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Paddle Board Lessons

There is a critical difference between stand up paddle boarding and stand up paddle surfing. Pretty much anyone that can swim and walk without assistance is probably (regardless of age, regardless of physical ability or athleticism) capable of stand up paddle boarding on flat water. Venturing out into the surf is more of an exhilarating experience, especially for a beginner. And the danger involved and thus skill required increases with the size of the waves and current conditions. Don’t let this scare you away from stand up paddle surfing, as it’s a LOT easier than surfing (if you’ve ever tried that) and more importantly it’s an absolute blast! That being said, taking a lesson if you’re planning on going out sup surfing is highly recommended. I did the first time I went out (which was also the first time I was on a SUP), and I caught half a dozen pretty good size waves. I also fell off the board about 20 times before getting the balance. Then I got stung by a stingray. Nonetheless, I was hooked. You will be too!

Paddle Board Lessons

A novice at stand up paddle boarding may fall off the board a few times the first outing (it’s easy to get back up), but they can do flat water paddling and not be in any real danger so long as they pay attention to the wind and any currents and don’t get into a situation where either of those will take them somewhere they can’t get back from. My 6 year old son goes out stand up paddle boarding on his own while I watch from the shore. He has, on occasion, drifted across a section of the bay in a slight wind and I had to run around to get him (NOTE: best to play around in an onshore wind so you get blown back to shore instead of the opposite, especially when you’re not a strong paddler yet). The take away is just be smart about it and it’s safe, and there is really little reason to take a lesson. Better to take a stand up paddle boarding tour, which is usually a combination of a lesson followed by a tour to some cool new place you’ve never been.

If you plan on stand up paddle surfing, we recommend taking a lesson. To facilitate that end, we’ve created a directory of some companies offering stand up paddle surfing lessons below.


 

Get your SUP surfing company listed!

If you operate a company offering stand up paddle surfing lessons and would like to get added to our business referral list, it's a two step process:

  1. Add a link to our site from yours
  2. Email us a brief on your company and let us know the page where you linked to us and we’ll gladly add your company to our list.

You can link to us however you like, of course, but if you need some info on our company here it is:

Tower Stand Up Paddle Surfing – Find SUP paddles, paddleboard accessories, and the best SUP boards for stand up paddle surfing and flatwater standup paddle boarding at Tower SUP.

Email us at: info@towerpaddleboards.com

Paddle Boarding Lessons

Stand up paddle surfing lessons in San Diego, California

Mitch’s Surf Shop (Highly recommended – Mitch, the owner will give you the lesson)

Two Stand Up Guys (Carlsbad, CA)

SUP Coronado (Coronado, CA)

Surf Diva (La Jolla, CA)

San Diego Surfing School (San Diego, CA)

Surfer Girls (San Diego, CA)

Surfari Surf (San Diego, CA)

Paddle Board Bliss (San Diego, CA)

Falcum Sports (Del Mar, CA)

Paddle In To Fitness (Mission Bay, CA)

Muai Surf Academy (Encinitas, CA)

Pacific Surf (San Diego, CA)

Stand Up Paddleboarding Lessons in other parts of California

Santa Barbara Adventure Company (Santa Barbara, CA)

Board Sports School (Alameda, CA)

Malibu Longboards (Malibu, CA)

Malibu Paddle Surf (Santa Monica, CA)

Go Surf LA (Santa Monica, CA)

Poseidon (Venice, CA)

Learn To Surf LA (Venice, CA)

Mc Kinnon (Huntington Beach, CA)

Taho Adventure Company (Tahoe Vista, CA)

La Vida Laguna (Laguna Beach, CA)

Danger Women (Huntington Beach, CA)

New Port Surf School (Corona Del Mar, CA)

Adrift Tahoe (Kings Beach, CA)

Sup Sesh (Manhattan Beach, CA)

Paddle Boarding in Hawaii

Hawaii SUP Lessons Companies in Hawaii

Rainbow Adventures SUP Lessons (North Shore Oahu, HI)

Hawaiian Style Surf (Kula, Maui, HI)

Muai Surfer Girls (Puunene, HI)

Outrageous Surf (Maui, HI)

HST (Kahului, HI)

Balmoral (Haleiwa, HI)

Kona Boys (Kealakekua, HI)

Wind Ward Water Sports (Kailua, HI)

Samui Paddle Board (Kohala Coast, HI)

Faith Surf School (Oahu, HI)

Surf N Sea (Haleiwa, HI)

Maui Surf Clinics (Lahaina, HI)

Blue Soul Maui (Maui, HI)

TY Gurney Surf School (Oahu, HI)

Kanaha Kai Muai (Kahului, Maui, HI)

Maui Beach Boys (Maui, HI)

Adventure Maui (Kula, HI)

Pro Surf School (Waikiki, HI)

Goofy Foot (Lahaina, HI)

Hawaii Surf Guru (Honolulu, HI)

Stand Up Paddle Boarding Lessons in North Carolina

Hot Wax Surf (Emerald Isle, NC)

Odysea Surf (Carolina Beach, NC)

Outer Banks Surf School (Outer Banks, NC)

Oceanisle Surf Academy (Kill Devil Hills, NC)

Corolla Surf Shop (Corolla, NC)

Duck Village Outfitters (Duck Rd, Duck, NC)

Kitty Hawk Water Sports (Nags Head, NC)

Kitty Hawk Kayaks (Kitty Hawk, NC)

Stand Up Paddle Boarding Lessons in South Carolina

Charleston SUP Safari (Folly Beach, SC)

Sol Surfers (Mt. Pleasant, SC)





Paddle Boarding Lessons

Stand Up Paddle Boarding Lessons in Florida

Calema (Orlando, FL)

Surf Guy (Ft. Lauderdale, FL)

Sobe Surf (Miami, FL)

Ron Jon Surf School (Cocoa Beach, FL)

Florida Paddle Board Lessons (Pompano Beach, FL)

Urban Kai (Tampa Bay, FL)

Lazy Dog (Key West, FL)

Stand Up Paddle Boarding Lessons in New York

Main Beach (Wainscott, NY)

Long Island SUP (East Islip, NY)

Sunset Surf Shack (Montauk, NY)

Board Surf Shop (Rockaway Beach, NY)

Hudson Valley Sup (Hudson Valley, NY)

Stand Up Paddle Boarding Lessons in Virginia

Ocean Rentals Ltd (Virginia Beach, VA)

Tula Sports (Virginia Beach, VA)

Stand up paddle surfing & flatwater SUP lessons in other areas of the Country

White Cap SUP (Augusta, GA)

Potomac Paddle Sports (Rockville, MD)

Nantucket Island Surf School (Nantucket, MA)

Seaspray Kayaking (Freeport, ME)

Harbor Outfitters (Sea Isle City, NJ)

North West Outdoor Center-Seattle (Seattle, WA)

North By Northwest Surf Co (Port Angeles, WA)

Arizona Paddle Board Rentals (Greater Phoenix, AZ)

Paddle Surf Champlain (Burlington, VT)

Stormboarding (Burlington, VT)

Paddle Surf RI (Misquamicut, RI)

Inflatable Paddle Board by Tower

Stand Up Paddle Boarding Lessons in Canada

Paddle Surf (Vancouver, BC, Canada)

Deep Cove Canoe & Kayak (North Vancouver, BC, Canada)

Rocky Point Kayes (Port Moody, BC, Canada)

Sealegs Kayaking Adventures (Ladysmith, BC, Canada)

Stand Up Paddle Boarding Lessons in Australia

Torquay Surfing Academy (Victoria, Australia)

Surf Clinics (Coolangatta, QLD, Australia)

Academy Of Surfing (Bondi Beach, NSW, Australia)

Surfing Services (Currumbin, QLD, Australia)

Broulee Surf School (East Coast, NSW, Australia)

SUP Lessons in the Caribbean Islands

Swell Surf Camp (Cabarete, Dominican Republic)

SUP Lessons in the UK

SUP Gower (Wales, UK)

The Kite Surf Centre (East Sussex, UK)

Croyde-Surf-Hire (North Devon, UK)

Custom Paddle Board

SUP Lessons in Mexico

Puerto Vallarta Tours (Puerto Vallarta, Mexico)

Extreme Control (Quintana Roo, Mexico)

SUP Lessons in Indonesia

Rip Curl School Of Surf (Bali, Indonesia)

SUP Lessons in Thailand

Samui Paddle Board (Koh Samui, Thailand)

SUP Lessons in Spain

Hot Stick Tarifa (Tarifa, Spain)

Dragon Kite School (Tarifa, Cadiz, Spain)

Surf Camp Spain (Costa De La Luz, Spain)

SUP Lessons in South Africa

Jamin Adventures (Plettenberg Bay, SA)

Surf Store Africa (Cape Town, SA)

Stand Up Paddle Boarding Lessons in Argentina

Zeds Surf Travel (Barbados, Argentina)