Booking your first wave pool session means decoding a level system that changes at every park. The Wave has Improvers, Alaïa Bay has Cruisers, Atlantic Park has Malibu and Turns, SRF Park TLV numbers its levels L0 to L6, and Waco names its waves The Coaster, The Runner and The Peak. Underneath the names, almost every lagoon runs the same three steps. This guide explains them, then translates each park's names, with the cheapest adult price for each level from the parks' own booking pages.
The three levels behind every name
Beginner means you are learning to stand up. Sessions run in a shallow bay on broken whitewater, often with a coach and usually with a soft-top board included. If you cannot yet paddle into a wave and pop up on your own, this is your level, even if you have surfed a few times in the ocean.
Intermediate means you can catch unbroken waves, stand up and ride along the face. These sessions run on open, rolling waves in the main lagoon, and parks give them names like Cruiser, Malibu or Improver. Most surfers who get out in the ocean a few times a year belong here.
Advanced means you can turn on a steeper, faster wave and hold your line. These sessions add power, and at the top end barrels and slabs, and parks often require you to have surfed their intermediate wave first.
What each park calls them
- The Wave, Bristol: Beginner Session from £44; Improver through Advanced Plus sessions from £55.
- Lost Shore, Edinburgh: lessons from £65 for beginners; Cruiser, Cruiser Plus and Turns sessions from £60.
- Alaïa Bay, Switzerland: levels run from Rookie through Cruiser, Turn and Barrel settings; beginners and intermediates book Coached sessions from CHF 149, and independent surfers Guided sessions from CHF 129.
- URBNSURF, Melbourne and Sydney: Surf in the Bays from AUD 39 for beginners; Point Sessions, Cruiser to Advanced, from AUD 109 in Melbourne and AUD 114 in Sydney; Expert Point Sessions above that.
- DSRT Surf, California: Bay and Play from $65 for beginners; Easy Longboarding from $150 for intermediates; Critical Turns from $220 for advanced surfers.
- Atlantic Park, Virginia Beach: Progressive from $117; Intermediate, on the Malibu waves, from $128; Advanced Turns from $133, with Barrels, Expert and Pro sessions above.
- Revel Surf, Arizona: Level I whitewater in the bay from $119; Level II cruiser waves from $129; Level III performance and barrels from $139.
- Waco Surf, Texas: The Coaster for beginners from $129; The Runner for intermediates from $139; The Peak for advanced surfers from $159.
- Palm Springs Surf Club, California: the beginner Waikiki Wave is $265; intermediate and advanced A-Frame sessions are $212.
- SRF Park TLV, Tel Aviv: L0 beginner group lessons in the Bay from ₪250; L1 to L4 surfers' sessions on the Reef from ₪360; L5 and L6 expert sessions from ₪390.
- Wave Park, South Korea: Bay free surfing from KRW 80,000 for beginners; Reef free surfing for beginner-intermediates from KRW 80,000 and for advanced surfers from KRW 110,000.
- Surf Abu Dhabi: Open Surf beginner sessions from AED 1,800; intermediate and advanced from AED 2,500 in the summer season.
Standing waves are simpler
Standing waves, where you ride a wave that stays in one place, usually sell one session for everyone or split only first-timers from everyone else. First-timer sessions often cost slightly more than regular ones because they include coaching and a hold bar: at Honna Surf Hub in Madrid a first-timer session is €49.90 and a regular session €39.90, and at Wellenwerk in Berlin beginner and intermediate sessions are €59.90 while advanced training sessions are €49.90.
Good to Know
If you are unsure, book one level lower for your first session at a new park: waves at the same level name can feel different from pool to pool, and several parks move surfers who cannot manage their session to an easier one. The cheapest session is not always the entry-level one, as Palm Springs Surf Club shows, so check which level a price is for before you compare. For a price-by-level comparison across every park, see the wave pool price index and our price guide.
