Surf Camp Sumatra started back in 2007 when I began representing just one surf camp at Ujung Bocur in Lampung, Southern Sumatra. Initially, it was more of a hobby than a business, but things grew steadily in the following years & I managed to build a number of friendships with the best operators in the “Krui” region. I still return as often as possible & I’m proud to say that nearly all of these working relationships remain to this day.
Where it all began, Ujung Bocur 2007 (times have changed!)
Looking to expand, by 2009 I’d built my own surf camp in the Playgrounds surf zone in the Mentawai Islands. This is where my focus remained for around 6 years before selling the camp and refocusing on Surf Camp Sumatra. It wasn’t long before I started to represent many of the camp’s I’d visited throughout the Mentawais. I’d always wanted to offer our guests both affordable & high-end surf trips & by 2019 I was stoked to represent around 30 of the best camps and charter boats in the Mentawai Islands alone.
“I’m definitely not the best surfer in the world but I’d like to think I’m experienced enough to warrant the suggestions I make to all our guests.”
This is me indulging in the perks of the job
Over the last 12 years, curiosity also led me to Nias, the Hinako’s, the Telos and further north to Simeulue & Aceh. The result has been a steady development of what I’d like to consider Sumatra’s best surfing destinations combined with the best establishments on offer.
“We’re extremely proud to be Sumatra’s number one surfing specialists”
Now a small family business, we’re currently based in Oregon where we’ve recently moved to raise a family. But our work in Sumatra certainly isn’t done. We’re extremely proud to be Sumatra’s number one surfing specialists and we continue to work closely with the managers & owners of all the camps and charter boats on a daily basis. We’re also lucky enough to take regular *family* trips back to Sumatra to surf, explore and revisit what has become our 2nd home, Sumatra.
Dave Blackburn
Surf Camp Sumatra
Since 2007 we've traveled to every corner of Sumatra, hand-picking the best camps & charter boats along the way. When we make our suggestions to you, it’s based on experience rather than what we’ve read online. We’d like to feel our opinion is a stamp of approval that will give you the confidence in booking a trip with us.
It’s a pretty hard task trying to work out the perfect surf trip if you’re searching online. If you contact a camp directly of course they’ll tell you what you need to hear because, let’s face it, they want your business! Here at SCS it’s different because we can make suggestions purely based on your needs. Whether you’re after a budget trip, a family surf vacation or just looking for uncrowded waves then you’ve come to the right place.
Good things come in small packages right? Well we’d like to think so. We’re not the biggest team in the world but what we lack in size we believe we make up for in a quality service. We’ve taken the planes, used the ferries, visited the camps and of course surfed the waves. So why not just ask us what we’d recommend, it’s all part of the service.
Some surf camps & charters boats on our site might also be found on other websites. Rest assured we will always match any pricing found anywhere online. In the unlikely event of another website advertising a cheaper rate, we’ll match it & that’s guaranteed.
"Thank you Dave and all the surfcampsumatra team for arranging our stay perfectly. As one of the coaches of the Chinese National Surfing Team, I had the pleasure to spend 28 nights at Zandino's guest house..."
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