Surf Courses in Goa
Learning to surf takes repetition. Makai’s 3, 5, 7 and 10-day surf courses give you time to work on the basics, get feedback, and keep building from one session to the next.
- 3 Days
- 5 Days
- 7 Days
- 10 Days
Only here for a day? Discover Surfing is there if you just want to try it first.
Start with a day. Stay longer if you want to really learn.
Try surfing for a day with Discover Surfing, or choose a 3, 5, 7 or 10-day course if you want more time to practise, get feedback and build your surfing.
Discover Surfing
Curious about surfing but not ready to commit to several days? Discover Surfing gives you one proper session to get familiar with the board, the water and the basic movements.
A good fit if
- You have never surfed before
- You only have one day available
- You want to try surfing before choosing a longer course
We can work on
- Getting familiar with the surfboard
- Basic paddling and ocean awareness
- Your first attempts at standing
It gives you a genuine introduction to surfing and a chance to see whether you want to spend more time learning.
One day is an introduction, not a shortcut to learning surfing. Progress varies from person to person, and standing up during the first session is never something we promise.
Book Discover Surfing
3 Day Surf Course
If you genuinely want to learn surfing rather than simply try it once, three days is a good place to begin. There is time to repeat the basics, get corrected and come back the next day with a better idea of what you are trying to do.
A good fit if
- You are completely new to surfing
- You have a few days available in Goa
- You want more than a one-off introduction
We can work on
- Board handling and paddling
- Pop-up, stance and basic control
- Whitewater surfing and ocean awareness
One session shows you what surfing feels like. Three days gives you a chance to repeat the fundamentals and start making sense of them.
5 Day Surf Course
Five days gives you more room to settle into the process. Instead of fixing something once and moving on, there is time to notice the mistakes that keep coming back and work on them over several sessions.
A good fit if
- You are starting from scratch
- You want more repetition and feedback
- You have enough time for a fuller beginner course
We can work on
- Paddling, pop-up and stance
- Timing, control and surf etiquette
- Basic wave behaviour and positioning
More sessions give both you and the instructor time to spot patterns, make adjustments and see whether those adjustments are actually working.
Depending on your progress and the conditions, coaching may begin moving towards unbroken waves. It is not something we assume or guarantee within five days.
Book the 5 Day Course
7 Day Surf Course
A seven-day course gives us more time to work with your actual surfing rather than following a fixed checklist. You might be completely new, or you may already have some experience and want more focused coaching.
A good fit if
- You want more time in the water
- You have already tried surfing before
- You want to work beyond simply standing up
We can work on
- Positioning and wave selection
- Steering, timing and board control
- Reading conditions and recognising mistakes
With more sessions, coaching can respond more closely to your starting level, the conditions and the parts of surfing that are taking you longer to understand.
Booking seven days does not automatically make someone an intermediate surfer. What we work on depends on where you are when the course begins.
Book the 7 Day Course
10 Day Surf Course
This is the most in-depth coaching option in Makai’s current surf-course range. Ten days gives you more time to repeat, make mistakes, adjust and gradually rely less on somebody telling you what to do every moment.
A good fit if
- You want to spend real time learning
- You want more substantial coaching
- You are working towards greater independence
We can work on
- Consistency, positioning and wave choice
- Steering and speed management
- Decision making and recognising your own mistakes
Longer coaching gives us more opportunities to see how you respond to different situations and keep working on the things that do not disappear after one correction.
Ten days gives you more learning time. It does not guarantee a particular surfing level or complete independence by the end of the course.
Book the 10 Day CourseProgress rarely happens in a straight line.
You might stand up on your first day and still need time to understand positioning or board control. Someone else might take longer to stand, but become comfortable reading the water much sooner.
That is normal. Conditions change, people learn differently, and some things only start to make sense after you have tried them several times.
Foundations
First comes getting comfortable with the board and understanding what you are actually being asked to do in the water.
- Board familiarity
- Paddling
- Positioning
- Standing and stance
- Whitewater surfing
- Basic ocean awareness
Control
Once the basics begin to settle, there is more attention available for what the board is doing and why a wave went differently from the one before it.
- Better stance
- Direction and steering
- Timing
- Speed control
- Wave choice
- Unbroken waves when appropriate
Greater independence
With more experience, the aim is to understand more of what is happening for yourself instead of relying on an instructor for every decision.
- Reading conditions
- Positioning yourself
- Selecting waves
- Recognising mistakes
- Making better decisions
- Needing less constant direction
Longer courses do not guarantee that you will reach a particular level. What they give you is more time in the water, more chances to repeat things, and more opportunities for an instructor to see what keeps happening and help you work on it.
Start with how much you want from the time you have.
There is no single course that is right for everyone. Your choice depends on how long you are in Goa, whether you have surfed before, and how much time you actually want to spend learning.
- Previous surfing experience
- Comfort in the water
- What you want to work on
- Your own learning pace
- The conditions during your course
Before you choose.
Can complete beginners join Makai’s surf courses?
Yes. The 3, 5, 7 and 10-day options can all work for complete beginners. A longer course simply gives you more time to repeat, practise and build on what you learn from one session to the next.
Which surf course is best for a first-time surfer?
If you want to properly begin learning, the 3-day course is the shortest structured option. If you have more time, five days gives you more opportunity to work through the fundamentals without rushing the process.
What is the difference between the 3-day and 5-day course?
Both can start with the same fundamentals. The main difference is time. With five days there are more opportunities to repeat movements, receive feedback and work on mistakes that may only become obvious after several sessions.
Is one day enough to learn surfing?
One day is enough to experience surfing and begin learning some of the basics. It is not the same as having several days to repeat those skills and develop more confidence. That is why Discover Surfing is treated as an introduction rather than a multi-day surf course.
Which course should I choose if I have surfed before?
That depends less on the number of days you have surfed and more on what you can currently do in the water. The 7 and 10-day courses give us more time for focused coaching, but your starting level should determine what the sessions actually concentrate on.