Girl in the Curl surf shop — Local services in Dana Point

Mary, the owner of this business, is actually a 'Karen'. She informs me that her website mandates that I remain "at a distance" and "out of sight" of the children. She kept asking me "Didn't you see it on my website??!" "Did you not read my website?!!?" "It's on my website!"

No, lady, I did not see it on your website. If it's a mandate , then put up a large sign by your truck, near your pink canopy, BLAST it all over your website -- make it clear in writing that you don't want parents or spectators.

I asked her and her worker Todd (pseudo PR guy), what does "at a distance" mean and they say "not be seen". Karen had the nerve to tell me "You're being unfair to your kids." She manipulated the situation and tried to make me feel guilty. I guarantee you 100% I was never in their way and kept a respectable distance or was not present at all like I have been at all their extracurricular and sports camps without issue.

Karen, why not promote inclusivity and allow me to observe my children's first surfing experience? You do not own Doheny. This is a public beach, and I can freely sit at Doho Cafe , sip my coffee like any other patron , enjoy the ocean view, and watch my kids surf as I wish.

I was there with a Caucasian man, who enrolled his granddaughter in the program and guarantee you he was not accosted. It's interesting that she targeted us and we happen to be the only non-White ppl there.

My take is that Karen is manipulative, bizarre, phony, hot-headed. She is beyond fortunate to have Todd as her "PR" guy . He was witness to the entire exchange and didn't seem surprised one bit by Karen's aggressive confrontation towards me. I sincerely wonder if I had blonde hair and light eyes, would you have attacked me then??? Todd tries to manage the situation and dismisses Karen's behavior to say that it has to do with "lawsuits in the past". I'm not interested in going to court, I had paid $890 for my girls to have a once-in-lifetime experience.

Then there was this adult male who starting snarling in my direction. He had nothing to do with what was going on then says that Karen is family: "That's my aunt".

Well then Karen and your little-baby-man-nephew, this is regarding MY CHILDREN. It's unfortunate that you, Karen, had to cause a scene as I was anticipating dropping my kids off at camp on the second day, but you yelled at me in the parking lot of Doheny Beach for all to hear. Wow, so unprofessional. Also on the first day, she had taken 1.25 hrs to do a simple roll call and we called her out on that-- which she did not rebut. As other posters have suggested, boycot this woman, but she thinks she has jurisdiction over this beach.. what a shame!

This lady talked over me so much, said a bunch of things without thinking first, she suggested a full refund threatening that my kids are going to miss out on the rest of their surf camp. I hadn't expected it since I actually read the refund policy. Yeah, sure!!! Give us all $890 back-- which we got! If anything intolerant, unprofessional, unethical happens to you too demand a full refund!

Surf camp cost: $445/per child per week, Mon-Thurs (4days) x 2 = $890.

It seems like lessons from Todd are fine but Mary "Karen" is a menace. Good luck, esp if you're a...

My daughter did a summer surf camp here and was dreaming about it for weeks ahead of time. Unfortunately on her last day, Mary screamed at her and made her cry. She was 8 years old. I was sitting on the beach, every day that week, 10 feet from the tent. As her mom, I did not think it a good idea to leave an 8 yr old with 20+ other kids to look after on a public beach. Mary claimed my daughter ran away from her and did not tell her where she was going which is not true. I was sitting right there! My daughter came running to me, just outside the tent. Mary had 'dismissed' the group for a break. They were supposed to tell her where they were going, but they all took off, older kids running up to the promenade or to other parents scattered on the beach nearby, some to the shore-- not exactly safe for young kids to be playing alone-- but my daughter was the last to leave the tent. Since Mary had lost control of the group, kids leaving without telling her where they were going, she took it out on my child. I get that there is enormous responsibility in keeping track of so many children on the beach, but then she shouldn't have so many at one time! And if she or counselors are feeling hot, tired, frustrated or whatever the case may be-- find somewhere...

We had an absolutely wonderful experience with Girl in the Curl! From start to finish, everything was well organized, welcoming, and fun. Our surf instructor, Gracie, was incredible—especially with our 8-year-old daughter.

Gracie had the perfect mix of patience, encouragement, and playful energy. She made our daughter feel comfortable and confident in the water, turning what could have been a nervous first lesson into a huge success. Within minutes, our daughter was smiling, paddling out, and even catching waves, with Gracie cheering her on every step of the way. Gracie truly has a gift for working with kids and made the experience unforgettable for our whole family.

The entire Girl in the Curl team was friendly and professional. You can tell they care deeply about their students and are committed to creating a positive, empowering experience. The location at Doheny State Beach was ideal—offering gentle waves and beautiful scenery.

If you're considering booking a lesson, don’t hesitate! We can’t recommend Girl in the Curl enough, and we want to give a huge shoutout to Gracie for being such a rockstar. We will definitely...