HOLA SURF MOROCCO — Hotel in caïdat d'Aourir

I discovered Hola Surf through ChatGpt, after comparing and conversing with three different surf camps that came recommended. After a flurry of friendly WhatsApp messages with Noureddine Fagou, who was enthusiastic, friendly, and responsive, I decided to go to Hola Surf. I wired payment in full and booked my flight. ||Unfortunately, from the moment I arrived Hola Surf didn’t match up with the photos or promises. The reality of Hola Surf vastly differed from the photo images shown online. The guesthouse was like a deceptive selfie which has been heavily filtered, glossed over, and embellished to look much better than the real-world version. The best word I can use to describe it is ramshackle, with mismatched interior decoration and furniture.||My room was in a shared apartment with a dark, uninspired sitting area— consisting of a sofa, small coffee table, a dim ceiling light that worked intermittently, and no windows. The shared bathroom that had no counter space (not even large enough to hold more than a toothbrush), no towel hooks, and a shower that flooded the entire bathroom floor. ||Still, I woke my first morning and decided to make the best of it. After all, I was here to surf. We drove 15-minute to the beach to an uninspired location bordered by a large dirt parking lot, a surf shack and café, and a porta-potty. We found our place on the beach and set up our beach umbrellas, donned our wetsuits, grabbed our boards. ||Sadly, the surf instructions were a disaster!||The first day, we were two surfers to one instructor. My surfer partner had never been on a board before, while I was hoping to rebuild confidence in the unbroken waves after a previous injury. I assumed that our instructor would be able to support both of our surfing goals. I was wrong. We stayed exclusively in the white water, with 90% of his attention focused on the beginner. Tomorrow will be better, I thought. ||Wrong again. Another complete beginner joined our group, along with an additional person to help the beginners in the whitewater (not sure if the extra person was an instructor, he worked at the inn.) I paddled out beyond the break with the surf instructor. He immediately began catching waves, and left me to figure it out on my own. Not once did he help me set up timing to catch a wave. My session was a bust. His explanation? The waves were breaking too fast. From my experience, that is what instructors are there to help with, building skills to navigate conditions. I chalked it up to possible language barriers. ||Wrong again. I’ve had six different surf instructors in the past—some were better than others, but all positive and encouraging. Not so with Hamza. His attitude was negative, no-can-do, and fear-inducing. His instruction was minimal, and often felt more like criticism than coaching.||On day three, Hamza went out with myself and another woman (not staying at the guesthouse). On a wipeout the board hit my rib cage hard and knocked the wind out of me. Hamza saw it happen. I paddled in to catch my breath and make sure it wasn’t a serious impact. He NEVER came to check on me. I mean never. Not on the beach. Not during lunch. Not later back at the guesthouse. When I brought it up with him, he replied that he had to stay with the other surfer. But he was responsible for two surfers, not one!! He should’ve paddled to shore with her to check on me, or asked her to stay out beyond the break while he paddled in to check on me, but to simply leave me unaccounted for, is negligent! ||In summation:|The guesthouse is a ramshackle. |The daily schedule consists of breakfast, then off to the beach for 6 hours, from 9AM to 3PM. You are provided two hours of instruction, and then are left to hang on the beach or surf on your own while the instructor watches from the sand.|They provide a towel, picnic lunch, and beach umbrellas for shade. ||This is in stark contrast to previous surf camps, where session times were based on the tides, and you’d typically have both a morning and afternoon/evening session with the instructor, and time in between to rest, shower, read, explore, or take part in other activities. ||I hesitated to write a negative review because aside from the surf instructor, many people at Hola Surf are warm, kind-hearted and friendly people—which matters, a lot. As they say, it’s the people who create a feeling of welcome. The people matter. Like many who have reviewed Hola Surf, if I were to review strictly upon the staff, I would give it 5 stars. ||I originally planned to stay 7 nights, but cut my trip down to 4 because of the afformentined. Before making this choice, I asked if I could be refunded for the unused nights. I was told this would not be a problem. I was told they had wired the money back to my bank account. Based on that assurance, I confirmed changes to my travel itinerary. Sadly, Hola Surf’s word can’t be trusted, they deceived me, they said they sent the refund—and to date, I never received it! Furthermore, they now say it was an exception to offer me a refund and it actually is not possible to do so. ||Yes, this is my personal experience—but aren’t all reviews? I write this not as a complaint, I do so in hopes that it might offer a clearer picture of what you might expect, if you choose Hola Surf. Based on other negative reviews I seen, I presume that they might refute mine, too. Regardless, this is my honest account. I share in the context of helping someone else make an informed decision. |Bottom line: If you go expecting what’s shown online, you’ll probably be disappointed. For me, Hola Surf fell far short—especially in instruction and honest...

I was there for surfing. The organization was fantastic – I didn’t have to worry about a thing. I was picked up from the airport and welcomed right away with tea and pastries. Everything related to surfing was fully taken care of – from the wetsuit to transportation, lunch on the beach, sun umbrella, towel, and coaching.

The food was traditional Moroccan and absolutely delicious. They were also very considerate of dietary restrictions, etc. The cook was the best in all of Morocco – every meal felt like a feast. On a previous trip to Morocco, I had a dish I didn’t like very much – but even that one won me over with her cooking skills.

Ahlam at the reception was incredibly warm right from the start. She always made sure I had everything I needed. She even accompanied me to the village and made sure I bought tahini at a local price. She also organized my transfer back to the airport in the middle of the night.

Reda, another staff member, joined us for surfing and made sure I caught every wave. Even during free surf time, he kept pushing me into waves to ensure I didn’t miss one. He also got up in the middle of the night to make sure I made it to my flight and to say goodbye.

The rest of the team was also incredibly kind and made everything feel like family. Yasin was a great surf instructor, and I managed to ride waves already on the first day.

I will miss everything there and will definitely be back! Thank you to the entire team – you are amazing! The vacation couldn’t have gone any better, and I can recommend it...

This camp was an extraordinary lucky find and a beautiful welcome to Morocco. The staff were friendly and accommodating. The food was to die for. Authentic Moroccan food made on site with love, and never-ending courses. Perfect for a group of five hungry surfers! The open rooftop terrace dining area means it's easy to meet other guests. ||For surf guiding, we'd also recommend asking for Hamza or Simoh. Hamza was ultra-flexible, catering to our requests as experienced surfers, and answering all our questions honestly. This was unlike several other camps we experienced that stuff you in with the beginners to simplify their day.||The staff also went out of their way to provide drivers whenever requested at minimal cost. However, we didn't feel the distance to the sea. We were able to finish our day with Hamza at 5pm, then walk to Devil's Rock 15 mins each way for another pre-dinner surf.||Thank you Hola Surf for such a great week. We hope to return soon!|From: Tom, Alex, Chris,...