We have a wealth of knowledge, built up over many years providing outdoor activities in Newquay, Cornwall.
We’ve picked our staffs brains for all the answers to questions you may have. Of course if we have missed something, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
headed up by British bodyboarding Team Coach and National Champion, Rob Barber.
With over 30 years experience and a professional bodyboarding career of international competition under his belt, Rob has built a school dedicated to delivering expert instruction guaranteed to build your skills and share the stoke!
Lessons from our Activity Centre in Newquay are pitched at a level suited to your ability, whether you’re a complete novice who has never been in the sea before or a professional standard rider. Our instructors are all trained lifeguards and qualified coaches with years of coaching experience to all ages and capabilities.
The beauty of this sport is that whatever your ability, you are guaranteed to catch fun waves and our lesson options include daily sessions, bodyboard surfari weekend courses and international holidays in tropical climates!
much!
“To bodyboard at the highest level demands a great degree of skill and fitness, but at a beginner stage it’s one of the quickest and easiest ways to get used to riding waves. The sensation created by being close to the water is amazing, you’re in control and the fins help you quickly pick up speed to catch loads of waves.”
our bodyboard experiences can swim a minimum of 50 metres. Let us know if this will be difficult for you and we can advise on how we can facilitate your abilities best. Our lessons can be tailored so that your feet never need to leave the ground except when you’re riding a wave!
arrive at Newquay Activity Centre, suitable for all abilities from beginner to professional levels. You will get:
payment directly over the phone. CALL NOW on 01637 877722 and try one of the UK’s best coastal activities with Trip Advisor’s number one provider, Newquay Activity Centre! Our lines are open from 8:00am until 10:00pm.
and orienteering, and was first talked about in the guidebook for climbing in Devon.
The activity combines sea swimming, low level climbing, traversing, natural rapid riding and ledge leaps into deep water plunge pools. We run our coasteers along the Gazzle, the Cornish word for armpit and a sheltered stretch of coastline hosting an abundance of native wildlife. Coasteering in Newquay, Cornwall is a great way to get hands on with the landscape and see our coastal flora and fauna up close.
We offer over seven different coasteering activities, including our popular North Coast Challenge and Low Tide coasteers. These use the tide to our advantage, allowing maximum water in the deep water plunge pools for leaps and exciting rapids around the coastal rocks. It’s also been named as a Top 5 beach activity by Cornwall Life Magazine.
steepest lifeboat slip, deep tea caverns once used by plundering pirates and the ominous Dead Man’s Cove, a rocky inlet responsible for making wrecks of many ships! During our Heritage Coasteers, you’ll be taken on a journey of historical discovery along the coasteer route!
same equipment as you, but carry some extra gear to ensure your safety.
experiences can swim a minimum of 50 metres. However, you’ll be given a buoyancy aid as part of your coasteering kit so there’s no need to be nervous of you’re not the strongest swimmer!
occasionally intervenes and makes it impossible to run a safe session. In the unlikely event that this should happen, we would endeavour to change the date of your session or offer an alternative solution. If this were still impossible then a voucher would be issued for the value of the activity.
and easily accessible for those not wishing to take part in the coasteer. You’ll be able to follow the coasteer group from above.
Your session can include any of the following. Learning advanced paddling techniques. Fun games and races. Exploring smugglers caves. Getting up close with wildlife in the natural environment, especially the local Seal population and possibly dolphins. Navigating narrow gullies and riding the natural rapids created by the ocean swell. Learning about local history and points of interest. Watching our coasteering groups as they jump off cliffs is also a great spectator sport!
This will be at your own risk so we recommend that you put a floatation device on it or tie it to yourself so that it doesn’t get lost.
fatigue levels. There are several exit points along the route so you will not be forced to complete the full session. Your instructor is trained to assist weak paddlers and can tow you to the nearest exit or to the final landing point.
carried relatively easily by two people using the toggles at either end. Single Kayaks are slightly more manoeuvrable but also less stable than double kayaks. Double kayaks are wide and stable and will comfortably seat two adults and small children are able to sit in front of adults. When paddling, double kayaks are a little quicker than singles as they track through the water well.
large, stable board (similar to a surfboard) and a single blade paddle you can navigate your way along coastlines, rivers and lakes.
ng how to paddle on your knees and you can still enjoy all the elements of the session knee paddling.
hard boards for more experienced paddlers to use
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Cornwall enjoys relatively mild winters with sea temperatures rarely dropping below 10 degrees in the very coldest months of January and February. We will provide you with a 5mm thick winter wetsuit, wetsuit boots or neoprene wetsuit socks for under trainers to keep your feet warm. Once you’re back from the water you’ll be straight back into our heated changing rooms.
4 weeks or more from the activity’s start date then a full refund will be issued. If the session is cancelled 2-3 weeks before start date then a 50% refund will be given. Unfortunately if the cancellation occurs less than 2 weeks to activity’s start date then no refund can be issued. If the booking is changed more than 21 days prior to the Experience we will make every effort to change the requested booking. Less than 21 days prior to the start, no changes can be made.
growing water sports in the UK, and we’ve broadened our roster of exhilarating activities at the Newquay Activity Centre to include our very own SUP adventures!
We’ve built on the success of winning gold in the Cornwall Tourism Awards 2017 + 2016 and launched a super sized inflatable paddleboard for groups of up to 8, to explore Newquay’s historical coastline. From the Gazzle on Fistral Headland you’ll launch the craft and paddle your way into smugglers caves, through natural rapids and around whirlpools whilst learning to balance and navigate the craft.
It’s a perfect activity for all ages and levels of fitness, and also acts as a fantastic diving board and viewing platform from which to spy on the wildlife below the water’s surface.
From our activity centre Located just 500metres from the UK’s most famous surfing destination, Fistral Beach, we run an extensive selection of Super SUP activities in some of the UK’s best quality ocean swells, and along a sheltered coastline called the Gazzle.
Start on your knees, keep a low centre of gravity and when you’re ready as a group, hop up onto your feet! Keep both knees bent and use your calf and thigh muscles to rectify any wobbles.
How to hold your paddle
Place one hand on the top of the paddle and hold midway up the shaft with the other. With your elbows bent at 90 degrees, this stance will give you more leverage and room to paddle comfortably.
Basic strokes
The forward stroke is a staple and carried out by extending the paddle out in front, keeping the paddle angled downwards towards the water and then pulling it back along the length of the board. To stay in a straight line, work as a team to paddle equally on either side of the board.
Common mistakes not to make:
will launch the craft from the safety of towan Beach and navigate it along our craggy coastline, into deep smugglers caves and through the natural whirlpools. The area is steeped in history and heritage that you’ll explore in depth during our Heritage Super SUP activities!
Having learnt core paddle strokes and skills, you’ll moor up for a variety of hilarious games including SUMO SUP, King of the SUP or Mega SUP races, before navigating ocean swells.
to an abundance of wildlife, from our native seals that call the coves home to jellyfish under the water’s surface. During your SUP experience, you’ll learn how to identify the flora and fauna of Newquay’s coastal ecosystems and witness them up close from the SUP itself. For an even more environmentally focussed activity, check out our Eco SUP adventures!
If you would like to get even more hands-on with the coastline, why not combine a Super SUP session with one of our award winning, adrenaline packed Coasteers and experience the Gazzle’s nooks and crannies up close! During our new SUP Coasteers you’ll negotiate your way along the cliffs through means of low level traverses, climbing, swimming and jumping with jumps into deep-water plunge pools interspersing the route!
equipment as you, but carry some extra gear to ensure your safety.
requirements, just give us a ring and we can talk through how best we can cater for your needs during your Super SUP experience!
Our Super SUP activities are also suitably adaptable to cater for the needs of those with disabilities.
ensure any valuables are safely stowed away whilst you’re down in the water. There are also storage compartments available for the rest of your gear including clothes and shoes. Please note that any items are left at the guest’s own risk.
shore whilst either standing or lying on a board. The ultimate goal is to ride along the unbroken face of the wave and tuck into the tube created, as the wave’s lip breaks, known as a barrel.
From our activity centre Located just 500 metres from the UK’s most famous surfing destination, Fistral Beach, we run an extensive selection of surfing lessons in some of the UK’s best quality waves. Whether you’re a complete beginner or professional surfer, Newquay Activity Centre has you covered with instruction suitable for all ages and surfing abilities!
be categorised as:
Spilling – These waves break slowly and gradually, with the lip of the wave gradually toppling down its face. These are long, mellow waves making them perfect to learn to surf on. Newquay is a great place to find them.
Plunging – Waves that plunge rather than spill are more powerful, exciting and steep, potentially resulting in a barrel if the winds and swells correspond!
Surging – Surging waves are useless for learning to surf on, so be reassured that we rarely get them breaking on our coastline here in Newquay!
ancient Polynesia, surfing was recorded for the first time in 1778 by Captain Cook, who’d sailed to the Hawaiian Islands and seen natives riding wooden boards in the surf.
But it was over 100 years later until surfing reached Britain’s shores, when two brothers surfed off the coast of Bridlington whilst on holiday in 1890 and another century before it was a cultural phenomenon.
When a famous Hawaiian surfer called Duke Kahanamoku won gold as an Olympic swimmer in 1912, surfing found itself published in newspapers and magazines all over the world. A few plucky Brits dabbled in the sport on homemade boards, inspired by the pictures they’d seen, but it was the arrival of four Australian Lifeguards in 1962 that hooked the attention of Newquay’s youngsters and Newquay surfing began! Their flair, cruising surf style, fashion and Beach Boys soundtrack gripped the town which saw a new breed of surfers ride up through the ranks into international competition and become shapers of progressive performance surfboards. Surf Lifesaving clubs were born and beach lifeguards soon patrolled popular beaches. Newquay had become the UK’s cultural hub of surfing and it remains so to this day. You can learn more about the history of surfing in Newquay in this blog post.
that works wonders for your fitness and mental health. Having been recognised as a top centre for cultural activities, and awarded Centre of Excellence status by the ISA, our professional instructors will lead you through the basics of surfing techniques and provide extensive instruction from the sand to the water. As Trip Advisor’s Number One provider of outdoor adventure activities in Newquay, we’re also just 500m from the Sunday Times’ No.1 beach for activities, Fistral Beach. As a new Olympic sport for Tokyo 2020, there’s never been a better time to give surfing a go!
same equipment as you and will also take a First Aid Kit in case of minor injuries on the beach. In the unlikely even of a serious incidents occurring during a surfing lesson, the RNLI beach lifeguards will be on hand to respond and assist your surfing instructor.
certainly gets the heart pumping, but you don’t have to be an athlete.
occasionally intervenes and makes it impossible to run a safe session. In the unlikely event that this should happen, we would endeavour to change the date of your session or offer an alternative solution. If this were still impossible then a voucher would be issued for the value of the activity.
slather of factor 30-50 water-resistant sun cream before taking part in one of our activities. You can also use a bit of zinc for extra protection.From beginner surf lessons on Fistral & Great Western beaches to adrenaline-fuelled coasteering routes, our award-winning centre is the go-to destination for adventure seekers in Cornwall. We welcome solo travellers, families, stag & hen groups, schools, and military teams for high-energy, high-fun sessions – all tailored to your experience level and comfort.
