Our 3 Favourite Surf Spots in Siargao for Beginner & Intermediate Surfers
We spent one month in the Philippines, and when planning our trip we knew two weeks of that month were going to be dedicated to Siargao with the goal of improving our surfing and exploring the best surf spots in Siargao.
For a bit of context, we were complete beginner surfers before arriving. By the end of our two weeks, I’d confidently say we’re now advanced beginners – maybe even bordering on intermediate on a good day!
Before Siargao, I didn’t really understand how waves worked. I never thought about positioning, and while I could occasionally stand up, it definitely wasn’t consistent. Harry had a better understanding of the technical side of surfing and was more likely to catch and ride waves, but between us we’d probably only surfed 5–10 times in our lives.
After our two weeks, I’m confident in saying that I now have a better understanding of waves, positioning, and can actually catch my own waves. While we still have a long way to go, Siargao really helped us to build confidence!
We spent the bulk of our time surfing in the north of the island before finishing our trip with a few days in General Luna and while we definitely did not try to surf every single spot on the island, we did surf enough in a handful of spots that I feel confident in sharing my favourites and recommending them to all of you!
So here we go in no particular order >>
If you’re planning your Siargao trip and curious how we spent our two weeks, you might also like to read:
2 Weeks in Siargao: Complete Itinerary + Where to Stay, Surf & Explore
North Siargao Travel Guide: What It’s Like To Stay Beyond General Luna
1. Big Wish (Pacifico Beach)
🏄♀️What To Expect
Big Wish is the local name for the reef break at Pacifico Beach, located about 45-50 mins north of General Luna.
We’ve heard that in the peak months (Aug-Nov) the main break rivals that of Cloud 9 but it’s a left-hand reef break so good for all you goofy surfers (like us!).
Pacifico itself is one of our favourite parts of Siargao. The beach runs alongside the quiet barangay, with a single road lined by surf shops, board rentals, cafés, restaurants, and accommodation. Compared with General Luna, it’s far less developed, much quieter, and has a much more laid-back atmosphere.
There’s a 20 PHP (around $0.30 USD) entrance fee to access the beach. We paid 600 PHP (~$10) each for a board and a 2 hour lesson and 200 PHP (~$3.25) for just a board rental for 1 hour.
On big days, the main break is definitely for advanced surfers but closer to shore there are much friendlier waves perfect for beginner-intermediate surfers. We visited in May, and while some days the waves at the main break looked beyond our comfort level, for the most part it was perfect for us as beginners.
Since this is a reef break, low tide and even mid tide can be brutal. I would highly recommend using Surfline to check tides prior to choosing when to surf and to paddle out at high tide.
🏅Why We Loved It
Firstly, we just loved Pacifico Beach itself – it’s mellower and arguably more beautiful than General Luna.
Secondly, the crowds, or lack thereof, were another huge reason why we loved it here. Siargao has blown up over the past few years so nowhere on the island feels completely undiscovered anymore, but in comparison to General Luna, Pacifico is empty.
We stayed 15 mins away, in Pilar, which meant we could surf early in the morning and often found ourselves sharing the lineup with only a handful of other surfers. By midday and into the afternoon, more people would arrive up from General Luna, but it never felt overcrowded.
Read more about our time in Pilar – North Siargao Travel Guide: What It’s Like To Stay Beyond General Luna
As goofy surfers, Pacifico was a wonderful left-hand break for us to practice on. We had a lot of fun here on longboards!
💡Our Top Tip
There’s also a current that tends to pull you to the right as you’re facing the ocean, so enter the water a little further left than you think you need to. Pick a landmark on shore before paddling out— it’ll make it much easier to notice when you’ve drifted and save you a lot of unnecessary paddling.
2. Bamboo Surf Spot (Wantaw Beach)
🏄♀️What To Expect
Bamboo Surf Spot is located just above Big Wish, further to the left as you’re looking out at the ocean. I’m not entirely sure whether you can paddle over from Pacifico Beach, but we always accessed it via the beach opposite Cabanas Grill & Restaurant.
Locals referred to this beach as Wantaw Beach, although you won’t find that name on Google Maps. Instead, navigate to Karajawan Bent Palm Tree, which takes you straight to the scooter parking and beach access.
This is a right hand reef break, best surfed at mid to high tide with lots of space for surfers to spread out. When we were told about this spot people said the main break is not as big and scary on larger swell days in comparison to Big Wish. I’m not sure that I agree with that as we did actually experience a few bigger swell days and I definitely found that the main break (furthest out to sea) was in fact big and scary lol. However, the beauty of this spot is that there’s a front area closer to the beach that has really great waves for beginners-advanced beginners, and on those bigger days we took full advantage of those.
When the conditions are working well, there’s also a left-hand wave breaking on the far side of the little bay. However we didn’t love to go too left here because there’s a rip over there that’s actually brutal to get caught in (speaking from experience). We never felt that it was dangerous, it’s just such a nightmare to paddle out of.
If you’d like to read more about how we progressed our surfing in Siargao by surfing Bamboo Surf Spot almost every day – Siargao Surf Progression Guide: How We Went From Beginner Waves in North Siargao to Cemetery in General Luna
🏅Why We Loved It
We thought Pacifico had spoiled us when it came to avoiding crowds, but Bamboo was even quieter!!
This spot felt much more local, and many days we found ourselves outnumbered by Filipino surfers rather than tourists. We made a conscious effort to be respectful in the lineup because it’s obvious this isn’t a surf break that’s been overrun by tourism yet — it’s first and foremost a local wave. We found that smiling, saying hello, and showing respect went a long way. Before long, familiar faces started recognising us, we’d exchange a few words before paddling out, and over the course of the week we ended up making friends in the water.
Another thing we loved was the lack of surf schools. Although Bamboo is only a few minutes from Big Wish, there was usually just one surf shop running lessons and renting boards. We rented boards from them for five days at 500 PHP (~$8) per day and stored them there overnight, which made surfing twice a day incredibly easy. We just showed up, grab our boards, and head straight into the water.
Finally, the extra space here in the lineup made it a lot less intimidating than Big Wish at times and really helped us build confidence. We really never felt rushed or like we were competing for waves.
💡Our Top Tip
Enter the water directly in front of Bamboo Surf Beach Resort. There’s a flat section of rock here that makes it much easier to walk your board into the water without slicing up your feet or accidentally damaging your board.
3. Cemetery Surf Spot (General Luna)
🏄♀️What To Expect
We only discovered Cemetery Surf Spot when we came down to General Luna for the last few days of our trip, and I’m so glad we did. In fact, I wish we’d found it earlier because we definitely would’ve surfed it more than once.
Unlike the other two northern spots, Cemetery is about 800 meters offshore and best accessed by boat. At low tide you can walk out over the reef but it takes about 20 mins of walking with your board and the boat is much more fun in my opinion!
We paid 400 PHP (~$6.50) for two-hour board rental and 200 PHP (~$3.25) for a return trip on the boat. Note that the minimum stay for Cemetery is two hours. They’ll drop you as close to the lineup as the tide allows, and when you’re finished, you swim or walk back to your boat. One piece of advice — remember which boat you came out on! There are quite a few waiting offshore, and they all start to look the same after a couple of hours in the water.
Cemetery is a right-hand reef break, but what makes it unique is how spread out it is. The wave breaks across a stretch of reef with several different take-off zones, which naturally spreads surfers out and makes the lineup feel much less crowded than you might expect.
Cemetery is best surfed at low tide, we were told that at high tide, the waves become softer and don’t break as well. Even at low tide however the depth of the water at the takeoff zone is deep enough so that you’re not worrying about reef. The day we were there the rides were long and depth still good enough where we weren’t worried about falling on reef but I could see a scenario where it gets shallow real fast so reef awareness is still really important.
I think cemetery is definitely a spot for intermediate surfers or advanced beginners looking for a challenge. The waves can get big here – I caught the biggest wave of my life (!!) which I was so buzzing about, but I also had one pretty gnarly wipeout… but I suppose that comes with the territory!
🏅Why We Loved It
We really enjoyed getting the boat out to the break and back. We’d never done that prior to this so it felt like an adventure and a step in the right direction in terms of progression!
Then there was the space — we love space! There was a little crowd around one break at the start but once people started to get confident, they began to spread out.
Also – love, love, looved how deep it was at the takeoff zone. After spending two weeks surfing Big Wish and Bamboo, where reef awareness was constantly on our minds, it was actually so refreshing to surf a reef break where that wasn’t our main focus.
More than anything, though, Cemetery just felt like the perfect way to finish our two weeks in Siargao. We’d spent almost every day in the water, and this wave felt like the natural next step up. It challenged us more than the other breaks, but in a way that was exciting rather than intimidating, and we both came away feeling like we’d genuinely improved.
If you’re starting to feel comfortable catching your own waves and want to push yourself a little further, I’d definitely recommend giving Cemetery a go.
💡Our Top Tip
To get a boat to Cemetery, navigate to Siargao Corner Cafe in General Luna. Directly across the road you’ll see a dirt track leading down towards the coast, usually with dozens of scooters parked beside it – that’s a good sign you’re in the right place! Walk down towards the surf shops and board rentals, where they’ll organise both your board hire and your return boat trip out to the break.
Final Thoughts
Siargao has no shortage of incredible surf spots, and we know we’ve only scratched the surface. There are plenty of other breaks on the island that we’d love to come back and try one day, but these three were the ones that really made us fall in love with the surf culture in Siargao!
Each spot gave us something different. Big Wish helped us build confidence, Bamboo became our home break where we surfed day after day, and Cemetery was the wave that showed us just how much we’d improved over two weeks.
Looking back, I’m so glad we chose to spend the majority of our time surfing in the north of the island before finishing in General Luna. The quieter lineups, friendly locals, and variety of waves gave us the perfect environment to learn without feeling overwhelmed.
If you’re heading to Siargao as a beginner or advanced beginner surfer wondering where to spend your time, I honestly don’t think you can go wrong with any of these three breaks. Surf within your ability, respect the locals and the ocean, don’t be afraid to chat to other surfers in the lineup, and most importantly have fun!
Thank you so much for reading! We hope that all of this information helps as you plan your surfing in Siargao.
Cheers and safe travels,
Julie & Harry
If you’re headed to the Philippines, you might also find our other guides helpful:
Philippines: 3 Islands You Must Visit for Your Trip
North Siargao Travel Guide: What It’s Like To Stay Beyond General Luna
2 Weeks in Siargao: Complete Itinerary + Where to Stay, Surf & Explore
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