The Mentawais for intermediates: ten days of coaching in surfing paradise
The Mentawais for intermediates: ten days of coaching in surfing paradise
The Mentawais are one of those surf destinations every surfer eventually wants to tick off. A scattering of remote, jungle-dense islands, home to some of the most perfect waves on the planet. They have a reputation for being a destination for expert surfers: powerful slabs, overhead barrels, shallow reef. But the archipelago can also be a phenomenal place to progress on playful waves, if you know where to go and when.
The Mentawais are one of those surf destinations every surfer eventually wants to tick off. A scattering of remote, jungle-dense islands, home to some of the most perfect waves on the planet. They have a reputation for being a destination for expert surfers: powerful slabs, overhead barrels, shallow reef. But the archipelago can also be a phenomenal place to progress on playful waves, if you know where to go and when.
Nyang-Nyang is a small island in the heart of the Playgrounds surf zone. No roads, no shops, no village to walk to. This is where Barefoot Surf Travel run their retreats, from a boutique beachfront resort with easy boat access to a cluster of world-class breaks. The October window is deliberate. Consistent, clean swell, more forgiving waves, and fewer crowds.
Barefoot has become a global reference for surf coaching. The format of their retreats has been refined over more than a decade: ten days, ten guests, four dedicated coaches, and a programme structured around becoming a better surfer.
Pick the right region, the right season, and the right coaching, and the Mentawais open up to surfers who assumed the destination was beyond them.
Nyang-Nyang is a small island in the heart of the Playgrounds surf zone. No roads, no shops, no village to walk to. This is where Barefoot Surf Travel run their retreats, from a boutique beachfront resort with easy boat access to a cluster of world-class breaks. The October window is deliberate. Consistent, clean swell, more forgiving waves, and fewer crowds.
Barefoot has become a global reference for surf coaching. The format of their retreats has been refined over more than a decade: ten days, ten guests, four dedicated coaches, and a programme structured around becoming a better surfer.
Pick the right region, the right season, and the right coaching, and the Mentawais open up to surfers who assumed the destination was beyond them.
Rooms
Guests stay at a boutique beachfront resort on the northwest tip of Nyang-Nyang Island. Two hectares bordered by jungle on one side and the Indian Ocean on the other. A wave breaks on the reef directly in front of the property. The infinity pool faces it.
The accommodations are timber bungalows built by local carpenters. Spacious, beachfront, configured for one to three guests. Each has air conditioning, hot showers, and direct beach access from the deck.
Three private bungalows can be upgraded for solo occupancy on a first-booked basis.
Guests stay at a boutique beachfront resort on the northwest tip of Nyang-Nyang Island. Two hectares bordered by jungle on one side and the Indian Ocean on the other. A wave breaks on the reef directly in front of the property. The infinity pool faces it.
The accommodations are timber bungalows built by local carpenters. Spacious, beachfront, configured for one to three guests. Each has air conditioning, hot showers, and direct beach access from the deck.
Three private bungalows can be upgraded for solo occupancy on a first-booked basis.
Food & Drinks
All meals are included across the ten days: breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. The kitchen cooks healthy and filling food, the kind built for people surfing twice a day. Dietary requirements are handled as standard. Non-alcoholic drinks run all day.
The resort’s restaurant is open-air, beachfront, directly facing the Indian Ocean and the sunset over the reef. There is no other restaurant to walk to. This kitchen is the only option, and it carries that responsibility exceptionally well.
All meals are included across the ten days: breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. The kitchen cooks healthy and filling food, the kind built for people surfing twice a day. Dietary requirements are handled as standard. Non-alcoholic drinks run all day.
The resort’s restaurant is open-air, beachfront, directly facing the Indian Ocean and the sunset over the reef. There is no other restaurant to walk to. This kitchen is the only option, and it carries that responsibility exceptionally well.
Surfing
This is exactly why you are here. And you are in very capable hands. Barefoot has built one of the most thorough coaching programmes in surf education. A structured curriculum, hundreds of video tutorials, and clear explanations of the skills and techniques.
Coaching is structured around progression. Before the trip, guests complete a profile outlining their experience and goals. Coaches build from there.
Expect two surf sessions each day, two to three hours in the water in the morning and another two to three in the afternoon. Four coaches for ten surfers. Each session is filmed. Personalised video analysis follows every evening back at the resort. By the end of the trip, each guest has a full personal video folder and 12 months of access to Barefoot Premium, the online coaching platform, with a custom progression plan.
Within twenty minutes of the resort by boat, there are more than fifteen named breaks. Beng Beng, Pitstops, Nipussi, 4 Bobs, A-Frames, Burgerworld. Right-handers, left-handers, reef passes, and exposed peaks that work on small swells. The variety is the point. Whatever the conditions, there is almost always somewhere working at the right size.
The programme is for intermediates: surfers who catch unbroken waves independently, angle take-offs both ways, and are comfortable in head-high surf. Boards are not included. Bring at least two, ideally three, including one with good paddle power and extra length. Longboards (9-foot and over) can be rented from the resort.
This is exactly why you are here. And you are in very capable hands. Barefoot has built one of the most thorough coaching programmes in surf education. A structured curriculum, hundreds of video tutorials, and clear explanations of the skills and techniques.
Coaching is structured around progression. Before the trip, guests complete a profile outlining their experience and goals. Coaches build from there.
Expect two surf sessions each day, two to three hours in the water in the morning and another two to three in the afternoon. Four coaches for ten surfers. Each session is filmed. Personalised video analysis follows every evening back at the resort. By the end of the trip, each guest has a full personal video folder and 12 months of access to Barefoot Premium, the online coaching platform, with a custom progression plan.
Within twenty minutes of the resort by boat, there are more than fifteen named breaks. Beng Beng, Pitstops, Nipussi, 4 Bobs, A-Frames, Burgerworld. Right-handers, left-handers, reef passes, and exposed peaks that work on small swells. The variety is the point. Whatever the conditions, there is almost always somewhere working at the right size.
The programme is for intermediates: surfers who catch unbroken waves independently, angle take-offs both ways, and are comfortable in head-high surf. Boards are not included. Bring at least two, ideally three, including one with good paddle power and extra length. Longboards (9-foot and over) can be rented from the resort.
Activities
Surfing is the organising principle of the ten days, and there is plenty of it. Between sessions: a stand-up paddleboard at sunset, fishing from a boat or the jetty, snorkels over the reef, or hike the rainforest trails running through the jungle.
The schedule is intensive, and guests often take an afternoon off to rest. There is no pressure to surf every session. The downtime is genuinely restful: an infinity pool, a beachfront to walk, and comfortable rooms to return to.
Surfing is the organising principle of the ten days, and there is plenty of it. Between sessions: a stand-up paddleboard at sunset, fishing from a boat or the jetty, snorkels over the reef, or hike the rainforest trails running through the jungle.
The schedule is intensive, and guests often take an afternoon off to rest. There is no pressure to surf every session. The downtime is genuinely restful: an infinity pool, a beachfront to walk, and comfortable rooms to return to.
The People Behind
Gab and Alex grew up 500 kilometres from the nearest ocean in inland Canada. They came to surfing without guidance: wrong boards, wrong spots, no useful feedback for years. In 2012, they built Barefoot Surf to provide what hadn't existed for them.
Barefoot now operates across three countries and seasons: Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and the Mentawai Islands. The operation has grown, but retreats stay intimate by design.
At each destination, Barefoot works with local surf coaches and operators rather than importing its own infrastructure. Local knowledge is an operational requirement, not a marketing detail. One per cent of every sale goes to ocean-protection nonprofits through the 1% for the Planet programme.
The observation that recurs most often is that guests wished they had come sooner.
Gab and Alex grew up 500 kilometres from the nearest ocean in inland Canada. They came to surfing without guidance: wrong boards, wrong spots, no useful feedback for years. In 2012, they built Barefoot Surf to provide what hadn't existed for them.
Barefoot now operates across three countries and seasons: Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and the Mentawai Islands. The operation has grown, but retreats stay intimate by design.
At each destination, Barefoot works with local surf coaches and operators rather than importing its own infrastructure. Local knowledge is an operational requirement, not a marketing detail. One per cent of every sale goes to ocean-protection nonprofits through the 1% for the Planet programme.
The observation that recurs most often is that guests wished they had come sooner.
Booking
FROM
$6,250
USD
per person
FROM
$6,250
USD
per person
What is included