Bournemouth Surf Reef

Boscombe Surf Reef

Surfing the Reef at Boscombe.

Boscombe Surf Reef is for experienced surfers!

Boscombe Surf Reef, launched in November 2009, is Europe’s first artificial surf reef and is attracting to Bournemouth and its hotels surfers worldwide looking for more surfable days with more surfable waves in the surfing season.

Located 220m offshore, just east of Boscombe Pier, the surfreef may produce steep and sharp waves in the right weather. The surf reef, unlike a wave machine, acts as a giant ramp to push natural waves up over the reef, shaping them into quality surfing waves.

The surf reef is suitable for competent surfers able to demonstrate standard surfing manoeuvres and surfers who can perform standard manoeuvres consecutively on a single wave.

If you are a beginner beware: you must be physically fit and capable of paddling out of your depth to the reef, which will be tiring in itself and the waves may be very challenging.

Safety cover is provided by the RNLI 364 days a year - but learn to surf with a proper surf school before attempting Boscombe Surf Reef.

It’s free to surf and there are changing facilities with warm showers available.

Bournemouth and Boscombe in Dorset go hand in hand with the sun, sea, sand and the surf. Surfing in Bournemouth is a popular sport and on the increase.

The artifical surf reef is about the size of a football pitch - about one hectare, plenty of room for surfers to use the space and surf to good effect. The reef acts as a ramp which changes the way the waves break, improving the quality of the surf and expected to produce a right-hand ride of around 70-80 metres.

The sunshine resort of Bournemouth is in place firmly on the map as a convenient UK surf destination. Be it a day’s surfing, a weekend break or a longer holiday the area has a lot to offer including other water sports such as Kite-Surfing, Wake-boarding, Kayaking, Scuba-Diving, Skim Boarding and Sailing.

Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch have excellent accommodation with many types of Hotels, Guest Houses and Bed & Breakfast Accommodation to suit budgets and requirements. Along with the award winning beaches, comes many restaurants, pubs, nightclubs, shows, cinemas, theatres, shops,the BIC, Pavilion Theatre, plus the fantastic panoramic sea views across The Solent, Isle of Wight, Poole, Sandbanks, The Needles and Old Harry Rocks.

Boscombe Seafront is transforming: stroll down through Boscombe Chine Gardens, come out at Boscombe Pier, now with newly developed Pier, this now thriving, cosmopolitan holiday resort is set to have new luxury designed Hemingway Beach Huts in the Overstrand complex on Boscombe Promenade. The Surf Reef and super beach huts will be accompanied by a surf retail outlet, a surfing school and a glass-fronted restaurant offering fantastic panoramic views of Bournemouth and the Solent. There will also be a catering outlet selling good quality food-to-go, an RNLI beach lifeguard station, changing rooms, toilets and warm showers.

There are to be 58 beach huts, individually designed and restyled into Penthouse, double sized and single huts. Some will be fitted with mains electricity and some with their own hot and cold running water. 31 of these surf pods are expected to be made available for purchase on a 25 year lease with the remainder for casual hire from Bournemouth Council. The huts will offer panoramic views across the Surf Reef and Poole Bay to The Solent.

Boscombe Overstrand is being transformed into a leisure facility for watersports enthusiasts year round and traditional beach visitors in the summer and Boscombe seafront is at the heart of Europe’s first artificial surf reef.

Nearby stands the UK’s finest 20th century pier with its clean, angular lines. The grade-II listed Boscombe Pier has been completely refurbished to an exacting standard and will feature a high quality Italian café and beach retail shop, spilling out onto a piazza in front of the pier entrance. Newly commissioned public artwork will help to shape this popular meeting place. The end of the pier offers stunning coastal views naturally framed by the Isle of Wight and the Isle of Purbeck, a fine spot to fish from or simply to watch the sun going down over the reef.

Opposite the pier, you can walk up the Green Flag awarded Boscombe Chine Gardens that have now been completely overhauled and feature a children’s water playpark, a brand new mini golf course and café. Land trains run from Boscombe Pier to Bournemouth Pier every day in summer.

Bournemouth Beach Safety

Bournemouth beaches are maintained to a high standard with the beaches cleaned daily. Safety on the beach is given a high priority. All along Bournemouth beach are lifeguard posts that are manned from May until September, with the Coast Guard on call in this very busy coastal area. Facilities within the beach area include a safety band scheme for young children available at the lifeguard stations.

Decks, parasols and beach huts for hire, water tap points are situated on the beach side of the promenards. There are non-smoking areas so those that wish to can enjoy the sun in a clean, smoke-free environment. Dogs are banned from the beach during the summer months but may be walked on the promenade as long as they are on a leash. Cycling is prohibited on certain parts of the promenade and during certain periods; and where cycling is allowed there is a speed limit of 10mph. There are public toilets and baby changing faciliates every few hundreds yards, along with service outlets for food and drinks.

Blue Flag Awards

Bournemouth beach is a consistent award winning Blue Flag beach. Bournemouth, with its seven miles of golden sand is amongst the best beaches in the world. ENCAMS, responsible for Blue Flag awards in England, has strict standards relating to water quality, environmental management and safety and services.

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Disclaimer: Information on these pages is reproduced in good faith and was provided by the hotels indicated; you should ascertain for yourself directly via any hotel/s which you are considering visiting that details are correct and suit your needs, we cannot be held responsible for inaccuracies. Please inform us about any corrections or additions so that the information here remains as accurate and up to date as possible.