Noosa’s world famous righthand point breaks offer the most ‘fun’ longboard surfi ng holiday experience on the planet. This is one of the “must-surf-before-I-die” locations which is near the top of every surfer’s travel wish list.

noosa a ritzy strip with points to make

Once you have done Noosa and had the classic points pumping you will want to go back again and again. If you get good swells during your visit you are virtually guaranteed to have perfect, walling curls, seemingly machine-made for longboarding. A noseriding paradise. And soft warm water too.

Therefore, for most surfers travelling to Noosa on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast north of Brisbane, the experience is dictated by swell conditions on the points – traditionally best from January through to May but often fickle and potentially leaving visitors unrewarded with rideable waves. If there is not enough swell to get the points working, most visitors maybe head for the consistent nearby quality beach breaks at Sunshine or Coolum; retreat to their resorts to soak up the sun by the pool and perhaps play some golf or tennis; or maybe revel in the great shopping, eating and socialising joys along Noosa’s main thoroughfare of Hastings Street.

But there is much, much more available – you just need the one-stop-shop to provide the right ingredients and the master waves chef to cook-up and serve the best of the rest which is on offer. Tropicsurf – operator of Australia’s biggest surf school at Noosa for the past 17 years and a pioneer of luxury surf cruise travel in the Maldives – has put together the ‘Noosa Menu’, which lays on the best surfing and associated experiences available on the Sunshine Coast.

Tropicsurf provide the local knowledge, the know-how of where to go and when, plus the capability to get you there and give support to heighten the experience. This is not a fixed itinerary. Tropicsurf provide flexible options on what will work best with the wave and weather conditions at the time of your trip and can then tailor the program to suit your desires and capacities.

The Waves

First stop for waves on any Noosa visit are always the famous five points: First Point, Little Cove, Nationals, Tea Tree and Granite. All provide memorable right-handers breaking over smooth granite boulders, some reef and a partially sand covered bottom. However, crowds are always a factor at Noosa. The points are all very different waves.

From the classic, peeling noseriding and hot-dogging curls of First Point; through to the bigger and speedier walls of Nationals, surging off the ‘Boiling Pot’; further out to Tea Tree, with its steeper, faster take-offs and the points wave most popular with the shortboarders; and finally Granite – jutting out into the Pacific the furthest and so the most exposed and picking up the most swell. The long walk out to Granite is a deterrent to many boardriders and so it is usually the least crowded of the points (Tropicsurf can eliminate the walk from the Granite equation with a ride out and back on their jet ski). Within an easy drive from the points are the beach breaks just north of the Noosa River mouth, Castaways, or Peregian. Immediately south there is Sunshine Beach. Given the right conditions, all these spots can deliver excellent waves.

The double joy of a Tropicsurf Sunshine Coast holiday though is the stand-out highlight of a guided day trip to the fabled Double Island Point. This is one of those surfing adventures to remember forever and you will undoubtedly enjoy regaling your mates with the luscious details when you return home. The journey involves an early morning pick up in the Tropicsurf 4WD. First, there’s a 10 minute drive through the Noosa ‘burbs to the ferry for a short haul across the Noosa River. This is followed by a quick leg through coastal forest at the start of the Cooloola National Park and on to the sand. Then comes about a 65 kilometre run north up the wide sweep of Teewah Beach at low tide to the Double Island Point headland. During the week, Teewah will have few people and be deserted for long stretches.

On weekends in the warmer months of spring, summer and autumn, the beach is an idyllic home to hundreds of campers, enjoying the swimming, great beach fishing and – with the right wind – good beach breaks. A stunning Aussie getaway for the locals with their XXXX beer and State-of- Origin rugby league flags proudly marking out the esky-and-tent territory for the various 4WD tribes. Cooloola National Park also features beautiful lakes and wildflowers, famous multi-coloured sand cliffs and Wolf Rock, reputed to be one of Australia’s top scuba diving destinations.

The journey to Double Island Point has to be undertaken at low tide when the wide, flat beach is driveable. Once at DI, you are there for the day after the incoming tide covers much of the beach. The only option then is to go surfing for the day and wait for the receding afternoon tide for a surfed-out drive back to Noosa. Ever changing tides and shifting beach sands mean that on some days you can cut across the Cooloola peninsular – part of the Great Sandy National Park which encompasses the World Heritage listed Fraser Island further to the north – from Teewah beach to Rainbow Bay and drive all the way up to Double Island Point.

But when Longbreak made its day-trip, moderate tides and beach erosion meant the Rainbow Bay route was impassable by 4WD. So, it was a strenuous hike of a couple of kilometres up and over the towering headland at the northern most reach of Teewah Beach, toting boards and backpacks loaded with surfing gear and water. The trek is an experience in itself. Perched on the headland is the historic Double Island Point lighthouse. The unique metal clad, timber frame landmark has operated since 1884. The crossing also cuts through the densely vegetated terrain of the National Park, with its plentiful wildlife. Tropicsurf provide the transport, local knowledge and guiding and they even carry lunch for the group.

All the vital ingredients for a fuss-free day, with maximum time in the water. And what a pay off – a classic day of beautiful waves. It was the weekend and so we had three or four family groups set up for the day in the sheltered and shaded lee of the point. On most mid week days, the place is pretty much deserted and you are quite likely to have it to yourself. But our weekend ‘crowd’ meant we had up to a maximum of about six surfers, including grommets, in the main take off zone – but with plenty of sets coming through there were plenty of good waves for everybody.

DI is a right hand, clear water point break, running over a gleaming white sand bottom. The waves feature a relatively easy but still speedy drop with take-offs from just off the rocks on the inside point. This sets you up for long walls ideal for perching on the nose between multiple cutbacks; and long– long rides into the bay; followed by a walk back up the beach a few hundred metres – it’s just too far to paddle – and jump in back at the start to catch another one.

Too easy. And so much fun. The inside sections on these waves would have to be one of the best places anywhere for anybody of any age to learn how to surf. The kids and a few mums were having a ball that day getting up and getting on it. When the swell is big and the banks along the point are just right, the waves can be picked up just below the lighthouse at the extremity of the headland and ridden all the way around the corner, down the point and into the bay – well over a kilometre long, with some rides lasting a few minutes.

The wall just keeps on wrapping around the point, walling and running down the line. After the double joy of the Noosa points and Double Island Point, Tropicsurf have another waves treat on the menu – Old Woman Island, situated off the mouth of the Maroochydore River, a half an hour’s drive south of Noosa. The small, thickly wooded island is situated nearly a kilometre offshore and has right and left reef breaks peeling off its northern and southern tips, respectively.

On the Sunshine Coast which is so renowned for its right-handers, the left is said by some to be one of the best waves in the area and so is the most popular. This leaves the good quality right hand break mostly unridden. The local knowledge provided by Tropicsurf is essential to know when Old Woman Island is working and how to get there. And then you need the Tropicsurf jet ski to cut out the long paddle to the island’s reefs. If you haven’t had enough wave options opened up for you, there is also the Sunshine Coast Surf Tour on the menu.

Tropicsurf can guide you to catch the best of a string of good breaks south of Noosa – including Alexandra Heads, Point Cartwright, Moffats, Ann Street, Pita and Coolum. Car, ferry and air charters can also be arranged by Tropicsurf to the many good breaks on North Stradbroke, Moreton and Bribie islands – which are all within relatively easy striking distance from Noosa. They feature uncrowded waves both because they are harder to get to but are also considered to be “sharky”.

Surf Related Options

Tropicsurf has also lined up a range of other surfing and related options for your Noosa trip. First is their famous surf school, with lessons from beginners, right up to advanced courses for both shortboards and longboards. They feature in-water classes with videoing for post-session analysis. These are backed by additional classroom theory modules on such areas as board design and understanding waves and weather, which are held at Tropicsurf ’s Sunshine Beach centre.

Tow-in surfing by jet ski on the north Noosa beach breaks – you don’t need previous experience and anybody can try it. Waterman courses – try traditional Hawaiian stand-up paddling and longboard wave riding on the Noosa River and river mouth breakwater.

SurfTech / FCS Test Drive Centre – test drive a range of boards and fins to learn more about designs and what works best for you. Alaya and Olo riding – try out the unique wave-riding techniques on replicas of the ancient Hawaiian oiled timber, finless boards as first seen and recorded with awe for the European world by Captain James Cook in the 18th Century.

Stretch sessions and fitness classes – some of Tropicsurf ’s surf teachers are also qualified fitness instructors and provide a range of tailored on-the-beach limbering up and learning options.

The final treat on the Noosa Menu is Uppy’s Place – a unique ‘rural preservation’ sanctuary on Noosa’s Northshore, with access a privilege which is exclusive to Tropicsurf visitors. Although within sight of the Noosa points, Uppy’s Place is a peaceful world away with virtually its own private beach break where you can have a surf, followed by an afternoon gourmet sausage sizzle cooked up for you in the wooded beach dunes amongst the abundant local population of kangaroos and giant goannas.

Accommodation

The Noosa region has a wide range of tourist accommodation available – from the five-star Sheraton on Hastings Street to the Hyatt Coolum golf resort 20 minutes’ drive south and all levels in between of serviced apartments and units. Another option is to stay in one of the many stunning homes for rent in Noosa. As a registered travel agent, backed by their years of local experience and wide range of contacts, Tropicsurf can also find you a house.

During its trip, the Longbreak team stayed at ‘Allambi Views’ – a beautiful three level residence with three bedrooms and two kitchens, a plunge-pool, landscaped garden and small waterfall, plus a beautiful balcony and outside barbecue area with sweeping views over Laguna Bay and looking down through tall trees and a thick tangle of subtropical vegetation onto the riders at First Point.

A special add-on service is Tropicsurf ’s chef who can come to your house, cook up gourmet meals and do all the cleaning up afterwards. On the first night of the Noosa trip, Longbreak was spoiled with a sumptuous balcony seafood barbecue cooked up by chef Andrew Wood. Born and trained in the UK, Andy has been cooking at some of Noosa’s top restaurants for some years and surfing the local waves. But he is now working on one of Tropicsurf ’s boats in the Maldives for part of the year and providing his five-star services in Noosa for private functions and visitors.

Getting There

Qantas and Virgin Blue offer flights into Brisbane from around Australia, plus other international carriers also fly into the Queensland capital. Tropicsurf can arrange pick-up from Brisbane Airport for the 90 minutes to two hours’ drive north to Noosa. However, a hire car is an easy option. There is just one right turn to take out of the airport on to the highway and then follow the signs with four lanes virtually all the way – with all the delights of the Noosa Menu awaiting your arrival.