140 Cantabrians got into wetsuits at Scarborough Beach, Sumner, over the past week, for two free Have a Go Surf Days run by Christchurch Surf Lessons.
Sixty young people aged 6 to 18 went out on Wednesday 30 September, and 80 women followed on Sunday 4 October. Both days were fully booked with a waitlist, according to the surf school.
Every participant had a surfboard and a 4/3 wetsuit, and qualified instructors were in the water for every session. The youth day ran at one instructor to every four young surfers and finished with fish and chips on the beach for the kids and their parents.
For many it was their first time on a board. The school says families have since sent more than a dozen thank-you emails, and several signed up for paid programmes straight after the day.
Sam Maker, head coach at Christchurch Surf Lessons, said both days stood out.
“Watching 60 kids standing up on their first waves on the Wednesday followed by 80 women paddle out together on the Sunday, that’s why we do this job. Plenty of them were nervous getting into the wetsuit and grinning by the end.”
From Sumner to Kaikōura
Christchurch Surf Lessons is the Canterbury arm of Aotearoa Surf, a family-run surf school and eco-tourism business set up at Te Arai, north of Auckland, in 2002.
Che Burnett, general manager of both, said two values drive the business.
“Community means sharing the surfing stoke with people who wouldn’t normally get the chance to give it a go. Excellence means doing it properly, with qualified coaches, quality gear and safety first. We’ve been teaching surfing that way since 2002, and we’re bringing the same standard to Canterbury.”
The team is based in Christchurch for the full season, from late September to the end of April, and runs as a mobile surf school. In the city, lessons run at Sumner and New Brighton. Further out, the crew teaches at Caroline Bay in Timaru and at Gooches Beach in Kaikōura.
“Canterbury’s coastline should be part of every kid’s life, whether they grow up in Sumner or on a farm two hours inland,” Che said. “Our job is to take the surf school to them.”
The business holds a Qualmark Gold Sustainable Tourism Award and says it’s the only surf school in New Zealand rated Qualmark Gold. It’s accredited by the International Surfing Association and Surfing New Zealand.
Schools and after-school lessons
Christchurch Surf Lessons is running subsidised surf days for 35 local and regional schools across Term 4 2026 and Term 1 2027. The days teach ocean skills and water confidence, and the school says it has included rural and inland schools alongside Christchurch ones.
Bookings for the 2026-27 season, which runs to 26 April 2027, are open now. Afterschool Surfing for ages 6 to 16 runs in six-week blocks starting on 27 October 2026 and 16 February 2027.
Women aged 14 and over who caught the bug at the Have a Go day can carry on with Surf Sistas, a programme that runs for four to twelve weeks.
Two-hour group lessons for ages 6 and up and private lessons for ages 4 and up run all year. Details are at christchurchsurflessons.co.nz.
