There are surf destinations that make you work for them. Lanzarote is not one of them.
You land at the airport, drop your bags at your hotel in Puerto del Carmen, and within an hour you’re watching the Atlantic roll in from a seafront promenade lined with restaurants and warm evening light. The island’s volcanic landscape sits dramatically behind you — black lava fields, crater ridges, the kind of scenery that doesn’t look entirely real. And somewhere between your first coffee and your first look at the ocean, you get the feeling that Lanzarote is going to be very good to you.
For surfers, it genuinely is. The island sits far enough south that the sun rarely disappears, the water stays warm year-round, and the swell windows are remarkably consistent across all seasons. Puerto del Carmen gives you the comfort and convenience of a well-established resort town. Famara — a short drive across the island — gives you one of the most spectacular surf beaches in all of Europe. The combination is hard to beat.
Two Sides of the Same Island, One Incredible Setup
Puerto del Carmen is where most visitors base themselves, and for good reason. The long seafront promenade, the variety of restaurants, the easy airport access — it has everything you need to feel settled from day one. The local beach is sheltered and calm, good for early morning paddles and first-ever whitewash sessions when the swell cooperates.
But Famara is where the magic lives. On the island’s northwest coast, backed by the towering cliffs of the Risco de Famara and facing directly into the open Atlantic, the beach stretches for six kilometres of shifting sandbank peaks. It picks up North Atlantic groundswells with the kind of reliability that surf trip planners dream about. Winter brings powerful, well-organised swells for experienced surfers. Summer delivers consistent, forgiving rollers that are ideal for beginners and improvers working on their fundamentals. Every morning, before the trade winds pick up, the conditions are as clean and inviting as surf gets anywhere on the continent.
The setup, in short, is perfect…and School3S figured that out a long time ago.
School3S: Based in Puerto del Carmen, Teaching at Famara
After travelling the world chasing waves, paddle surf, and yoga, Barbara Antonini and Diego Gabrielli found their home in Puerto del Carmen and built something special. School3S has been running for over seven years, and the philosophy behind it is every bit as distinctive as the island it operates on.
This is not a school that simply teaches you to pop up and sends you on your way. Barbara and Diego take a genuinely holistic approach, while combining surf instruction with yoga, paddle surf, and SUP yoga into an experience that addresses the whole surfer: the breathing, the body awareness, the mindfulness that makes time in the ocean feel transformative rather than just physical. You might catch your first wave in the morning and find yourself in a sunset yoga session on the beach in the afternoon. That’s the School3S way.
They pick students up in Puerto del Carmen and bring them directly to Famara Beach, which means you get the convenience of staying in one of Lanzarote’s most liveable resort towns while having access to its best surf. The team speaks English, Spanish, and Italian, and the personal, family-run atmosphere that Barbara and Diego have built means every student gets genuine attention rather than being shuffled through a production line.
The reviews say it all. People come as beginners and leave as surfers. People come for one lesson and book another the next morning.
Why Sessions Travel and School3S Are a Natural Fit
Sessions Travel exists to make surf travel feel real and accessible, especially for people who are just starting out and want more than a generic package holiday. Their destination guides are honest and specific, written for curious travelers who want to understand a place properly before they arrive.
Lanzarote fits that mission beautifully, and School3S fits it even better. This is a school built by people who genuinely love the island, love the ocean, and love sharing both with others. It is exactly the kind of experience Sessions Travel wants to point beginners toward.
Whether you’re staying in Puerto del Carmen and heading to Famara for your first session, or planning a longer stay to work through the multi-day camps and surf retreats the school offers, Sessions Travel has everything you need to plan your trip. Their guide to surfing in Caleta de Famara covers the beach and conditions in detail, and their guide to surfing in Puerto del Carmen walks you through exactly what to expect from your base on the south coast.