Brave The Waves And Ride Them At This Surf Club Near Udupi, Just 7 Hours From Bangalore Too

A short drive away from Udupi, The Shaka Surf Club is where you can learn to ride the waves and bask in the sun.

College brought both Ishita Malaviya and Tushar Pathiyan to Manipal, a university town in coastal Udupi. There, they were able to realise their long-cherished desire – surfing. Through their college terms, they shared a board between them and learnt how to navigate the waves with the help of a surf school nearby and with online videos. By the time they earned their degrees, the surfing duo was ready to begin their own surf enterprise.

In 2007, Ishita (who is India’s first woman surfer) and Tushar took the plunge and began Shaka Surf Club at Kodi Bengre, a small village outside Udupi. ‘Shaka’ means to hang loose, in local slang, and that’s exactly what the club’s two instructors want you to do. The school takes on travellers and even invites local children to learn surfing. You can park yourself at a hotel close by or even camp at Kodi Bengre {the club provides facilities}, before you arrive for your seaside tutorial. If you are a beginner, then, Shaka Surf Club is perfect for you. You’ll be provided with gear and instructors take you through 2-hour sessions. Once you’re through with the class, you can hang around, watch movies and enjoy home-cooked seafood meals. They're priced at INR 1,200 upwards per training session.

The camp at Kodi Bengre will be closing down for a while (due to summer and monsoons), so check with the folks at Shaka Surf Club for other accommodations (they have quite a few, we hear).