I just wanted to contact you and say a huge thank you for arranging such an amazing vacation to Nicaragua for myself and Inga. Everything was outstanding, but above all, the choice of Nick as our Surf Guide was inspired! Nick (and Anna the yoga teacher) gave us the best time ever. The teaching on both the surfing and the yoga was fantastic, Playa Hermosa was a dream location and the tours to Leon, the Volcano, and the Isla Juan Venado were stunning. The hotel in Leon was also lovely. Above all Nick's enthusiasm, terrific presonality, fluent Spanish and love of Nicaragua lifted the whole level of the experience we had. I am so glad I went with my gut feeling that I could trust you to provide us with a great time - I was so right! Thanks, Dr. Guy Haywood - Nicaragua - 31st May 2008 Our recent trip to Bahamas was well simply stunning and worth every penny. I have to say that your surf guide and your whole service from start to finish was simply out of this world. Thank you for making a dream surf trip come true, it was a super pleasure and one that I will always remember for the clean surf and warm water.. Jim Peters - 20th March 2008 Hi Steve, Just a quick note on my surfing holiday in Fuerteventura last week with Tom. It was a very enjoyable and well organized week. Toms attention to detail, time keeping,friendliness and enthusiasm for surfing was exceptional. His love for surfing was infectious and his teaching and patience made my first surfing experience a memorable one. I would certainly recommend Pure Vacation and your team to anyone looking for a wonderful experience. John Wall - Fuerteventura - 06th December 2007 Travelled with other Surf travel companies, but this trip was better than all. Excellent facilities in resort and truly loved your suppliers staff. Charles "small wave" Stevens - 30th September 2007 Had a great time Fuerteventura was good Accommodation was good Everything worked Thank you Chris Bishop - 06 August 2007 - Fuerteventura The holiday in Morocco was fantastic! We will definitely be booking surf holidays with Pure Vacations again. I cannot praise Younis and Othmane enough - they were so helpful and friendly and, of course, great surf-instructors. So thank you for everything. Thanks very much in advance and best regards, Alison - UK July 16 - Morocco Thank YOU for all your help- we had a wonderful time! Jomana - 17 July 2007 I have just come back from a one week luxury surfing/diving/wakeboarding trip in Praia da Luz, Portugal. I would just like to say that we had a truly amazing time, the accommodation was fantastic, the staff very helpful and friendly and they went out of their way to make sure that we had a fantastic time. In particular, I\'d like to say a massive thank you to Steve Wright, who was our main contact before we left and who patiently put up with our frequent changes of plan and made every effort to tailor-make our holiday so that we got exactly what we wanted out of it. We'd definitely recommend this trip, staying in Estrela De Luz, to anyone who wanted to have a fun, activity based holiday while staying in niceaccommodation where you can chill out in the evenings. Sebastian and all the contacts in Luz were fantastic as well! Thanks for a great experience! Jomana Fikree - UK 15 July 2007 - Portugal Hi, Just writing to thank you for arranging my surfing trip to Morocco and the hotel Tivoli flying with Royal Air Maroc. I had a great time and your resort manager really went out of his way to take care of everything. Paul - Manchester 08 July 2007 - Morocco hola and hello steve! i just wanted to drop you a line and say thank you so much for putting me together with the guys at the Algarve National Surf Camp. My trip was absolutely fabulous. The surf coach and his crew were the picture of hospitality, the accommodations were awesome and the attention to detail top notch. Not to mention that I learned to surf!! All staff were excellent, as enthusiastic and attentive of surf mentors as a girl could hope for. I would go back in a minute. thank you again my kindest regards, Jenna - 26 June 2007 - Portugal When you guys launched Northern Spain all those years ago, I went with you then, so pleased its back in your programme after a break, just took a short break with you again to this new region and woaw!!! You guys have offered it better than before, really super organisation from start to finish so superior to what other companies offer, I was greeted at Bilbao after my Easyjet flight to a smiling face then away I went to surf with my longboard some wicked surf, compared to other companies you kick some real special surf - thanks again Pure Vacations. J Matsui From UK/Japan - 12 May 2007 - Spain Just returned from Maldives Cinnamon charter experienced and all I can say is thank you for the glassy barrel rides and such a cool sail boat experience, I stayed just 3 nights but next time I visit the Maldives I will sail with you guys again. Tim Cent From USA - 05 May 2007 - Maldives After you convinced me to take the family to Florida to surf, I was so excited that I could not wait to get on that plane. Just returned from Cocoa Beach and surfing some great waves at Cocoa Beach Pier, it was surreal, dolphins swimming by, saw a baby hamerhead shark caught at Cape Canerveral Port, saw a huge tropical fish next to me whilst in the waves... but most of all caught some awesome longboard waves in safe waters. Kids enjoyed the beach and the day trips to Theme parks just 45 mins away and I enjoyed the morning swell and evening glass offs! One thing why on earth don't more surfers go to Florida, they have got to be crazy to go eslewhere, great food, great accommodation and so damn cheap! Accommodation at Hampton Inn was convenient and smart and met the family needs well, thanks so very much for this guys, I appreciate it greatly! Now back to work in the office. Michael Hughes-Cattarossi From The UK - 18 May 2007 - Florida You arranged a joyous surfing vacation for me on Feurteventura. I SURELY THANK YOU.. Thanks again. Carl G - 20 April 2007 - Fuerteventura Hi Steve, Just a quick note to thank you for your help with our recent trip to Morrocco. Nick got on the plane with no hassels and we had a warm welcome from Fatima and Rashid.. The surf was excellent, its just a pain to have to come back to work. Thanks again. Andy - 26 March 2007 - Morocco Just returned from an awesome experience of Surfing Maldives, first major swell of the season and Pure Vacations got me right on the spot on time! Awesome thanks guys and the new Equator Village surf resort was awesome, I am so pleased I was the first Pure Vacations customer to visit this season. Guide looked after me well. Cheers again guys! Jeff Young - 15 March 2007 - Maldives Amazing, Amazing, Amazing - I have surfed Fuert and Lanzarote but Gran Canaria was a whole different experience offering me superb surf guiding option to a totally different type of island. Thanks. Mahalo. Alistair Jepson - 13 March 2007 - Gran Canaria South Africa, oh South Africa - bring it on again and again and again... Alan and the guys were excellent surf guides and the Garden Route the best surf trip I have ever experienced. Spot on the dot. Travelled with other companies before, now I know PV is the best wont go elsewhere, why bother you have the best website, the best resorts and you have the most experience. Bibi - 11 March 2007 - Garden Route, South Africa Just wanted to drop you a letter with a thank you from all of us who made the trip down to Sri Lanka last week. What a great experience. I've been on a lot of surf trips over the years, and never have I had such a great, trouble free trip. First off, the staff at Amaya Reef were awesome. We had such a large group that I thought that we would give them a ton of logistical trouble, but they handled it all very well. They were very friendly and helpful the whole time, keeping us in very fun to great waves all week. Your surf guide was great to hang out with and surf with. Local knowledge and great demeanour was very helpful to us all. Pete Hammond - 09 March 2007 - Amaya Reef , Sri Lanka The apartments in front of Killers Point have to be one of the most primo locations in the area - very nice! I spent several days on the beach in front of these apartments while surfing Killers Point wishing i was staying there instead of further south near Agadir - and it is a close walk to Mysteries and Anka Point (which you see in the background of your photos). Can't wait to book my next trip to surf those amazing waves and enjoy the warmth of this unique Morocco coastal climate. Remind traveling surfers to help keep the coast clean, and try to pick up and remove trash from the beach whenever possible - especially their own! Keep up the great work! Darryl Hatheway, Surfrider Foundation - 07 March 2007 - Killer Point, Morocco Hey Steve, Just wanted to say thanks for setting the trip up and everything for me. Had a great time and scored some sick waves there. All the guides were chilled and had fun surfing with them. Brett - 15 February 2007 Please stop sending me vacation announcements, I will never travel anywhere but Morocco again...it was the best surfing vacation I have ever taken. The house was awesome (beds were weak), the staff excellent (Fatima was so sweet), the weather was perfect and sunny and just warm enough to enjoy hours on the beach, and the wave were everywhere you looked but Banana Point and Dynamic Beach were so nice you did not have to travel anywhere else for waves. So how do you top that off! Unless it is a better offer than Morocco, I don't want to hear about it, unless maybe it is in Peru, El Salvador, Canary Islands, Jeffrey's Bay, Brazil, Australia, New Zealand, Maldives, Reunion Island, Mexico, Costa Rica, or Panama. Thanks again for everything, Pure Vacations is a brilliant group and I would refer you to anybody who asks (and some that don't). Aloha my friends! Incha Allah! DJHATHEWAY - 03 January 2007 - Agadir Guest House I'd like to thank everyone at your guest house in Morocco. Fatima, Rashid and Hindi and everyone else are brilliant. We had a fantastic week with superb waves for which I suppose we owe one to Allah out of all people. Incha Allah! Jan - 24 December 2006 - Agadir Guest House Just returned from 2 weeks at the Surf House on the outskirts of Agadir in Morocco and just wanted to give a big THANKS to everybody at the camp. Had a fantastic 2 weeks and was sad to leave at the end. The instructors/guides Indy and Rasheed were both fantastic, with superb local knowledge and a genuine passion for surfing that rubs off very easily. They were two of the best instructors I have met and my surfing improved no end in the time I was with them. Look forward to my next visit to Morocco as I will definately be heading back, in the near future hopefully :) James Morris - 29 November 2006 - Agadir Guest House A Travellers Experience of our Guest House in Agadir. Waves - (for travelling in September) consistent swell, perfect for beginners or occasional surfers. Quite a lot of onshore though, over 2 week period, waves ranged from knee-high to double overhead! Wind - The wind picks up in the afternoon and blows onshore; best time to surf was either mid/late morning or late afternoon/evening. The Lodge - the surf lodge is PERFECT!! Clean rooms, great food. Everyone drags themselves out of bed to eat breakfast together. Then a fantastic 3 course meal is served everyday at 8pm. The 2 ladies who do the cooking cook wonderful local dishes. (But let them know if you are a veggie 'cause loads of meat is cooked). At the end of every meal, traditional Moroccan tea is served (lots of of fresh mint leaves and sugar). Probable the most refreshing drink of the day! If you want beer or wine, you can all chip in together and get a taxi to the liquor store in Agadir (£15 quid return journey). Just hide it in the back so the police don't see! (never a problem). Camels - they smell, but are very sweet and for £1.50 you can go for a ride while chilling on the beach. Arabic horses - I went for a gallop down the beach for £3 - only advisable if you are an experienced rider!! Location - Walking to the beach from the surf lodge is only 7 min walk. It's safe to leave water, towel and sandals on the beach. Localism - no real problems. As ever, most drop ins are undertaken by the locals!!! But that's common practice around the world in my experience!! Usual rules apply. A simple 'Bonjour' as you paddle out usually wins them over. Getting There - FLy to Agadir if possible. FLights are cheaper to Marakech but then you have the hassle of getting a bus. Unless previously booked and paid for, you might have to wait 12 hours for the next bus. I couldn't be bothered to wait so negotiated £60 for a taxi driver to take me in his 1980s Merc. Interesting first day - 4.5 hours taxi ride down to Agadir with a driver who only spoke French and Arabic and played particularly bad Arabic music!! Still, the good lad pulled into a supermarket so I could buy some cold beers for the journey!! And he dropped me right at the front door of the surf lodge without complaint. Naturally, I tipped him. Tipping - small tips are appreciated when leaving the surf lodge, also at restaurants. Phew, well, that's about it! Met some great people, caught some classic waves at Devils Point, Anchor Point. Jeremy - 05 October 2006 - Agadir Guest House Just to say thank you for a wonderful trip to bali. My stay at Padang Padang was excellent. Send my regards to Andrew and all of his staff for making my stay most enjoyable. I look forward to travelling with yourselves and possibly going to Bali again. Robin Gray - 22 September 2006 Let me start by saying that Tony and Petra were great! I was traveling on my own, and they both made me feel like a friend visiting from out of town rather than some Yank on a surf tour. It’s not just an 8 hour day of surf exploration and then they’re done with you. Tony and I surfed each day for as long as we could, then hung out later drinking a cold beer and talking about the day, surfing, Australia, the US, whatever came up. It far exceeded my expectations. Sydney: I arrived in Sydney a week before I met up with Tony and my Oz Surf Adventure. While in Sydney, I was continually checking the swell as it slowly diminished. I e-mailed my concerns to Tony, and his response….”No worries.” How could this be? The surf report is showing flat for the entire week. Brisbane Airport: Tony is waiting at the terminal for me with a welcoming smile on his face. Again, I asked about the surf, and he said he knows just to place to go…we will have surf in the morning. Tuesday, 6:00 am: We hit the road and directly out to Double Island Point. Driving down the long beach, we pass multiple beach breaks, all with decent waves and nobody on them. We make a couple stops and surf in some fun beachies. Then Tony says, “Let’s go to the Corner, I know it will be good there right now.” We pull up and the place is going off. 4-5 foot waves, wind directly offshore, left-handed barrels that were wide open, crystal clear water, beautiful landscape, and did I mention, only two other guys in the water (who were really cool, friendly Aussies). When paddling out, a whale breaches out of the water only a hundred feet away. Later, a school of dolphins playfully swim by. And Tony and I getting some great rides and barrels pretty much by ourselves, including the highlight wave of my trip…a 10 second barrel on my first wave in the corner. Wednesday and Thursday were more of the same. When some roadside beach breaks we drove past were completely blown-out choppy mush, Tony got us into some fun surf. Each day we surfed, the most people in the lineup were 5 people, and two of them were myself and Tony. I was so surfed out at the end of each day that I just went back to the hotel and crashed. That’s always a good sign of how the surf was! Each day, Tony had the meals taken care of. Everything from lunch on the beach at D.I., to dinner and beers at Alex Surf Club, Tony catered to my picky eating habits (except he made me eat a meat pie, which was surprisingly good). My only disappointment of the trip was that I only scheduled 5 days with Tony and Petra. I wish I had stayed longer, but my plans were to visit other parts of Australia. Guess that means I just have to schedule another trip to the Sunshine Coast!!!! Overall, an excellent experience. There are too many highlights to mention, and I was only there for 5 days. The places we went not only had good surf, they were also extremely beautiful. I would find myself sitting in the lineup and just admiring the scenery. Tony and Petra made me feel very welcomed. And all of the people I met through them were just as friendly…make sure you stop in and chat with Paulo from Alex surf shop. Phil Bravo - Delaware, USA - September 2006 Hi Guys and Gals, Traveled with you in July to Barbados. Good waves, great hotel, facilities spot on and will be back to try another spot in another country soon. Thank you Pure Vacations for taking away the worry of a surf trip. Peter Baxter - 02 September 2006 Went to Europe with you last year, shame you had no availability for my late trip but I am in a way glad, it meant that I had to go to another spot (I am not one for huge change!), anyway just a huge thanks for the trip to Maldives, I knew it was an expensive trip (more than Europe) but I really cant thank you guys enough. The trip was simply awesome and any surfer wanting glass waves should call you. A special thanks to Wes for giving me some amazing surf tips before the trip, man-o-man you know your surf travel stuff. Jack Butterworth - 01 September 2006 Hi Guys and Gals, Just to say had an awesome trip to Central America with you, amazing, amazing and did I say amazing. Read some negatives about you before I booked, was a little concerned but totally unjustified, you guys simply Rock! Totally awesome surf trip from the moment I boarded the plane at Miami to the time I got home. World class and you are simply the best. Stevo - Florida - 30 August 2006 Hi Guys and Gals, I went away with you in May and just come back again after another short trip to Portugal. Awesome bunch of lads down that way, thanks a mint for making my surf trip so easy. Roll on the winter swells! Julie and Tom - 30 August 2006 I've just come back from Whitesands and a great 4 days surfing. Kat - 28 August 2006 Although there were indeed a few airport delays, there were no issues at the far end and much to my pleasant surprise the taxi connection to your guest house in Morocco was ready. It was an absolutely fantastic package that was offered by the company, a true international family spirit! The food was out of this world and in fact guests with wider experience of Morocco were adamant that Fatima prepared the best meals in the country! Katie - 27th August 2006 Thanx very much for the amazing experience it was wicked !!! Tom (Fuerteventura Instructor), you´re an amazing teacher, got me standing up on my first day and all the hints + tips really helped. I will definitely be buying the yoga for surfers DVD ! Lol ! Sara thank you very much for the lift and just being a lovely person with a wicked fashion sense ! Gregg, I hope your back gets better soon and thankx for the help with my surfing. And finally Aron thanx for the help on the last two days, it really helped plus I loved the hoff challenge, it was good to watch ! Hope you all stay well until we return which will hopefully be very soon !!! X NIC X Well there´s not much more to say after that, thanks Nic ! We really had a brilliant time and we´ll be back. Sue - August 2006 Tom and Sara (Fuerteventura Instructors), Thanks so much for everything, I mean it ! You´ve all been incredible.Tom, you´re such an amazing teacher, don´t ever stop ! It´s been such an awesome week, we´ve all had so much fun. I´m really going to miss all you guys, your all such lovely people and I admire you´re way of life ! Me and Robyn have decided we´re gonna move her and become surf coaches !! hehe. So back we go to the cold English waves… and the quiet streets (with no beeps from the male drivers, haha) We´ll never stop surfing, it´s such an amazing thing, I´m in love with it ! Later this summer I´m off to cornwall to keep practising what you´ve thaught me. Thank you so much, will DEFFO see you again, Love, Jess - August 2006 Tom and Sara (Fuerteventura Instructors), Thank you so much for everything you´ve done ! Tom you were an incredible teacher and although I thought I would never be able to surf, I can stand and everything. Being wiped out was an experience I am not likely to forget ! I loved the entire week and really enjoyed it. I have every intention of returning next year and I will practise surfing in the cold sea of West Wittering in hope of catching green waves too. Love, Robyn. Ps: Tell Gregg we´ll all miss his smile- August 2006 Thanks for all you guys did for us ! We had a fab time ! The girls learned loads & look forward coming back soon. Will recommend you to all my friends. Take care & be prosperous ! Pip - August 2006 Just wanted to say a very big thank you to your teams at top shop and pure vacations - for our fabulous surfing holiday last weekend. my sister and i both had an amazing time - white sands lodge was brilliant (Terry and Daz were lovely, as were all the gorgeous surfers we met!), and the surfing lessons with Dave were really good fun too. We really enjoyed our prize and are already planning to go back later this summer! so full marks to everyone and thanks ever so much again - you made two wannabe surfer chicks very happy! Best wishes, Liz and Rose - July 2006 My surf instructor in South Africa was very friendly. The way how he explains the first steps for surfing is excellent, very simple and understandable, just a very good teacher. I learned a lot about waves, about weather conditions, different surfstyles, and the most important thing how to catch a wave and stand up. Sometimes he made pictures in the sand for explaining about the waves, which was excellent for understanding. Alan is like a water-angel, very helpful and always motivated (although it was pretty cold in the morning) and it's nice to joke and laugh with him. He has always a smile on his face and he's very friendly to all people. It was a fantastic surf-week. I'll never forget it. Sibylle - June 2006 I've just returned from a Pure Vacations surf holiday to Lanzarote with my girlfriend. I would simply like to say that the holiday was fantastic. The quality of the surf school there was superb. Tim Jones and his team had a very efficient and enjoyable operation running. I was impressed with the quaility of the staff's qualification in surfing but also in the important area of safety where all intructors are RLSS qualified beach lifeguards. Looking at the other surf schools in the area while I was there I was taken by the empahasis taken by Tim's school on actually teaching the theory and technical side of surfing not just throwing us in the water like it seemed some of the other schools were doing. Another important point to raise was the fact that Tim's staff were all British which broke down language barriers and made the communication of the teaching and safety better and more enjoyable than other schools who used local Spanish speakers. In all it was a very friendly place to go. The staff were often out for dinner with us which gave the school a real friendly family sort of feel to it. I had a very enjoyable holiday with Pure Vacations and would definetley be planning on returning and I would congratulate Pure Vacations for doing business with such professionally run schools. Derek - 24 April 2006 I am a fairly inexperienced surfer, having done a five day introductory course in Portugal last year with another company as part of a group of 5-7 people. They used a fairly strict teaching methodology involving a lot of preparation on the beach, warm up exercises, and a set way of positioning my hands and feet to go from lying down on the board to standing up and surfing. After five days I could just barely stand up in shallow water. So my expectations of these three days I spent at Molooloba, Australia were not high - just looking to enjoy a little bit of Aussie beach culture and make some progress on the surfing front. But at the end of three days of (intense and intensive) training with Tony and Petra I was paddling my way onto a wave, getting up and surfing it all the way to the each. It must have been a happy combination of Tony's natural surf teaching methods, willpower and the laid back atmosphere of the place. After a day of hard work it was also great to return to a lovely apartment at the Grand Palais, kick back, enjoy a drink gazing at the waves from the balcony, and soak all the aches and pains in that superb jacuzzi in the bathroom! All that remains is to thank both Tony and Petra in Australia for their incredible hospitality and good humour, their patience in showing me around lovely spots in the area (will never forget the koala up a tree at Noosa Heads) and even helping me with the food shopping, and getting the right surf gear to protect myself from those beginner leg rashes. In the short time I spent with them, I learnt more about Australian culture and people than in the previous 12 days I had spent on the road travelling from Sydney to Brisbane... and I loved it, did not want to leave :) Take care, Ana - 17 April 2006 I want to say a big thank you for a holiday of a lifetime to Australia. As a lone female traveller I am always a bit wary of what I am going to be faced with on arrival to a new place, but from the moment Tony and Petra met me at the airport I knew that the holiday was going to be a blast. Petra selected accommodation which was second to none and I was so excited to be able to have a glass of wine in the spa bath at the end of a full day of surfing while relaxing to some cool tunes. The surf package was perfect, tailor made for me so that I went to beaches with waves perfect for my surfing ability level. Tony was a very patient surf coach who was positive all the way and this combined with his expert tuition meant that by the end of my stay my surfing had improved no end. There are too many best bits to mention all of them but some of the highlights were: Staying on Stradbroke Island - beach accommodation so you could check out the waves. Gin and tonic on the balcony at sunset and beautiful cuisine provided by Petra followed by Surf monopoly (…. I still think you cheated Tony!) Tireless and patient coaching from Tony (and on his day off Carter) Laughing and putting the world to rights with Petra. Buying a very swanky new surf board with the expert guidance of Tony and Paulo My disc containing about a million photos so that I was able to make all my friends and family jealous when I got back home. The whole package was excellent value and I will definitely return! Kelly Sharp - March 2006 (Travelled August 2005) Have just come back from a great trip to Oman. Warm water and totally uncrowded waves! Scott was a fantastic coach, really helpful and enthusiastic and I felt I leant a lot. Also everyone was really friendly and welcoming and I had a really fun time. I would definitely recommend this trip to anyone. Pam - 20 February 2006 Just got back from the garden route tour of South Africa- absolutely fantastic!! The guides, Ryan and Scott, were brilliant, and made my first trip to SA a very memorable one. The accommodation (backpackers) was also excellent and everyone was really friendly. I would definitely recommend this trip! Caroline - 14 January 2006 Just wanted to tell you that I had a fab time on the Garden Route surf trip in South Africa with Ryan in November. It was a fantastic experience, Ryan was a great guide, and I'll recommend it to anyone thinking of visiting SA. Cal - 03 January 2006 I recently spent a week at your Surf School in Lanzarote and I just wanted to say what an excellent time I had. The surf school is superbly well run with a friendly atmosphere dominating. The holiday was faultless. I would recommend it anyone and will return. Joss - 15 December 2005 Just returned from an amazing surf trip to Australia with you guys. Tony and Petra your resort surf guides were simply the best and I feel that I have friends for life now "down under". Thank you Pure Vacations for providing me a chance to truly experience quality uncrowded surfing waves in one of the most attractive coastlines I have ever seen. Bob - 09 December 2005 I am just writing to say a BIG BIG THANK YOU to you all, for such a wonderful holiday to BARBADOS! Everything - from Maurice meeting us at the airport, to our amazing hotel accommodation, our surprise bottle of wine (!) and unbelievable surfing lessons - it's all been absolutely fantastic. Barbados is the most beautiful place we have ever been to - and hopefully shall return to - one day! Thank you once again for making it all so possible. Very best wishes Katy - 09 December 2005 Can't thank you guys enough for such an amazing time in Fuerteventura. To be made that welcome in this world is very rare. Returning to London I felt as if I was in a little stress free bubble, long may it last! Your tuition was fantastic, never a dull moment! I've already persuaded friends to do it next year, so expect a visit!!! Ben - 27 Oct 05 We have just returned from our trip to Lanzarote as organised by yourself. It was a great success and we all thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. The surf school for our son Thomas was absolutely brilliant and we look forward to returning at some stage next year and will have no hesitation in using Pure Vacations. Thank you Anne - 04 November 2005 Just wanted to let you know what a fantastic holiday we had with the Surf School in Lanzarote. It was our very first experience of surfing and we learned so much. We thoroughly enjoyed every minute of our time with Tim Jones and his team and were very impressed by the professional approach and emphasis on safety. Tim's unfailing enthusiasm and love of surfing was truly inspirational! Thanks for your help in arranging our holiday. Caroline - 16 October 2005 I just wanted to let you know how great the Surf Club in Salvadore, Brazil is. The guys are great: wonderful people, great customer service, and provide a very friendly, safe and welcoming atmosphere. The cooking staff is wonderful, as well, and very friendly. The yoga instructor was top notch. The place is low key, private, and very Personal. No one else was on the beach, so we were able to really use the area without running into other surfers. The food and the company was absolutely outstanding AAAA+++. Thanks so much. Beth - 10 October 2005 I have just returned from a weeks holiday in Sagres, Portugal, staying at the Navigator Hotel and attending surf school. I wanted to drop you a line to tell you how much I enjoyed being taught by Luige and that I would fully recommend this package. His relaxed, but concerned, teaching style, his knowledge of the local area and the way he conducted himself were great and contributed to my and my fellow vacationers holiday. This was not just during the day but also on the regular evenings that we met him for drinks. James - 06 October 2005 Now I have returned to the 'rat race' I thought I'd better send an email to let you know what a FANTASTIC holiday I have just had in Fuerteventura.  I booked the holiday with 'Pure Vacations' after coming across you on the internet.  Although I had heard you were a very reputable company I really had no idea what to expect from the holiday...and whether I would be able to surf by the end of it! From start to finish the holiday went brilliantly. Booking the holiday was quick and easy and I must give Pure Vacations praise for your efficiency and professional manner.   From the moment we landed in Fuerteventura everything went perfectly. My friend and I were greeted by Tom as soon as we came through the airport and taken to Playa Park. We were very pleasantly surprised at the quality of our room and it more than exceeded our expectations, the complex is lovely and is the cleanest place I've ever stayed.   From that moment Tom looked after us and he did a fantastic job. He introduced us to the local surf bars, recommended places to eat and really made us feel welcome. On the first day of our surf lessons Tom talked to us about technique, the sea, taught us a lot about the tide and also safety when on the beach among other things. Although I was a bit apprehensive about being in the sea, Tom helped me and made me feel more confident about being in the water. Tom was with out a doubt the best coach I have ever been taught by. As I have been coached on numerous occasions for sporting activities I have something to compare him with. His knowledge and love of surfing is apparent in his teaching and his enthusiasm is second to none. Watching how comfortable he is in the sea is extremely encouraging and shows you how much fun can be had with this type of activity. Tom always had a pleasant manner and never showed off which was great as I find many coaches are there for their own interest only. Over the week Tom really helped me to progress and encouraged me constantly, he didn't say a negative word all week. He had the same approach to others in the group and we all agreed that we definitely had the best surf coach. Whilst on the beaches there were other surf schools which we had a chance to observe. The people learning did not seem to get the same attention from their coach as we did and they certainly weren't being helped in the water as much as we were. I can honestly say that I wouldn't have enjoyed the holiday half as much if we hadn't been with Tom. As we were in the surf school all week it was important that we felt comfortable with our coach and we certainly did. Tom is ultimately a positive and vital asset for this type of holiday.   Thank You Pure Vacations for a truly enjoyable holiday and for booking our surf lessons with someone who actually cares. And just in case you were wondering...I did manage to surf...standing up! Lindsay - 15 September 2005 Just to say we thoroughly enjoyed our recent trip to Hawaii. We were very impressed with the efficient organisation thank you! Above all, we were extremely happy with our Pure Vacations surf guide, Robin Johnston, whose professional knowledge, hard work and thoughtfulness ensured that we got the very best from our trip. We shall definitely book more trips with Pure Vacations in the future. Janine - 13 Sep 2005 We had an excellent surf holiday in Lagos, Portugal, The team looked after us well. Richard - 02 September 05 I just wanted to let you know what a great time I had learning to surf with Tim, Dan & Ness in Lanzarote. Famara was lovely, the accommodation was great and I can\'t fault the team for the quality of the instruction, their patience and professionalism. They even managed to get a hardened city-dweller like me up and riding some waves! Albeit in a rather wobbly fashion... Laura - 23 August 2005 Just a quick email to let you and everyone else know I have arrived back in London safely from Northern Spain (to 14C and drizzle at Stansted, try not to laugh too hard). Thanks to you and all the guys for an awesome holiday, which was certainly up there with the best I've ever had. Hope to see you again next year. I am still totally stoked. Gareth - 23 August 2005 I was just writing to let you know that everything went fantastically in Northern Spain and we had a really good week. We could've done with a few slightly bigger wave sessions but what we had was fun. Damien and the rest of the guys were brilliant and gave good tuition to both Polly and I as well as being good to hang out with! Thanks very much for helping set it all up and the bubbly waiting in our room for our celebration at the hotel was really appreciated to help make it a special trip. Jeremy - 02 August 2005 I would like to thank you for arranging such a fantastic holiday in Barbados for me. The surf camp was great fun and Zed is an awesome instructor - my surfing has come on leaps and bounds. Beautiful scenary, great waves and 25 degrees in the water - what more can you ask for? Caroline - 23 June 2005 Three days in Northern Spain is simply not enough. I’ve had a fantastic time in a fantastic place and in wonderful company. Damian taught me so much in just one conversation and added something special to what is truly a magical surf experience. Many thanks to all three of you. Damian, Josh and Jesse. David James. 20th June 2005 Thanks Jess, I’d never thought I would stand up on a surf board but your encouragement and support proved me wrong. Katherine Nisbet. 19th June 2005 Had a great week in Northern Spain. It’s been like being on holiday with a bunch of friends. Thanks. Jerry Little. June 2005 Just come back from Lagos in Portugal with Pure Vacations and I have to say that was an awesome trip guys… thanks for the fun and laughter, roll on British Virgin Islands next... Steph – June 2005 Thanks Purevacations for a great time in Spain. Tuition was spot on. I feel I have really improved. American Girls in (Bangala Disco Santander) were an added bonus. Mark. 11th June 2005 Awesome surf, great tuition and Northern Spain is a lovely place with friendly locals. See you again very soon. Andy Sulleg. June 2005 Excellent lessons. Plan on coming back next year for more lessons. If your a beginner check out Purevacations school in Northern Spain. Its well worth the trip. Earl Galen - 06 June 2005 Absolutely knackered! But worth it. Loads of top tips for surfing which other surf schools don’t give. Love to all the Pure Vacations staff in Northern. Nichola Dee. 21st may 2005 Thanks for the trip to Fuerteventura I booked with yourselves at the end of April - we had waves every day and the weather was brillant. Tom and Alex were very professional and showed exceptional knowledge of all the setups - secret spots included! Ashleigh James - 28 May 2005 I've just come back from a fantastic holiday in the Surf Lodge in Seignosse France. It was all we dreamed of and more! Julia Poole - 24 May 2005 Just to say that I had a great time last week in Fuerteventura. The boys were politeness and patience personified. If I've learned one thing, it's to build up my arm muscles before I go again. Will probably do this again next year, and spend some time falling int Donegal Bay over the summer. Majella - 04 May 2005 Just a quick email to say thanks to Alex and Miguel at the surf camp in Cortegaca, Portugal. We all had an awesome time of it, Great weather and great waves. Thanks again for everything, Hope to see you again very soon. Carl Jefferies and Crew - 02 May 2005 Have just got back from a week at Famara, lanzarote with surf school. Have had a great week. In the 5 day course gone from novice to catching an unbroken wave and riding along it. Can't rate the instructors highly enough. Kevin MacArthur - 26 April 2005 Thanks again for hooking me up with that trip to Feurteventura - the Pure Vacations team are a totally nice bunch. Tom's an awesome guide, found all the best spots - even when the swell dropped off towards the end of the week. Lots of paddling. Seems I've misplaced the willingness for anything bigger than four foot. Still, pretty blissed after all the sun + sea + scooting round in the Suzuki + fit as you like Spanish surfer chicas on the beach. Already thinking bout the next trip... Great shots on your site. Thanks again. Kofi - 05 April 2005 Thank you Pure Vacations for my recent trip to the USA. I truly enjoyed staying the excellent hotel in Cocoa Beach, and the car was of a great standard better than I expected. All in all an excellent family holiday, thank you again. Jeff - 05 April 2005 What can I say... Quality Surf, Quality Accommodation, and Quality Staff. Northen Spain was the best destination I have surfed in 15 years of surf travel, it had culture and style. Thank you for giving me such a great trip. Andrew - 05 April 2005 Just a quick email to let you know how much I enjoyed last week in Lanzarote, and in particular to praise the guys Tim, Ness and Dan. Their genuine love and enthusiasm for surfing was infectious, even after a long day of battling the waves!!! They were full of encouragement and helpful tints, and somehow managed to see everything you were doing right as well as wrong. This creates a very friendly atmosphere within the lessons, making you want to carry on trying and forget your pains and aches! Lunch was a lively event, with Tim's talks from the history of surfing to board design, keeping everyone very interested. Many of the other students were frequent visitors with Pure Vacations, which has to be the ultimate accolade for any company. Many thanks for all your help with my booking. Angela - 31 March 2005 Just to say Northen Spain was really awesome! Damion is a really nice guy and a very good surf guide! Alex - 28 Feb 2005 Back from ole usa, great trip, crazy place. Thanks for your help Pure Vacations great trip! Andrew Hughes - 14 Feb 2005 Just got back from Lanzarote with my fiancee. Tim, Dan and Vanessa are great people and their tuition was 1st class. Their warmth and enthusiasm rubs off on everyone in the group. These people make you feel at your ease no matter your surfing ability...We'll be back! Deb and Marc (Scotland) - 21 January 2005 Myself and my wife Rachel have just recently enjoyed a Surf Holiday in Lanzarote booked through yourselves. I would like to say thank you for being very helpfull and please pass my thanks to Tim for his excelent tuition and help. Best Holiday ever. Thanks Guys. Ali - 20 January 2005 Hey Wes, Just wanted to pass on a quick thanks and let you know your team out in Morocco were lovely (Vanessa & Chris). Vanessa went above and beyond to assist and Chris was a very professional and mature surf coach. I had a nice time thanks to them. Amanda Lord - (from USA 18 January 2005) You made us so welcome in Barbados, the whole set up couldn't have been friendlier or more hospitable, and of course we'd like to add our names to the long list of people who endorse Zed as the most fantastic teacher and confidence-giver for surfing in Barbados. The Botham Family - 10 January 2005 Having an excellent time in Oahu, Hawaii. Love Hodel the Pure Vacations surf guide is great and this is the most amazing holiday, thank you. James Cracknell - 06 January 2005 (British Olympic Gold Medal Rowing Champion) Just a quick note to say thanks for helping to sort out a great honeymoon for us to Lanzarote! Tim and Dan and Ness were really good instructors, the apartment was great – Tim said that we had the best in the village and it was really well presented, and we had a wonderful time. We really enjoyed the surfing and Famara was lovely and a nice and quiet village which was what we really wanted. So once again just a big thanks from Pam and me, and we are already planning when to go back and improve our surfing! Pam and Rich - 09 January 2005 We had so much fun with you in Australia. Tony, and Petra, and the rest of the Pure Vacations crew were great, especially Tony and Petra (who treated us like family). I highly recommend this tour to surfers of all levels. Simply put, Tony is a great guide. His level of local knowledge is astounding. What ever type of waves we wanted, he found. We saw everything from pumping 6ft barrels to clean, 2ft learning waves. The resort where we stayed for part of the time was also great. It was the perfect place to recuperate from jetlag and acclimate to our new surroundings. First, it had a great beach break two minutes (walking) from our hotel room, which was offshore every morning. The resort also had good food (buffet style) all paid for by Pure Vacations. Beyond that, the resort had a nice spa and other activities (nothing like a massage after a few days of surfing or a long plane flight). Pure Vacations also took us on a variety of trips. We surfed local breaks around the area, took a 4 day excursion to an offshore island (Stradie), and took a day trip to a place called Double Island (DI) point. The Stradie and DI trips deserve special mention. The DI trip involved a 50K drive up a huge beach (beautiful - our first time driving on a beach) to a great spot where we surfed and hiked to a lighthouse. We saw dolphins and sea turtles and had an amazing day. Like the DI trip, the Stradie trip was great - perhaps the best part of our stay in OZ. The four days we spent there with Tony and Petra were amazing and with Tony's patient coaching our surfing improved by leaps and bounds. The variety of breaks on this one island was astounding. There were waves for everyone from quicksilver pros (who we saw doing a photo shoot) to the most beginner of beginners. In addition to the great surfing throughout our OZ trip, we got a great feel for the genuine local culture of the sunny cost and got to do some fun tourist things (like the croc hunter - Steve Irwin's - Australia Zoo.I have now fed a kangaroo). Finally, any report on Pure Vacations would be woefully insufficient without highlighting Tony and Petra's hosting abilities. They were wonderful. Pure Vacations included us in local activities and were totally open to taking us all around (a 2 hour detour to the gold cost's quiksilver store was "no worries mate."). Pure Vacations gets an A++++ from me. Devin and Bonnie - 05 Jan 2005 We just returned from Hikkaduwa, Sri Lanka and just wanted to let you know that all was very nice. Espacially the people at the hotel. Thank you very much. We may be looking for a snowboard holiday sometime in 2005 so please keep us informed on what going on. Ludmil Thank you very much for organising our holiday to Sagres, Portugal. It was one of our most enjoyable. The organisation and facilities were very good. Special mention must be made regarding the high standard of instruction. Enrique - the head coach - was outstanding. Clear instructions, attention to safety procedures were just two of the excellent features of the surfing experience. Mark Armstrong - 29 November 2004 Thank you so much for all your help in organising our surfing trip to South Africa and helping us have the holiday of a lifetime. The surfing, accommodation and travel were all thoroughly enjoyable and I will definitely recommend the package to friends.  The route we followed along the east coast of South Africa was breathtakingly beautiful and we will definitely return. Our Pure Vacations guide Ian Farrell really made our holiday.  He was a great surf instructor and a fantastic guide to  South Africa .  He knew so much about every place we visited - and encouraged us to try out so many new activities - everything on the trip was arranged efficiently and enthusiastically.  You guys really know their stuff. The accommodation in the 'Backpackers' (South African for hostel) far exceeded our expectations - each one we stayed in was clean comfortable, charming and so friendly - we had some of our most enjoyable evening by the braaii along side the pool - when we return to South Africa (which we will) we won't bother with hotels and will stay in the backpackers again. Thanks again for all your help. Katherine - 19 November 2004 Adam Young here. Just wanted to say thanks a heap for the holiday in Morocco. We had three really good days of waves and both Claire and I are fully keen to take it up more when we head back to Oz. Adam - Australia I went to Famara (Lanza) to learn a new sport. A week later I returned a different person. Tim's teaching was not only absorbing and engaging, but the impact that he has is truly wonderful. Combined with the talent (and patience!) of Claudio and warmth from Anook, Surf school in Famara was an exceptional experience. If you want to learn to surf, there are plenty of schools - however if you want to make new friends, understand the history of surfing, inspire your soul..then I would recommend Famara (and I'll probably see you there on one of my return visits!). Katy Macleod LLB(Hons) I have just come back from Famara in Lanzarote and wanted to thank you for arranging this. The standard of teaching was excellent, not only did we cover surfing technique (from beginner through to advanced) but there was a great concentration on beach safety, something which is missing from many other schools. Tim Jones the lead instructor was great, enthusiastic, informative and took an individual interest in everyone's progress, he also gave us an appreciation and understanding of the history of surfing, board design, weather patterns, tides etc, in short this really was a comprehensive surf school and most importantly of all it was great fun, please pass my thanks on to Tim and his team Claudio and Anook. Nigel - 18 October 2004 Last May I booked a trip to Portugal with you to Sagres. I want you to know what a great time I had there! Those guys took me in