Sumba Surf & Travel Guide – Epic Island x Lux Hotels
This expert guide to the Sumba surf will outline why there’s so much buzz about this isle right now. It’s been called the next Bali, only we don’t think that quite does it justice. There’s a touch of luxury here and not a smidgen of the crowds, plus perfect beaches and one of the world’s finest left handers.
Whispers are afoot that there’s an island somewhere in the East Nusa Tenggara that has the credentials and consistency to match Bali and Lombok.
Cue Sumba. Perfectly angled to wipe up the SW and SE swell sets that pierce up from the roaring 40s throughout the whole calendar, it’s a land that’s only just being discovered by board-touting travelers.
Sadly, there’s a distinct whiff of the honeymoon about the spot too and we’re pretty sure Sumba’s on a knife-edge. Fall one side and it becomes a chic, five-star stomping ground of fly-in, fly-out hotels a la the Maldives atolls. Fall the other and it becomes an eco hub for surfers and hikers.
We know which we’d prefer.
On the breaks front, there’s some serious quality in the offing. Divided into two groups, east and west, they hit a zenith with the hollow left-hand points but there are also wilder beach breaks and the odd hollow left to boot.
Downsides include the difficulty of getting pretty much ANYWHERE in Sumba and the lack of tourist infrastructure more generally. If that doesn’t phase you, then stop and read: You’ve found the next big tropical surf paradise.
We might use affiliate links in this post. Basically, you click em’ and we get a little something from your booking or purchase. They help us keep offering more and more in-depth surf guides to awesome places all around the globe. So, thanks for that!
This guide is just one part of our complete guide to surfing in Indonesia
Sumba surf at a glance
The good:
- Still very empty
- Epic lefts that can rival Bali
- Luxury hotels
The bad:
- Perhaps the best break is claimed by a hotel
- It’s hard to reach!
Where is Sumba?
Sumba Island is shaped like a sideways cashew nut at the bottom end of the East Nusa Tenggara region of central Indonesia.
It’s directly south of the legendary Komodo National Park and about 300 miles to the east of the bucket-list surf haven of Bali, which (as you’ll see below) most people use as a stepping stone for getting to Sumba).
The surf coast here is the southwest coast. Just one look at its orientation – AKA, how it faces the whole of the open Indian Ocean and those direct SW swell channels – should be a clue to just how consistent it can be.
How to get to Sumba?
Getting to Sumba is now easier than it was five years ago, mainly thanks to a whole new bunch of flight connections between the island and Bali.
Yep, the vast majority of people who come here fly in from the Isle of the Gods (that’s Bali, just in case ya’ didn’t already know), so get there first. The good news is Bali is now Indo’s second-busiest air hub, and it’s usually possible to find long-haul flights that will take you straight there. Failing that, there are like a gazillion daily connections in from Jakarta, plus plenty from all over Southeast Asia (including the major hubs of KL and Bangkok).
(Incedentally, we tend to use Kiwi for our long-haul flight searches these days – they have thrown out some pretty ridic good deals to Bali in the last few years)
From Bali, it’s another 50 minutes by air to Sumba’s new main airport: Lede Kalumbang Airport. There are now three airlines that run the route almost every day: Nam Air, CitiLink, and Wings. Connections all leave Bali in the morning to get you into Sumba before or just after midday. Wings also have a connection to Umbu Mehang Kunda Airport in Waingapu, which you should go for if you’re more into the breaks in eastern Sumba (Miller’s Rights,
The journey doesn’t end once you get on the ground in Sumba. The island is still kinda undeveloped, so getting from A to B by road can take some time. It’s 1.5 hours at least to the mainstay surf spots on the south coast close to Lede Kalumbang Airport, and more like 2 hours to Miller’s Rights in remote Pantai Tarimbang from the airport in Waingapu. Private transfers are always the best bet – there’s no public transport at all.
Sumba surf spots
There are two distinct zones when it comes to Sumba surf breaks: west and east.
The western breaks are by far the more popular, mainly because they are located down the more built-up and developed run of shoreline (the, you guessed it, west)
The eastern ones are emptier and do have some good quality, though one or two have been badly impacted by the construction of a seawall and pier in recent decades.
Let’s take a look at the lot:
The western breaks
The western breaks are the most popular on the island, though that doesn’t mean they’ll have lineups like Bali. You can access them in around 1.5 hours’ drive from the main airport (Lede Kalumbang Airport) and the shoreline is more developed with luxury hotels, resorts and surf camps than further east.
The western breaks will almost all perform better in the dry season, since you want those SW swells and E trades to combine to get them firing.
Pero (left and right)
There are rights and lefts at the spot known as Pero, at the first named surf break on the western side of Sumba. They’re often listed as two different spots and we can see why since this is no A-frame – each wave is located at opposite sides of a river mouth on Pero Beach. Thing is, the right is pretty crappy, needing strong wet season swells to kick up above 5 feet to make it even workable.
The real headline is the left hander that pulls into the bay on the south side of the estuary. When there’s a nice dry-season SW punch and a morning offshore trade, this one’s a pearler that could rival the Ments or even Money Trees in G-Land, though it’s a touch mellower than both. Whatever it reminds you of, we don’t think you’ll be dreaming of elsewhere when you pull into the pocket and rip the hollow sections that drop you back in the channel. It’s a fantastic wave on its day, great fun and rippable, but perhaps a touch fickle.
Waingyapu
The south end of the bay where the white sands of Pantai Waingyapu thin out and give way to the wide reef shelf is a goofy’s mecca. There are about three take off zones for the lefts there that are both consistent and clean on good dry season SW swells, but a bit full on and heavy when it’s a direct westerly. The east trade winds can work magic here and we really love this break on an early morning at high when it shapes up, you can rip it all the way from the drop in to the edge of the sands if you’re feeling it, straight into a paddle channel to take you back up to the point.
Pantai Marosi
Beyond the rugged islet at Pantai Marosi is a reef break that gives makeable A-frames on both the left and the right, though the right is considerably better. When its big in the peak season here this one can be a frothing paddle out with some challenging duck dives in the absence of a good channel.
Pantai Palamoko
This is the long run of perefect sand that extends west from the NIHI hotel. It’s hard to access but it’s got peak after peak to practice on when swells are in the smaller category – 2-4 foot. There are rock reefs that sit just below the cliffs at the eastern end of the beach that create some nice longboard rights.
Occy’s Left
This might just be the most hotly debated surf spot in the whole of Indo right about now. The reason? The construction of the uber-chic NIHI resort just in front has effectively closed off access to the water for anyone who’s not staying there (and let’s just say it isn’t cheap!).
One upside is that if you can afford the hotel then you’re basically in surf heaven. There’s nowhere better. They limit it to 8-10 surfers per day on the wave, so crowds will never be an issue, and you get some stunning luxury to boot.
The wave you get access to is also called God’s Left because it is pretty darn perfect on SW-S dry season middling swells, peaking off the point into a lovey spinning hollow section before mellowing out into a wall that really invites the turns. It really is perfect, and has goofies drooling the planet over!
Where to stay? NIHI – there’s no question. This hotel manages access to this break so you gotta’ stay here to surf it. You probably won’t regret having to do that though!
Coconut Cove
The NIHI Resort now also have access to this small beach to the east of thier hotel that they use for beginner and intermediate surf lessons.
We haven’t been there – we wish we could afford a stay at the NIHI (one day; one day) but the wave is heralded as a MUCH more accessible one than Occy’s; lots of mush and very mellow. You’ll usually be on a planned surf trip here so should have lessons and a guide.
Wainukaka
The coast angles a touch to the east at Wainukaka just before the Sumba coast dips into the lovely exotic beach of Pantai Pahiwi. That creates a good point for sucking up the wet season SE swells that come across in November and December, and there can be some great rights when it’s 5-foot and windless.
Sadly, that doesn’t happen all that often and this is usually messy stuff. There are also boulders on the ride in so be sure to know where you’re going.
The eastern breaks
The eastern breaks are largely on the southeastern side of Sumba.
All apart from one are on the reefs that ring the talcum-powder sands between Maukawini Beach to Pantai Watuparunu, with the best spots of all clustered on a single bend in the coast known as Kalala Beach. If in doubt, stay there. These spots will generally work better in the wet season because they face a bit more SE and pick up more of that monsoon swell, so they’re better if you’re vacationing November-March.
The one exception is Miller’s Rights, which are uber popular for a reason. They’re located in eastern Sumba but face the same way as the spots in western Sumba, so are better in dry season.
Miller’s Rights
This rare Sumba right is actually a whole set of rights. It’s accessible only by boat below a high headland that reminds us of the perch above Uluwatu Temple in Bali.
A very popular wave, it’s a good stomping ground of the surf camps on the eastern side of Sumba, and not just because it offers something for the regulars.
It’s long and really good fun if you take off deep into the point. There’s also the option of sticking closer to the inside section and catching the wave when it fattens out and loses the hollowness, so it’s top for intermediate learners as well.
Probably one of the most consisitent waves on the isalnd and a really, really beautiful setting.
Where to stay? Camp Tarimbang cannot be beaten. It’s right on the bay that has Miller’s Rights and is a unique stay, offering jungle tentalows with big decks. There’s no pool or anything but it’s like have a private beach it’s that remote.
The Office
Somewhere we wouldn’t mind working 9-5, this Office is a fun break that suits all levels from just-intermediate and up. The mellow, slow-moving walls trip left over the sandbars and rocky-bottomed bays at the western end of the reefs out front of the Kalala Beach Resort. They are super nice to ride on all boards on a dry season 3–5-footer.
Racetrack
As the name implies this is the faster section of the reefs out front of the Kalala Beach Resort. It’s really all about the drop and then the pull in section because there’s not too much room for maneuvering on the wave face itself and the reef can get tight.
Five-O
A performance wave that goes off on both dry and wet seasons swells with a good S direction. This one’s where the shortboarders on the <5″4s will be ripping it. It’s only good at high and quite shallow even then, so not for anyone without experience riding close to the reef.
When to surf in Sumba?
As with virtually everywhere across the central part of the Indonesian archipelago, Sumba surf is better during the dry season. That lasts from April to October and sees strong and regular pushes of groundswell move up from the SW and W, which is perfect to get those reefs on the southern shores of the isle firing.
And it’s not just the swell compass, but the trade winds, too. They filter in lightly from the east, usually getting a bit of action in the mid-morning to help hold up the breaks and add hollowness.
Sumba surf is actually pretty decent in the wet season, too, though you will be limited to some of the more versatile breaks (mainly Wainukaka and Miller’s Rights) and can expect generally smaller and less clean conditions. The breaks that work best in the monsoon are mostly the eastern ones, so pick that side of the island if you’re coming between November and March.
Best hotels (for surfers) in Sumba
One hotel in particular stands out in Sumba: NIHI, a resort with its own private surf break. But there’s an ever-growing cohort of places that we think can be even better for hitting the breaks here, so long as you don’t mind forgoing Occy’s Left.
- NIHI Sumba – Look, if you can afford this then we’d say go for it. The money is well spent. Arguably the best break on the island (Occy’s) rolls into the reefs right in front of this award-winning resort, forming a hollow left hander that works on all tides from morning until night. People staying at the hotel are the only ones allowed to paddle out here and they limit it to something like 10 people per day. Money can buy happiness, it seems. AND, of course, the rooms are ridiculously nice, as is everything else. It’s perhaps the top surf hotel in Indo.
- Sumba Beach House – Right on the beach on the far side of the bay from Nihi, this is more like a quintessential Asian beach bungalow setup but it’s got bags of style too. It’s also about a 10th of the price of NIHI! There’s a fun wave right out front of the hotel.
- Ketanu Bamboo Lodge Sumba – If you don’t mind not being within easy easy walking distance of a surf beach, then this one’s worth looking at. Very luxurious and perched atop a hill with sweeping views of the south coast, it’s pretty dang unique.
There are plenty, plenty more top hotels in Sumba to pick from. We HIGHLY reccommend you use Booking.com’s map feature to see where the place you want to stay actually is – the main downside to this isle is the difficulty of traveling between beaches and breaks, so being within walking distance is a real doozy!
Things to do in Sumba (when you’re not surfing)
Sumba isn’t only famous for its surf. The isle has been vogue for years now for its talcum beaches, wild interiors, and picture-perfect bays. It’s ridden a similar trajectory to Siargao in the Philippines, and there’s now a whole array of things to do here that don’t involve peeling waves.
Be sure to get through this list to make the most out of your time:
- Take a 1-day tour of West Sumba’s Ancient Villages – This day-long tour is all about what’s surely the most incredible culutral highlight of the island: The villages of Wanokaka. Straddling the lush hillsides just inland from the surf region, there’s a series of about 10 villages that have been there for centuries. They’re famed for thier unique buildings, crafted on stilts with thatched roofs. You’ll learn all about the local peoples, thier history, and even get to see one of the area’s remote beaches.
- 4D3N Tour of Sumba starting at the airport – With ancient villages, jungle reserves, wild waterfalls, and paradise beaches to get through, but not the best infrastructure, it makes a lot of sense to simply chuck money at the problem in Sumba and do a guided tour. This one is a comprehensive 4-day option that takes in all the highlights, including the historic settlements of Wanokaka, the amazing rice paddies of Waikacura, and loads of beaches to boot. It will be with a private driver, so check ahead that it’s okay to bring the surfboard.
We might use affiliate links in this post. Basically, you click em’ and we get a little something from your booking or purchase. They help us keep offering more and more in-depth surf guides to awesome places all around the globe. So, thanks for that!
