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About Us

Tofino Surf School is a local, owner-operated Surf School.
Jeff Hasse (owner, operator) a.k.a. Jeffro, caught his first wave at 8 years old and has been chasing waves ever since.

Surfing has been a lifelong passion and has taken him to different points around the globe – catching waves from the Pacific to the Atlantic. Even catching waves on the great lakes!

He has been living and surfing in Tofino for over 20 years and now calls Tofino home. Jeffro opened Tofino Surf School in the winter of 2007.

National Geographic.com rated and recommended Tofino Surf School as the best school to learn surfing on Canada’s wild west coast.

Yup, people surf here all year long!

The Tofino Surf School team loves to surf and can’t wait to pass that passion on to you.

Many years experience

Tofino Surf School instructors have many years of personal surfing experience & teaching experience. They have the required level of First Aid Training and surfing knowledge to make sure that your lesson is safe and conducted in a fun and professional way.

​Our instructors are as stoked to be a part of your first surfing experience as you will be. Visit our page on TripAdvisor.ca, we have ‘Excellent’ reviews.

Hope to see you out in the water!

Get in touch with us!

Contact

Questions?

What equipment is provided?

We provide 5mm thick wetsuits, booties, gloves & hoods for the winter and spring months. Gloves, hoods, and boots are not needed for the summer months but are available upon request.

Am I going to be cold?

After the lesson, people are always surprised how warm they were! Tofino Surf School wetsuits provide great temperature comfort, winter or summer.

I'm not a strong swimmer (or I don't know how to swim)…?

Beginners learn to surf in waist high to chest deep water. Wetsuits are very buoyant. When surfing you wear a “leash” that attaches to the surfboard which means you are attached to a flotation device at all times. Our instructors have their Bronze Cross and Bronze Medallions through the LifeSaving Society of Canada*, which encompasses first aid training. Tofino Surf School prides itself on our small group sizes, which means increased safety on every lesson.

* We make sure that any instructors not from Canada have an equivalent level of First Aid training.

What should I bring?

Students should wear a swimsuit (underneath their clothes when they arrive at the office) to be worn underneath their wetsuit. Tofino Surf School has one washroom and if each student needs to change it can run the lesson late.

Males will need to wear a Speedo type swimsuit or brief style underwear or cycling shorts. Boxers/ swim trunks can be too baggy to be worn underneath the wetsuit.

Students should also bring a towel.

A water bottle and small snack (apple, granola bar, etc.) is a good idea.

No food on the beach! The crows and ravens will get into bags and make a mess looking for food.

Where do I leave my belongings during the lesson?
Valuables should be left in a safe place such as your accommodation—Tofino Surf School is not responsible for any client valuables.

Students can ask to stow their car keys, phones or other valuables in our instructor’s knapsack—putting the items in a waterproof ziplock first is good in case a knapsack gets wet—but Tofino Surf School is not responsible for any of these valuables either.

Can I bring a camera?
A waterproof camera is an okay idea. Students should make sure they have some type of flotation device attached to the camera. Students will have their hands full (surf, surfboard) in the water, but during breaks on the beach is a good time to take photos. Our instructors would be happy to take some photos of the students using the student’s camera.

Also see ‘Where do I leave my belongings during the lesson?’ above.

I'm a minor. Who can sign my waiver form?
Surf students less than 18 years old need an adult to sign the waiver. Or we will e-mail a waiver for minors to print out at home and bring to the office. Please e-mail tofinosurfschool@gmail.com if you need a waiver in advance.
It's raining, can I still go surfing?
Yes you can, we run our lessons, rain or shine.
Do you ever cancel lessons for rain etc?
For just rain, no, we don’t cancel lessons. In fact, surfing conditions are great when it rains, and there’s nothing better to do on a rainy day because you’re gonna get wet anyhow 🙂

We only cancel a lesson in the event of high winds, high surf, or lightning.

How to get to the beach/after check in?

From the office you will be driving your own vehicle to and meeting your surf instructor at the Maltby Road parking lot. It is about a 9 minute drive from the office. Please get changed into your wetsuit at the Maltby Road parking lot as soon as you arrive. If your suit is too loose or too tight please contact the office 1-250-522-0189 and your Instructor will bring you the corrected size. Look for the yellow Tofino Surf School van it will be pulling into the Maltby parking lot 10 minutes prior to your lesson time.

Good to know!

We provide all necessary equipment

Surf

The usage of our equipment for the 3 hours is included in the price. Gratuity not included.

Wetsuit
Boots
Surf Boards