Surf Club Maui — Attraction in Maui

My husband and I both had a really good experience with lessons but equipment rental could have been better. We took lessons with Eps and had a great time. We had both taken lessons before but wanted a refresher and to learn a little more. He went over board safety in the water and gave everyone great instruction and tips. I suggest trying to get the early time slot because it can get windier as it gets closer to afternoon.

When it came to renting a board it could have gone better. We were rented a board that was very different from what we did lessons on. We had been using an 11 ft. and were doing really well. But we were rented a 10ft that was much narrower and thinner than what we used just the day before. When we asked why this happened we were told they don't rent out 11 ft by one person and told they do just not when they're busy by another. We're very beginner surfers. We really trusted what the instructors recommended for our rental since they had seen/taught us to surf the day and two before this. So when they said we'd be fine with the 10 ft we thought we would. For as well as we did on the other boards during lessons you'd think we had never been on a board before. It was very difficult to just paddle while keeping balance let alone try to stand up. In response to our complaints about the board we rented the owner kept telling us we needed to take more lessons but just the day previously (my 2nd lesson with this group) our instructor said we were doing well and didn't need to pay for another day of lessons and we would be fine renting a board.

My husband and I rented one board at $35/2hours. After we lugged it to the beach, he tried, I tried, and then we lugged it back we were met with a very rude "if you had a problem you should have brought it back earlier." Keep in mind this is the same company where we already took multiple lessons, bought photos, and tipped well. And this was the main woman's (Suzie?) First response when I asked if we could have a refund. If this wasn't the same place we'd done lessons at I wouldn't have asked. But they knew our skill level and comfort and decided to rent us a board they had instead of one that fit us better that we may have had to wait a day or two to rent. So instead we kind of wasted a morning fighting with this board instead of doing something else.

All in all I was really taken aback by her response and attitude. We had a good experience with everyone else. Lessons were fun and worth it. Equipment rental maybe go elsewhere or ensure they have a board that will...

We LOVED our experience with Surf Club Maui! I would book with them again 100%. I signed up three of my older kids (ages between 9-13) who were taught by Brian and Fete for a private and semi-private lesson. They made sure the kids felt secure and interacted with them throughout the lesson. The kids all came away feeling confident and comfortable on a surf board. My daughter says they made her feel confident and taught her how to look for the right waves to ride and made her feel safe the whole time. The kids were all smiling and happy at the end of the lesson and asked to do more with Surf Club. If we were staying closer we would have booked another lesson 100%!

And a HUGE shoutout to Johnny, our photographer and his assistant(name..sorry I don't remember..). Suzie (the owner) and Johnny made it possible for my 3 year old to ride several waves with Johnny. He was supposed to just take him out for 1-2 waves, but my little guy ended up staying out longer on Johnny's board with the big kids while he photographed them! Johnny even got the little man to stand on the board for a picture! I felt completely comfortable to let my 3-yr old out on the wave with Johnny. You can hear Johnny and the assistant's interaction with my toddler in the videos and it is the sweetest. You could tell my toddler was having the time of his life. Now he begs to go on a surf board whenever he sees one. Johnny and his assistant did awesome capturing all the memorable moments and what was even more amazing was that they were IN the water with the kids to capture THE BEST in-action photos.

The photos are not edited and you get it right on the spot digitally. They could be considered pricy, but I thought they were definitely worth it. I got all the videos they recorded as well, which were so fun to watch and again so worth it.

They have a good spot for their lessons too and we got the best video of a sea turtle poking his head out of the water to say hi to my little guy while he was out surfing with Johnny.

You could tell all the guys knew what they were doing and they were good at it!

I cannot recommend them enough. We will definitely be returning to them next time we're in Maui for another lesson!

Thank you Surf Club Maui...

My teenage daughter and I had a great experience from start to finish. First, the proprietor - Suzie I think? - answered the phone promptly and professionally and was very customer service oriented, allowing us to request our instructor of choice. The back end process of signing waivers from my phone was made easy, and meet up instructions were straightforward (though it didn't prevent us from being late - sorry!). The cost of two hours of instruction was also very reasonable given how good the instruction proved to be and the remarkable setting.

Lucas Vieira was our wonderful instructor, and his wife Mariane was the critical on-land support, keeping careful track of our personal belongings and properly equipping us with rash guards and booties that properly fit. Lucas was very knowledgeable and helpful, successfully managing to teach five of us - two teenage boys and a pre-teen girl from another family in addition to me and my teenage daughter - how to surf with efficient and effective communication. We were all able to get up and ride waves relatively soon in the process, and we all had a ton of fun. Having tried a surf lesson many years ago unsuccessfully (despite being a very young and very fit athlete at the time), I can speak to the importance of an instructor's demeanor and the environment of learning he or she creates. My past instructor was very technical and filled my head with too many tips before even entering the ocean, and I was stressed out the entire time.

Lucas, in contrast, gave us a few important suggestions before we left, but waited until after he observed each of us individually before providing only the specific additional instruction that each of us needed, which of course was different for each of us. This helped me tremendously as someone who can get lost in my own head. More importantly, Lucas' energetic, positive, laid back demeanor created an environment free of limiting stress. He kept it simple and fun, and as a result we all had an amazing experience.

Thank you Lucas, Mariane, Suzie, and Surf Club Maui. It was a wonderful...