About Shaka Surf Camps

Why Choose Us?

Shaka Surf Camps is a limited liability Company duly incorporated in Sri Lanka under the Companies Act No.07 of 2007. We are an official Sri Lankan registered Surf Camp & Surf School and approved by the Sri Lankan Tourism Board. Shaka Surf Camps holds the rights to legally operate commercially without any restrictions. This gives us the confidence that our guests will receive the best vacations without any hassles!

Shaka Surf Camps employ local staff & support the community by giving back by offering (limited) free surf coaching & training courses to the local community. We help generate jobs in the area & have an excellent reputation with the locals and have developed great friendships!

If you are looking for a surf camp vacation that provides Real Surf Coaching that delivers results then that’s us! Shaka Surf Camps!

Why? Well we have been doing this for years! Here are some of the things that can only be earned with time!

We are based in a beautiful bespoke new villa with direct access to a great surfing beach and within close proximity to many quality surf spots & amazing tropical beaches.

We offer great food using only local fresh produce, cooked by our experienced chef for you daily. You will also have an awesome healthy breakfast to get you amped for the day!

You are guaranteed to have a vacation filled with fun, culture and so much more, so come and experience the Shaka way of life! See you soon!

Meet The Owners!

Pat Renaud

Brought up in South Africa, I have been fortunate to experience an outdoor lifestyle, my days were spent surfing with great friends and having so much fun along the way. It was apparent that my life would evolve around the ocean & beach environment.

I eventually competed in local surf events in the mid 80’s / 90’s…. and took home some sweet wins, which gave me even a bigger stoke for the sport. Over the years I competed in many events & championships on a locally, national & international level. I am proud to say that I achieved several South African Championship titles & gained some impressive sponsorship from world leading brands.

Over the years I worked my way into management & eventually decided it was time to travel abroad. I ended up in the UK, where I worked as a lifeguard in the beautiful South Hams (South Devon) I progressed my career and eventually became the Head Lifeguard. Times were changing and the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) took over the Lifeguard Services on many UK beaches…fast forward…I worked for 16 years for the RNLI as a Lifeguard Manager & Training Manager.

As a successful competitive surfer I was coached by some of the countries top surf coaches, Graham Hynes, Cyril Budd, Baron Stander and both my brothers Dave & Bobby. I developed a passion to coach & mentor developing surfers in South Africa, mostly from my hometown Umhlanga that produced many of the countries top surfers.

My passion for surf coaching & ocean safety has enabled me to steer my development pathways by becoming an official International Surfing Association (ISA) & Surfing England (SE) Coach Educator. I also obtained my Master Surf Coach qualification via the Academy of Surf Instructors. As a Coach Educator I sit on the SE Coaching Committee & previously took the helm of the English Surfing Federation.

My coaching has given me the opportunity to travel abroad to Sri Lanka, India & Pakistan to coach & mentor their top surfers and deliver the ISA Surf Instructor programs along side the ISA / ILS Ocean Safety courses. It is a privilege to be supporting the development of surfing, ocean safety amongst a range of other courses I deliver such as the ISA Stand Up Paddle Board Instructors courses (Surf, Flat & Open Water) & the ISA Body Boarding Instructors courses.

I have been a key player in Lifeguard Training & Assessing over the years & continue to support & uphold my qualifications with Surf Lifesaving Great Britain.

My time in the industry has given me the opportunity to work with & meet many great people.

To top it all off, I’m super stoked & excited to be part of Shaka Surf Camps & I look forward to meeting & surfing with all our wonderful guests in paradise! SHAKA!

Dave Renaud

I think the most important thing you need to know about me is that surfing and travel are my passions and as the saying goes! I’m still a frothing grom, albeit an older one!  along with meeting new people and experiencing new cultures, having fun and being able to help surfers improve their skills.

I have over 20 years’ experience in surf coaching and surf travel, specialising in improving technique and competitive strategy for competition surfing.

I have represented the England surfing team as Head Coach for the past five years at the world games and European Surfing Championships with team members achieving some excellent results.

I have coached and helped hundreds of intermediate to advanced surfers to improve their techniques, ocean awareness and safety in the surf line.

With a passion for surf travel I have been running surf coaching tours for many years since the early 1990s and have an in depth understanding of what surfers want and need on a surf tour.

My Family
I am blessed to be married to my wife Kelly who is an incredible nutritionist health coach and businesswoman.

We have 3 wild surfing boys, Levi who is 5 years old loves surfing, skating, riding his bike and chocolate, Noah who’s is 9 and charging waves and skate parks well beyond his age bracket and Kai 18 who rips is a qualified Lifeguard & ISA / SE Surf Coach. He also loves a good chat & is very open-minded.