The point is to create a a different sort of surf trip – wellness, adventure, leisure, connection, consciousness. It’s a surf trip with soul.
So you’re tired of me not having any solutions. You’re sick of me decolonizing sustainable surf tourism and not offering a well thought-out alternative. You’re upset over me calling out surfers everywhere for our colonizing pursuits of endless summer waves, while I continue to live that unjust reality every day of my gringa-riffic life here in Costa Rica. Fair enough. In fact, I’m tired of me, too – harping on everybody else without creating answers of my own that might make our collectively unsustainable ways of doing things that much more irrelevant by the day. That’s what this sustainability thing is all about, right?
So we created REVIVE: surf trips with soul. An attempt to be the change we wish to see in the surf world, when it comes to surf trips edging toward sustainability and socio-cultural consciousness. Tarantula Surf teamed up with Native like Water, and we’re leading our pilot adventure this March 2016 just in time to catch the Caribbean swell window in Bocas del Toro, Panama and Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica. By partnering with established non-profits like Give & Surf and the The Bridge (El Puente) REVIVE’s mission is to connect conscientious surf travelers with epic waves, local communities, vibrant natures, and learning experiences. It’s all built on a belief that sustainability in surf tourism stems from meaningful cross-cultural interaction, treading lightly on the land, and sharing our unique gifts as service – beyond the misguided do-goodery gone wrong that’s been critiqued at length in the past. Travelers will explore indigenous cosmovisions, experience jungle life off the beaten path, not want to leave after getting in the surfy leisure groove with the chill island vibes, and talk about what we’re experiencing in ways that open our minds to the realities often taken for granted.
The point is to create a a different sort of surf trip – wellness, adventure, leisure, connection, consciousness. It’s a surf trip with soul.
So is this what we mean by sustainable surf tourism?
Guess there’s only one way to find out.
Editor’s Note: REVIVE currently has eight spots available to people of all ages and surfing abilities. But while your surfing resume isn’t required, bringing an open mind and a giving heart are.
For more details about the all-inclusive trip with locally-owned tour providers, accommodations, and restaurants, boats and rides to reefs and points not everybody knows about, fresh and healthy food made with love – all to create an educational surf travel experience – go here.
