The REAL guide to surfing in Simeulue

Let’s be honest with ourselves, any travelling surfer visiting Sumatra is looking for 1 thing and 1 thing only – uncrowded & perfect waves. It’s what we crave for, dream about & talk about with our surfing buddies. Its the 64,000 dollar question. Its the most common topic of conversation here at Surf Camp Sumatra.  Its the reason we’ll all travel for days on end and spend our hard earned cash on expensive flights, hotels and transfers. Its all about the lure of that perfect set-up without the crowds of your local surf spot. Its the yearly pilgrimage we’ll take to find that perfect wave where there’s no stress in the line-up and you can share some barrels with just a few of your mates.

But does it really exist?


Pulau Simeulue 

Well some camps on the island of Simeulue will claim it does. Can it be true? Scan the internet & it seems every camp, resort, homestay or charter boat will usually promise perfect surf with just a few lucky souls out but we’re all too long in the tooth to know its usually not quite true. But every now and again a new destination will make the “crowd free” claim and one of the more recent has been on the island of Simeulue in North West Sumatra.

If you ask most surfers, they wouldn’t have heard of Simeulue. Many would have heard about Sumatra and of course the Mentawai islands but even with some pretty standard browsing of the web, before you know it, Simeulue can have you intrigued. Geographically speaking its pretty remote & with 1 daily flight from Medan –it’s pretty easy to get to. It’s open to the full magnitude of the Indian Ocean, so swell isn’t a problem and combined with year round light winds, the initial signs are promising for this relatively small island of 80,000 inhabitants. And what’s more it’s blessed with numerous nooks and crannies along its western and southern shores. The mind simply boggles when you scan google maps. Travelling surfers have a seemingly endless supply of coast to explore (the island is 100km in length) thanks to its excellently kept coastal roads.

If Simeulue truly offers the magical combination of perfect and uncrowded surf – the question is simply, why wouldnt you book a trip to Simeulue? All the indicators are there. But is the surf any good and just how uncrowded is it? And what are your options in terms of places to stay? 

Travel

Travel to Simeulue is certainly not the easiest route but it's usually pain free given enough time. There are numerous flights to Medan each day from Jakarta and KL however just 1 flight to Simeulue from Medan each Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. The Thursday flight can be unreliable. The main downside is that with just 3 Wings Air flight each week, although there is usually room for everyone, there's never quite enough room for all the surfboard bags. In such cases, surfboards will go via the ferry & arrive "the next day". Note that boards costs IDR 1 million per board per flight, but around IDR 1 million per board bag on the ferry. Sadly there is no way of pre-booking your boards on the Wings flight but a good way to deal with the situation is to have a "board bag reshuffle" where everyone puts a single board in one of the bags that will definitely make it over that same day. Whats more is that on average it turns out that 3-4 flights are cancelled each month. Its not surprising seeing that Wings is part of Lion Air who are notorious for delays and cancellations. So be prepared to have some flexibilty with your travel schedule and as always take out good travel insurance. We can also put you in touch with local operators who can handle of your board logistics as well as your flights. 

The Waves

The Peak

By all accounts its the focus of most visisitng surfers. Is it any good? Well in short – yes, its pretty good! It breaks on all tides (bonus) – winds seem generally light and variable too. Its also super easy to get in and out and the reef is pretty forgiving. There’s a left AND a right. So in theory it can hold a dozen guys eaaasily. And it can! Its also a swell magnet. During our 2 weeks on Simeulue (May) – The Peak was never below head high, winds remained favourable and there was never more than 15 guys out. A standard crowd was about 8-12, but there were windows when there were just a few guys in the line-up and the waves were still good. The standard of surfers was average, there are no local surfers and the vibe was friendly. The left produces longer and hollower left handers – and the right is shorter with an occasional tube. Wow sounds epic right?

Well, with all those positives there are some negatives. First up, its shifty. Its not a mechanical reef break like we’d expect from being in Indo. Especially at a spot which is the focus for most travelling surfers. There is a pretty large playing field where the peak will rear up so you’re always on your toes. There’s no rip which is good – but because its such a swell magnet, larger sets will sneak through and often clear up the entire line up. You’ll be in priority one minute and the next thing you know you’ll be washed up on the inside with your tail between your legs. It’s a wave that seems a bit more orderly on a smaller swell and although holds pretty big conditions (triple over head) – it’s just not that manageable for the majority of its visitors above 5-6’. 

Our tip: The Peak remains a fun wave throughout the year - but a fantastic "shoulder season" option. We'd genuinely recommend visiting from October to March when the crowds are even lighter but there are still fun waves to be had. Plus many camps offer seasonal discounts. 

For those keen to stay directly overlooking The Peak, check out:

Nancala Surf Bungalows (low-medium budget)


The Peak, Simeulue’s most dependable wave — breaks directly in view of the bungalows.


The property has just two eco-bungalows (sleeps 2-8 guests), simple in all the right ways. 

Mahi Mahi Resort (medium-high budget)


The view of The Peak, from Mahi Mahi Resort


Mahi Mahi Resort is a step up in budget compared to Nancala, but so are the facilities.

Dylans Right

If the Peak is nothing more than a fun and consistent option – you’ll find Simeulues best reef break Dylans Right about 30 mins to the south. Most surfers would agree it's Simeulues best wave. Its a legitimate quality wave that can produce a world class right hander. It’s not the longest of waves but long enough to provide some real tube time of mesmerising quality. The wave itself has a pretty defined take off spot which demands a light footed approach. Surfers will usually have to pull in or line-up the imminent tube section ahead that is usually as wide as it is tall. Its shape is text book perfect with more of a bowly tube than a super long wall. Winds are usually favourable most mornings and it tends to deal with cross-shore winds quite well.  And whats more is that there is no sketchy end section and it breaks through all the tides. Getting in and out is also pretty easy unless it gets super big which is rare thanks to a very convenient gully/key hole on the inside. There are a few local surfers who are super friendly. They’ll get their waves but they let plenty of waves go too. It’s a natural footers dream and is a relatively easy barrel once you set your line and you commit.



Yes Dylans right is the real deal but there are some unfortunate negatives to this wave as well. First up, its extremely sensitive to the direction of the swell.  It can be booming everywhere on the coast and Dylans can miss the majority of the swell. It needs just the right amount of west in the swell to funnel in and everything else just doesn’t work. And it also needs a reasonable swell too. Even if the direction is just right, it still requires a medium sized pulse to break well. So usually, day to day, it’s going to be small or inconsistent. And when its fully pumping, everyone and their dog will be there as once Simeulue finally gets big, there’s very few places to surf other than Dylans. Whats more is that it’s a fairly short wave (approx 100 yards or so), so in no time you’re back in the line-up and waiting. The pack just doesn’t spread out enough and as soon as there’s more than 8 or 10 guys people tend start jostling and positioning themselves deeper – and ultimately blowing waves, unable to make the first section. It can be frustrating to say the least but it happens quite often. 

But it’s not all bad. Those who stay right on the point at one of the camps will get the place way more dialled than the other surfers who travel down from The Peak. Figuring out the wave over a number small (but surfable) sessions can be extremely fruitful as there’s often windows of opportunity to get a cheeky session with just 3-4 surfers in (especially around lunch time) and it seriously takes just a handful of waves to have a really good surf.  Those that stay right at Dylans will soon learn when to time a session, where to sit in the line-up and simply get more waves. One or two good sessions at Dylans can make your trip there’s no question. It just requires a little bit of patience.

For those keen to stay directly overlooking Dylan's Right, check out:

Salt Surf Resort (low-medium budget)


Salt Surf Resort includes 4 a/c cooled bungalows, as well as a refreshing dip pool (2025).


Salt Resort is by far the best located camp at Dylans Right and is the only camp that directly overlooks the wave

Tea Bags, One Thongs, Monkey Trees & Thailands

With 2 waves seemingly passing the test and being 30 mins apart, the signs are looking good for Simeulue. But the real question remains in regards to the islands remaining waves. How good are they, how many are there & how consistently do they break? If you look at the map you’ll soon realise that there are a number of alternative surf breaks. The most documented wave other than Dylans and The Peak is without question T-Bags, a mesmerising right hander. And from the numerous photos online, it’ll have you frothing pretty quickly. Access is pretty easy but requires a boat. The camps by Dylans right are closer for sure taking about 40 mins to “put put” out to the island thanks to the local fisherman that will gladly take you to the wave for about USD 50-60 (up to 4 guests).

From The Peak, those using the resorts speedboats will probably get there in a similar time but of course at a premium rate. Its actually a super consistent wave – especially compared to some of the other set-ups. This photogenic beast gets super perfect and for the tube hungry it can serve up plenty of opportunity to get slotted. In fact if you’re not a charger, its probably not the wave for you. For every inch of perfection that lies within the wave so does a vicious monster, on hand to imprint a fresh tattoo thanks to the teeth lined reef that lurks below. Rewards might be high, but so does the punishments.


T-Bags

If the elevator drops of T-Bags (above) aren’t exactly your cup of tea then a quick glance at any Simeulue surf guide will draw you into a handful of other possibilities. In fact the majority of camps based on this remote corner of northern Sumatra would have you think that there are plenty more good quality reef breaks to discover. The truth of the matter is that there are more waves, but with that said, their consistency and legitimacy is up for debate. Without going into too much detail, we think it’s fair to say that there are quite a few other waves to surf, many of which actually produce some pretty fun waves. Most of them prefer smaller swells (shoulder to head high) with waves like One Thongs or Monkey Trees producing some pretty fun left handers and you’ll almost certainly score them without anyone else in the lineup. 

There are also another 1 or 2 waves that, on their day, can get very good. But you need to put in the time, spend hours on your motorbike and expect to get skunked quite often. These waves are painfully swell and wind sensitive and are a long way off the beaten track. Any hardened Indo traveller can easily be disillusioned after a long day searching on a scooter. One example is Thailands that is located in the southern coast and takes an hour bike ride to reach. It’s not even so much the 2hr round trip but the fact that the wave is so sensitive to swell size and direction that makes it an often frustrating venture. On its day it’s a super fun wave that offers long fun walls and even some tube sections and those lucky enough to time it just right will be on cloud 9. But it can easily get too big and quite often it’s too small! I guess that just about sums up many of the waves in Simeulue. But if you’re willing to put the time in away from Simeulues main 3 waves, then you can score some really fun and sometimes perfect waves with just you and whoever is willing to join you for the ride, and that’s a rare situation these days.