Moniz Family Surf

We did two lessons for my son. One with Tammy Moniz, and another with Micah. He loved both. Thank you Tammy Moniz for being his first surf instructor. He learned so much, and had a lot of fun, and wants to keep surfing.

Hawaii has so many blessings on the island, but one place that has become very special to me is Moniz Family Surf. For the past year, I have had a love/hate relationship with the ocean. My first time surfing since the pandemic, I left San Onofre bloody, bruised, frustrated, distressed and discouraged with my everything hurting. I was able to squeeze in a 9:00 am surf lesson last November before my friend’s wedding with Isaiah Moniz with the intention of understanding the ocean, so I didn’t fear it. Isaiah taught me about edict, showed me how to navigate the channels, and position myself properly within the wave, and slowly the negative emotions that I had associated with surfing began to fade and my mind began to quiet down when he reminded me to breathe. He showed me how to tuck into the ocean during a fall, and showed me how to stand slowly moving from left knee to right knee, eventually planting my dominant foot between my hands, curving my hips, and bringing my stance low with feet planted shoulder width apart. When he gave me a push into the ocean and said, “You got this,” I was finally able to stand for the first time in over a year after getting tossed, held under water and getting pummeled wave after wave and thrown into rocks at Trails in California. He taught me how to read the waves and feel the ocean, and I accomplished more in that hour and a half than I had in an entire year. When learning a new craft as a beginner, your teacher matters. I think the best part of the lesson was observing his connection to the ocean- it was his playground. There was no stress, no chaos. The ocean merely reflected his goodness, tranquility, fun, and love for it all- that is what I needed to see. “You got this” was what I needed to hear. “Ha” breathing in the life of it all was what I needed to feel. I just needed to open my heart to the ocean, and in that moment the surf lesson became a life lesson- to position yourself to find a sense of peace among the chaos, and breathe in the mana. I left Moniz Family Surf captured by the ocean. Thank you Isaiah for sharing your love of the ocean with me. When choosing surf schools in Waikiki, Moniz Family Surf is the place to go for education and aloha spirit!

Thank you Micah for an awesome surf lesson for my son and myself!! You were so patient and a great instructor and so friendly. Will definitely come back and take another lesson with you again if we come back to Waikiki. I can’t believe we were able to get up on the board so quickly and really appreciated all the help and instruction you gave us.

We had a great time with Moniz Family Surf : Many shops will take you out, give you pointers and a push, and make sure you stand up and have fun, but if you would like to have that AND hone in to learn, this is the place to go. Our instructor Isaiah had a great vibe and an eagle eye for body / board placement. He walked us through technique, safety and etiquette so impt for Waikiki, and then once on the water he got us going and gave a quick analysis of each wave and teach through any mistakes such that we were able to catch our own by the end of the lesson — a feat that has felt impossible for one mountain-bound snowboarder and one coming back from years of injury. We appreciated the attentiveness and care, and loved learning so much. Thank you!

Easy to schedule, great instructors, my son learned to surf in one day. He is a surfer for life

Hands down the best surf lesson! Had one 90mn session and they had me up and standing after the first couple waves. By the end I felt confident enough to be able to go out all on my own with a rental the next time. Worth every penny. Mahalo! ‍

After being stranded at LAX airport for two days, I found myself at Moniz Family Surf on New Year’s Eve in a delirious state of mind yearning to get into the water to cleanse away the chaos. All private and group lessons were booked out for the holiday weekend, but Isaiah was able to accommodate me on New Year’s Day. If you haven’t celebrated New Year’s Eve in Hawaii, you are missing out! The entire island was lit from 8:00 pm - 2:00 am. It was my first time experiencing being pelted by embers from being so close to the fireworks, and lose partial hearing from the loud continuous booms- buy boy it was a sight to see! I kicked off 2023 catching the first wave of the year at Queens. I had a check list of items I wanted to learn, but I couldn’t remember anything due to my state of exhaustion. What makes Isaiah such a great teacher is that he really watches how you interact with the water, and makes slight adjustments to finetune your skill set. He teaches you about the technique, the reasoning behind the technique, how to read the ocean, and how to have fun and love the experience of surfing. Isaiah’s gift is his eye of observation. He noticed that I was able to navigate a wave that had more power behind it, and saw that I really struggled with soft, mushy waves, and he was absolutely correct. I am used to an unforgiving ocean, so when it was gentle, I didn’t really understand what was happening or how to react to it. He showed me the different types of energy behind different types of waves and shared tips on paddling techniques such as when to paddle with speed and when to paddle with power to match the energy of the wave. Isaiah was able to verbalize concepts I didn’t understand or was aware of. Matching the energy of the wave was a super helpful concept because at my home break I always feel like I am working against the ocean rather than with the ocean. He told me about his experiences in pipeline and the training involved to take a hit in order to stand your ground to position yourself in the wave. The hour and a half lesson flew by, and my heart was so full with the knowledge he shared with me. Moniz Family Surf has a such a homey feeling, and after two days of strenuous travel- the kindness and aloha spirit felt so comforting. It definitely keeps you wanting to come back for more. Look no further for surf schools- Moniz Family Surf is the real deal.

Micah Moniz has been an incredible surf instructor. I’m 4 lessons in, and he has made it an empowering, fun, and safe experience. He has awesome tips that really help me progress every lesson that we have. Whether you want to try surfing for 1 lesson if you’re visiting or want to pickup a new hobby if you live in hawaii, he’s definitely someone I would recommend to guide you through it Photo by Yogi of me surfing during my lessons with Micah

2 great experiences 4 years apart at Moniz, their instructors are awesome and will make sure you have a great lesson! My second lesson was with Kevin who in addition to being great with easily-understood tips was lots of fun to hang out with between waves.

Great lesson! shout out to Isaiah who taught me the basics. it was relaxed but also felt like I learned a lot!