If you want your kids to learn to surf on a summer trip, Surf Asylum teaches private and group lessons, runs week-long summer camps and coaches a youth surf league in Fernandina Beach. Its connection to Northeast Florida's beaches goes back more than 20 years. The instructors include Betsy, who started surfing at 27 and fell hard for longboarding, and David, who grew up surfing in Fernandina Beach and later spent three years in San Diego working on surf-contest webcasts with Surfer Magazine.
Surf Asylum doesn't keep a storefront. You book by text or email, and instructors choose the beach for each session based on local conditions. Here's how the programs work:
- Lessons: private and group lessons run seven days a week from May through August, with boards provided. Beginners learn board basics, paddling, popping up, ocean awareness and water safety. Advanced lessons cover technique, from bottom turns to noseriding, and filming is available for an extra fee.
- Summer camp: Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to noon, for ages 7 and up, with Friday held as a make-up day if weather or surf cancels a session. Boards, rash guards and snacks are included, and the camper-to-staff ratio is 3 to 1. There's a Girls Week and a Mini Grom Week for ages 5 to 7. Registration for 2026 opened on February 17, and every week on the schedule now shows full.
- Fernandina Beach Surf League: weekend practice sessions in two tiers for kids who've already surfed. It isn't for beginners.
Everyone in the water has to swim unassisted, without a flotation device, and instructors are First Aid and CPR certified. Camp is paid in full at booking, with a 50 percent refund if you cancel at least a week ahead.
Riptide Watersports also offers 90-minute surf lessons, along with board rentals. For more ways to fill a hot summer day with kids, see the Insider's guide to beating the Amelia Island heat.