Unique Surf Charters To The Mentawai Islands And North Sumatra
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Useful Info
Booking Your Trip
Freedom charters can be booked through one of our exclusive agents: Waterways Travel (USA) or World Surfaris (Australia) who can also take care of the rest of your travel needs. They have years of experience in surf travel and will be able to provide you with not only the best deals on flights, but also a wealth of information that concerns the traveling surfer in particular. There's nothing worse than getting to the airport to find unexpected baggage charges or other hassles. If you are unsure which agent to use, Contact Us
What To Bring
The general rule of thumb when packing for a surf charter is to bring as little as possible. You'll be spending most of your time in the water and won't need a whole lot for the times you are out. Here is a basic list of things you should consider bringing on your trip:
Surfing Gear - Essential:
- surfboards
- legropes and spare tethers
- boardshorts
- spare fin sets / fin keys
- rash vest(s)
- tropical surf wax
- wax comb
- ding repair kit
- sunblock
Surfing Gear - Optional:
- reef booties
- surf helmet
- surf hat
General Items - Essential:
- passport with 6 month validity and at least 1 fully blank 'visa' page
- visa (if necessary)
- copy of passport (store separately)
- airline tickets
- driving license
- credit cards
- cash (new, crisp bills) for buying souvenirs and tipping porters and crew
- pants (1)
- sandals
- sun hat
- shoes
- t-shirts
- shorts
- sunglasses
- surf towel
- bath towel
- still camera
- deodorant
- nail clippers
- shampoo
- shave cream
- razors
- soap
- toothbrush
- toothpaste
- personal medical kit (bandaids, asprin, etc)
General Items - Optional:
- CD's / MP3 player (can be plugged directly into onboard stereo)
- personal snorkeling gear
- books/magazines
- comb/brush
- insect repellent
- video camera
- sea sickness pills
- prescription medication (plus paperwork in case of emergency)
- contact lens kit
- gifts for the locals (old surf t-shirts, rashvests, magazines, etc)
- eye glasses
- after sun cream
- waterproof poncho
- mobile phone (cell phone)
Be careful what you pack in your carry on bags. With today's heightened airport security, many common items (nail scissors, files, pocket knives, etc) will be confiscated from your carry on luggage before you board the plane. If they are, you will be without them the entire trip. Put these (legal) items in your check in bags.
Remember, Indonesia has extremely harsh drug laws. Lock your bags with airline approved TSA locks to keep people from tampering with them, and leave your drugs at home!
Electricity on Board
All our boats are equipped with 220V AC power and you are welcome to bring your various chargers, laptops, and other small electronics that require plugging in.
Use the following guide to make sure your electronics will work with our system:
- Check that the item works on 220V AC. Most of todays electronics work with both 110V and 220V
- To make sure your plugs will fit ours, click here and find your plug type in the table. Our plugs will work with types A, B, and C. While we do keep a variety of adapters on board, it's a good idea to get one if you need it just in case.
Communication
Satelite communication is available on some of our boats. Please check with us in advance for status of these devices
Alternatively, we recommend you bring your mobile (cell) phone with you set to international roaming. While signal is not constant in the islands, you will have several opportunities during your trip where signal is available.
If international roaming is not an option, a local "pay as you go" SIM card can be purchased at a very reasonable rate. Please contact us to organize this in advance.
A Word on Malaria
It's important to note that, while catching Malaria on a charter boat is rare (mosquitoes simply do not fly the distance to a charter boat at anchor), it is not unheard of.
Consider the scenario of a surfer who has spent time in a land camp and decides to hop on a boat charter. Perhaps he has been exposed to Malaria, or perhaps the mosquito that has taken up residence in his damp booties is carrying the virus.
Whatever the case, both he and the mosquito board one boat or another. Perhaps it's your charter, perhaps he and his mosquito pal visit your boat from another charter. Bottom line is that the threat of Malaria is real.
We do recommend that you consult your doctor and discuss with him the option of taking a course of anti-malarial pills on your trip, and avoid heading in to visit land camps between dusk and dawn.
The Flight Over (tips to minimize jetlag)
While there is no 100% cure-all for jetlag, following a few guidelines will help you feel better on arrival and get you ripping sooner:
- If at all possible, change your sleeping and eating times to more
closely
match those of your destination several days prior to your trip.
- Refrain from drinking alcohol on the flight (save it for after surf beers!)
- Eat as lightly as possible and drink plenty of liquids on the plane to avoid dehydration.
- While not always easy on an airplane, try to get as much sleep as possible.
- Also, take time to get up and stretch your legs when not asleep.
Upon Arrival
After landing, it's a quick walk to the arrival terminal where you will go through immigration and customs. The following tips assume you will arrive at Padang via an international flight.
Immigration
Those that haven't gotten a visa prior to arrival (which is most of us) will have to pay a US$25 fee for a 30 day visa. Have this fee ready with exact change in crisp, new bills. It's a good idea to put the receipt in your passport for safe keeping once you have cleared immigration.
Customs
After immigration, it's on to the baggage claim and customs check. Be advised that a porter will very likely grab your stuff in this area whether you want him to or not. If you don't need him, you should firmly but politely say "TIDAK" (NO) and don't let them carry your baggage. If you do opt to use a porter, he should carry your stuff to your transportation and load it as well. The going rate for a tip is no more than US$3 - $5. It's a good idea to have a supply of singles in your wallet for this sort of thing.
Welcome
Once out of the terminal, look for our representative holding the "Freedom" sign. He or she will guide you from there to your transportation which will take you to a local hotel to unwind before continuing to the boat.
On the Boat
This is a surf trip. We want you to cut loose and have good time! There are, however, a few basic rules we would appreciate that you follow while on board our boats:
- No shoes or reef booties on board.
- Don't hesitate to ask the crew for anything you need.
- Help yourself to refreshments if you're thirsty.
- If you're hungry, let us know.
- Point out any potential problems with the boat to a crewmember even if you are not sure.
- Smoking allowed only outdoors.
- Only dry clothes inside the cabin.
- No drugs.
- Conserve fresh water as much as possible.
- Put trash in it's proper place.
- Keep your belongings tidy.
- Always observe good surf etiquette in the water.
Most of all, listen to your captain. Other than having the last word
on everything that happens onboard, remember that he has years
of experience, has all the latest swell info, and knows what tide and
wind conditions are best at each break.
We can't tell you the number of
times guests have demanded to go to a particular break, contrary to the
capain's recommendation, only to find out he was right. Our captains will
get you the best possible waves. They are only happy when YOU are happy!
Please trust their judgement. You'll be glad you did.
Returning Home
After 11 days of surfing the best waves of your life, you will be exhausted! Don't forget these last few items before we take you to the airport for your return flight to reality:
- Purchase your photo CD from your captain / surf guide.
- Sign our guestbook. Give us any suggestions / feedback you have.
- If you have had a good time, please be sure to tip the captain and crew. Tips typically start around US$50 and up. If you've had a really good time and the crew's been outstanding, let them know! Please give all tips to the captain for dispersal to the crew.
- When you get back home, be sure to send us an email with your comments and suggestions. Also, don't forget to tell your friends to check out your group's photos out (if applicable) on the Photo Gallery section of this website.
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