestly wouldn't change a darn thing, and huge shoutout to Steve who is very good at this! Would absolutely do this again.

Surfing has always been something that I was too afraid or intimidated to try. I've lived in SoCal…read moremy whole life and was kinda embarrassed that I never REALLY tried to surf. I decided to face my fears and sign up for a lesson. I'm so happy I did. I had an amazing private lesson with Steve who was very patient and encouraging. They provided the board and wetsuit so all I needed to do was show up. It was a perfect day and the waves weren't too scary. They picked a spot that wasn't crowded and we just kept trying to catch waves. Steve provided helpful tips each wave and I eventually was able to ride multiple waves which surprised me! I wasn't expecting to be able to be able to stay up on the board, but through minor adjustments from Steve I exceeded my expectations. Thank you Lynn for setting everything up and making it easy. Highly recommend!