Surf camps in Hiriketiya

Hiriketiya is a horseshoe bay three hundred metres across, and its two headlands wrap the swell: when the open coast closes out, the bay still has a wave, and it fills up fast. Two houses sell a week here, and they are built for very different surfers.

Kima sells guiding, not lessons. Two sessions a day, seven days a week, small groups split by level, the tuk-tuk paid for and the footage waiting when you get back. The guide picks the night before between the bay, A Frames, Easy Rights and Corners. At the house there is a pool, cabanas, a 150 m² gym and an ice bath three times a week. The board is extra, and a complete beginner is in the wrong package, since learning to stand up is a separate five-day programme. A dorm week starts at €322, depending on dates.

The Salty sits a few steps from the bay and weighs yoga equally with surf: eleven sessions a week, Pilates, a shala at the edge of the jungle. Only five lessons, but the board is yours every day, so in the afternoon you paddle back out on your own, on the sandy side of the bay where the schools work. A week in a shared room is €799 outside peak season, three nights €374. No rate is published for one person alone in a private room.

The village goes to bed early, so both houses fill their own evenings. Kima serves a themed buffet Monday to Friday and a barbecue on Friday; The Salty sits everyone down together four nights out of seven, with Raa Bar and Smoke & Bitters a short walk away for a change of table. If you already surf and want two sessions a day without organising any of it, Kima. If you are travelling alone, learning, or want as much yoga as surf, The Salty.