Ghana Surfing Camp & Cultural Experience Holiday
Click here to enquire about or book this holiday!
Location: Busua Beach , Western Region of Ghana
Date: Any-time of the year, there is always surf!
Duration: 1 - 2 weeks or more
Group size: 1+ people
Price: From £260 - £390 including surf lessons, food and accommodation. Excluding flights.
Associated activities: guided tours of local sites of interest, drumming lessons, day trip to the fishing village of Akwaada with lunch at the Green Turtle Lodge, impromptu bonfires on beach, and bicycle rentals.
Date: Any-time of the year, there is always surf!
Duration: 1 - 2 weeks or more
Group size: 1+ people
Price: From £260 - £390 including surf lessons, food and accommodation. Excluding flights.
Associated activities: guided tours of local sites of interest, drumming lessons, day trip to the fishing village of Akwaada with lunch at the Green Turtle Lodge, impromptu bonfires on beach, and bicycle rentals.
The trip...
The surf camp sits on a beautiful and protected 2 km beach in the relaxing fishing village of Busua. The village located in the Western Region of Ghana, 36 km west of the city of Takoradi and 250 km west of the capital city of Accra. Busua is a wonderful mix of a tradition Ghanaian coastal village and a tourist destination, allowing you to get to know the people and culture of Ghana, meanwhile providing you with many entertainment options in a very relaxed atmosphere.
You will also learn how to surf in warm water, with no crowds and perfect waves. That’s right, no fighting for waves, no wetsuits, and great beginner to intermediate surfing!
Our experienced group of local and international surfer instructors have provided surf lessons in Busua for over a year now with great results. Depending on your level of surfing, the surf instructors will guide and help you improve your surfing skills. Our low student-to-instructor ratio of 3-to-1 allows for extensive individualized attention and the best results. |
We guarantee that after a week at our surf school a complete beginner will not only ride the waves straight into shore on the whitewash, but will be riding down the face of the waves. For the experienced surfer, combining the surf instruction with access to a variety of waves to match your surfing skill level and style will help you to improve quickly.
As part of our surf camp experience we offer a variety of activities that will introduce you to the local culture, history and natural beauty that surrounds us. All of these activities are within a short walk or drive from Busua. Some of these activities are included as our camp activities, such as a trip to the traditional fishing village of Akwaadi and a visit to the only virgin coastal rain forest in Ghana. Other activities can be arranged from our surf shop including a tour of nearby Fort Metal Cross or Fort Batestein, a visit to see local fisherman bringing in their catches and bartering prices at Dixcove fishing village, a river canoe trip, or a kayak or boat trip to Abokwa Island. Surf camp participants also can arrange for drum lesson offered by local musicians on the Djembe or any of a wide variety of drums native to Ghana.
As part of our surf camp experience we offer a variety of activities that will introduce you to the local culture, history and natural beauty that surrounds us. All of these activities are within a short walk or drive from Busua. Some of these activities are included as our camp activities, such as a trip to the traditional fishing village of Akwaadi and a visit to the only virgin coastal rain forest in Ghana. Other activities can be arranged from our surf shop including a tour of nearby Fort Metal Cross or Fort Batestein, a visit to see local fisherman bringing in their catches and bartering prices at Dixcove fishing village, a river canoe trip, or a kayak or boat trip to Abokwa Island. Surf camp participants also can arrange for drum lesson offered by local musicians on the Djembe or any of a wide variety of drums native to Ghana.
The Accommodation...
For our surf camp we offers three accommodation options alongside a place to meet and hang out with your fellow surf students in a camp-like setting. All accommodations choices are our neighbours and less than a two minute walk from the surf school. One place to stay is Kobi’s place (budget), two bamboo bungalows located on the beach. Another option is the Dadson Lodge (standard), a simple yet well kept hotel that is located behind our surf shop and surf school. The other accommodation option, the African Rainbow Resort (upgraded), is a hotel with ocean views, pool tables, and a roof-top bar that is located a short walk from the surf school. Both places to stay have friendly, relaxed atmospheres and good food!
Although you and your fellow students may be staying at different places, there will also be unlimited opportunities to hang out. This is because the surf school shares a large, multi-leveled wood deck that spills out on to the beach with our very own Orkorye Tree Restaurant. The Okorye Tree is the IN place to hang out in Busua, has a wide variety of local and international cuisine, and is a great place to share time with your new and old friends, listen to music, talk about your day of surfing, do some more surfing on your own, enjoy a wide variety of food and drinks, or dance the night away!
Although you and your fellow students may be staying at different places, there will also be unlimited opportunities to hang out. This is because the surf school shares a large, multi-leveled wood deck that spills out on to the beach with our very own Orkorye Tree Restaurant. The Okorye Tree is the IN place to hang out in Busua, has a wide variety of local and international cuisine, and is a great place to share time with your new and old friends, listen to music, talk about your day of surfing, do some more surfing on your own, enjoy a wide variety of food and drinks, or dance the night away!
The Itinerary...
Day 1: Arrive in Busua.Chill out and get to know the place
Day 2: 1st Surf lesson, drumming lesson?
Day 3: 2nd Surf lesson, visit Fort Metal Cross or Batestein or Butre?
Day 4: 3rd Surf lesson, boat ride to island or drumming lesson?
Day 5: 4th Surf lesson, day to yourself
Day 6: Travel to Akwaadi, visit rainforest, surf LPs, dinner at Green Turtle Lodge
Day 7: 5th Surf lesson, surf Dixcove, bonfire
Day 8: Surf camp ends
Day 2: 1st Surf lesson, drumming lesson?
Day 3: 2nd Surf lesson, visit Fort Metal Cross or Batestein or Butre?
Day 4: 3rd Surf lesson, boat ride to island or drumming lesson?
Day 5: 4th Surf lesson, day to yourself
Day 6: Travel to Akwaadi, visit rainforest, surf LPs, dinner at Green Turtle Lodge
Day 7: 5th Surf lesson, surf Dixcove, bonfire
Day 8: Surf camp ends
The Difference...
Unlike most others tours on West Africa Discovery, our travel package is designed for people who want to stay in one location and get to know a place and its people more intimately. Of course, you also get to learn how to surf while doing this!
Our initiation and involvement of many community development projects and our business structure that includes local ownership has created an atmosphere where our surf camps are truly integrated into the community. We are fortunate to be accepted as part of the Busua community and also grateful that we can help provide meaningful knowledge and resources that are helping to build a sustainable model of community development in our village, one that has many and compounded environmental, social and financial benefits to the community. It’s a win-win situation, and the surfing is good too!
Environmental responsibility
We are working with local tour guides to initiate and sustain responsible tourism projects in Busua and the surrounding areas. The activities that are included in this project include visits to Ghana’s only virgin coastal rainforest and bird watching tours. Protection and conservation of the local environment will get a big boost in both funding and organization once the Community Tourist Center is up and running. This center is scheduled to be completed in August.
We are promoting energy management through the introduction of solar ovens. We have found a low cost-high efficiency solar oven that is currently being tested by selected families to determine its potential for use. Currently the majority of Busua residents use firewood as their main cooking fuel source. We also has plans to run a solar system to power our surf shop and restaurant when it obtains sufficient funds to do so.
Economic responsibility
We employ all local staff that is trained by the surf shop management. Part of this training involves learning how to interact with tourist and how to work in the surf shop and restaurant environments. The management has received its training from the co-owner and several of our interns. We have a profit sharing structure for our managers that we believe increases the quality of their work and their motivation for seeing our project succeed and grow.
Most importantly, we have taught locals how to surf and they are now surf instructors. These surf instructors include Charles and Clement who are also now part of the first Ghanaian surf team and who have competed in local surf competitions and an international competition in the Ivory Coast.
Most all of the produce that we use for our meals at our restaurant and for our surf camp and surfari meals are grown within a 45 mile radius of our location. Some items, such as avocados and mangos are grown in other regions of Ghana and transported to the local markets. We by all of our produce from a combination of local vendors (in the village) and market venders (in the nearest town of Agona and the nearest city of Takoradi).
We hire only local people to maintain the surf shop and restaurant. Our electrician Thomas, our plumber Richmond, our mason Augustine, and our carpenter Emmanuel are all from Busua. Each of these craftsman have been doing work for us repeatedly and as needed over the past 3 ½ years. All of these guys live in Busua and now them and their families hang out with us at the surf shop and partake in the occasional bonfire on the beach and dance party.
Our initiation and involvement of many community development projects and our business structure that includes local ownership has created an atmosphere where our surf camps are truly integrated into the community. We are fortunate to be accepted as part of the Busua community and also grateful that we can help provide meaningful knowledge and resources that are helping to build a sustainable model of community development in our village, one that has many and compounded environmental, social and financial benefits to the community. It’s a win-win situation, and the surfing is good too!
Environmental responsibility
We are working with local tour guides to initiate and sustain responsible tourism projects in Busua and the surrounding areas. The activities that are included in this project include visits to Ghana’s only virgin coastal rainforest and bird watching tours. Protection and conservation of the local environment will get a big boost in both funding and organization once the Community Tourist Center is up and running. This center is scheduled to be completed in August.
We are promoting energy management through the introduction of solar ovens. We have found a low cost-high efficiency solar oven that is currently being tested by selected families to determine its potential for use. Currently the majority of Busua residents use firewood as their main cooking fuel source. We also has plans to run a solar system to power our surf shop and restaurant when it obtains sufficient funds to do so.
Economic responsibility
We employ all local staff that is trained by the surf shop management. Part of this training involves learning how to interact with tourist and how to work in the surf shop and restaurant environments. The management has received its training from the co-owner and several of our interns. We have a profit sharing structure for our managers that we believe increases the quality of their work and their motivation for seeing our project succeed and grow.
Most importantly, we have taught locals how to surf and they are now surf instructors. These surf instructors include Charles and Clement who are also now part of the first Ghanaian surf team and who have competed in local surf competitions and an international competition in the Ivory Coast.
Most all of the produce that we use for our meals at our restaurant and for our surf camp and surfari meals are grown within a 45 mile radius of our location. Some items, such as avocados and mangos are grown in other regions of Ghana and transported to the local markets. We by all of our produce from a combination of local vendors (in the village) and market venders (in the nearest town of Agona and the nearest city of Takoradi).
We hire only local people to maintain the surf shop and restaurant. Our electrician Thomas, our plumber Richmond, our mason Augustine, and our carpenter Emmanuel are all from Busua. Each of these craftsman have been doing work for us repeatedly and as needed over the past 3 ½ years. All of these guys live in Busua and now them and their families hang out with us at the surf shop and partake in the occasional bonfire on the beach and dance party.
Where is it?
Click here to enquire about or book this holiday!
To learn more about Ghana, click here.
To discover other Responsible Tourism holiday ideas, click here.
Click here for 'Home'
Home - Trips - Responsible Tourism - Who are we? - Gallery - Blog - Links
West Africa Map - Disclaimer - Contact us
West Africa Map - Disclaimer - Contact us
