YMCA Camp Surf

We just returned from a 3-​day, 2-​night weekend trip here with our Girl Scout troop of 38 adults and girls. Everyone had a fun and wonderful experience, with plenty of activities (archery, climbing tower, arts & crafts, surf and body boarding lessons) and close guidance from the camp counselors. There was the beach, volleyball, Gaga and plenty of other things to do. The adults appreciated the orientation from the director (Clay) and the counselors, who all had positive attitudes and were super caring. They taught everyone how to respect and take care of the environment during the stay. Skit night on Saturday was an integral part of camp. The bathrooms & showers were clean. We felt safe and taken care of by the staff, who all work long hours. We had great interactions with Kelly (surfing), Cameron (archery, climbing tower) and Dane (climbing tower).
The dining hall was fantastic — with a fresh, healthy salad and fruit bar. After eating, you had to sort out everything into the correct bins — composte, landfill, plastic cups, silverware, napkins, etc. We had complicated food allergies for some of the kids, including ours, and with advanced notice, the food service director (Joseph), Clay and kitchen staff (Marie, Chava and Danielle) had all our meals safely planned out and ready at a separate window.
Thank you for our 1^st family and Girl Scout camping experience! We’ll definitely be back and spread the word to other troops at our school!

Just picked my 8y/​o daughter up from the overnight camp! She LOVED it! The camp counselors were very friendly and informative! They answered all questions and positive energy radiated off of them.
The camp post daily pictures of your little ones while they’re away and it is password protected. I even gotten a post card from my daughters counselors telling me about my daughters progress and experience!
My daughter gained so much confidence in the ocean and has gained memories for life! I definitely recommend this camp!
Big shout out to counselors Kate, Emma, & Ruby for making my daughters experience so much fun!

Took my girlfriends son here for surf camp this is the second year in a row he’s gone and he absolutely loved it he can’t wait to go back next year.

I was very disappointed with ‘Camp Surf.” I actually grew up in Imperial Beach and I wanted my 12 year old daughter to experience surfing at my home beach while visiting last summer. When I called to register I specifically asked how many surf hours out of the 8 hour day their would be, they told me 2 hours with an option to surf 5 or 6 hours if they wanted. Turns out that was not true and they had my daughter on the beach most of the day playing land games. She only surfed 1 hour. She did not want to return the 2^nd day, because we were visiting from 14 hours away and she wanted to surf! I kindly asked to be refunded since it was not what we were told, paying for the first day of course. After a slew of phone calls I was pretty much told maybe I could get refunded, and then they never returned any of my further calls to actually get my money. $ 220.00 down the drain! They should re-​name the camp «Beach Camp» because they hardly surf.

Came here for a 3 days 2 night retreat with a group of 30! It was a fun experience!
Pros:
–Atmosphere is amazing! I’m not much of a beach person, but coming here has really opened me up more about the «beach life»!
–Staff here are amazing! Hands down friendly, approachable and knowledgable.
–Team bonding activities are fun, meaningful and challenging. We all got closer together in a short amount of time.
–Eco friendly and a great advocate for protecting our environment and natural resources!
–Cafeteria is great… ocean view is crazily beautiful and I love how they do «family style» meals!
–Salad bar is also delicious! So many different toppings to choose from!
–I like that all around the camp grounds, there are games and activities to keep busy. We all love «carpet ball»!
–Archery, trails, climbing tower had safety equipments and were all very fun!!! Try it out if possible!
Cons:
–Water was only available until 7 pm, since kitchen closes at 7.
Recommend this place for a short retreat or quick camping trip!

My elementary school-​aged children just finished a week here at Camp Surf’s Day Camp. LOVED it! Each and every day the children are busy from drop off, to pick up: surfing, boogie boarding, climbing tower, archery, skits, roasting marshmallows, earning character beads, singing songs, playing games. Talk about the quintessential Southern California summer camp experience!
As a parent who works, it’s always a challenge finding quality summer camp experiences. This one is a no-​brainer. We will absolutely do it again and will recommend it to all our friends!
PS They have a password protected website where they share with parents priceless pictures of their smiling kids in the California sun… can’t be beat!

This is a a great camp for parents and kids. I’ve been here ~8 times with my daughter and son through Indian Guides and Princesses. This is consistently their favorite trip each year. I’ve stayed in the cabins and in tents on the beach. And no the cabins don’t have glass windows, nor should they.

My 10 year old spent 1 week and had a great time. 1^st sleepover camp experience and he confessed to having homesick nights but just as quickly told me about all the things he did and accomplished. There are 12 boys per cabin. They surprising were not as gross as I had expected. Boys had fun at all camp activities. Much are posted on the websites for families to view. They also had fun goofing around. He learned a lot about surfing and is excited to keep it going. The camp is nicely run and has a good set up. Facilities and grounds are clean. Will sign up again next year!

Camp surf was fun for my daughter and her Girl Scout troop they had plenty to do, archery, rock climbing, surfing, crafting etc… I am not the camper type and I had a lot of fun. The staff there are super friendly and helpful.

My 11 year old daughter recently experienced the 1 week Camp Surf. She loved it!
After wandering around the facilities and talking with the staff, I was impressed. Everyone was friendly and they ran a tight ship.
The facilities were as I would expect at a Y camp. Nothing fancy (this ain’t Club Med), but certainly functional.
I know folks like to bash Imperial Beach for a number of reasons, but I found the Y portion nice. The waves were awesome for kids new to surfing.
Would I send my kid back again? Heck yes!
Dave

I came to this place very excited. When I got there, I walked over to the girls cabins and saw that there were not even real windows, just plastic stapled on. Inside the cabin the floor and bunks were sandy along with bugs walking around. The bathrooms were almost as bad. In the bathrooms the showers were right next to the toilets and there were also bugs flying everywhere. On top of the uncleanliness, the staff was beyond rude and, from what I observed, we were treated as if we were going to commit serious crimes and had to be observed constantly. In the morning, there were male staff standing right outside the girl’s cabins which not only is awkward, but it seems a bit creepy and makes one feel uncomfortable.
Overall this place was not enjoyable and I do not recommend anyone go there.

This place is super fun!
We set up tents here, went surfing, boogie boarding, swimming (of course), rock climbing, did archery, volleyball, tetherball, did crafts, played board games, made smores, … so much fun!
The food isn’t bad. And the staff is really helpful. They taught me how to surf! =) That mean’s a lot.
Imperial beach is kinda nasty, but that did not take away from the great time I had here.