Every year, the best surfer girls in the world meet in Maui for the last event of the World Surf League Championship Tour, Maui Pro, an event you do not want to miss! Why is that? Watching surIing from your screen can be entertaining and impressive, but wait until you step onto the cliff of a magical place called Honolua Bay.

From this cliff, you can feel the power of the ocean and it is a very humbling experience. Local surfers know the break like the back of their hand, and will put on a quite a show, making the ocean more entertaining to watch. Surfers travel the world in chase of waves that can offer them long rides in glassy conditions, and the ultimate goal is to Iind “barreling waves”. A wave so perfect that you can enter the tube, get surrounded by water for a few seconds until you make it out, or… get crushed on the reef! The Bay of Honolua is a surfer’s paradise, with very long rides and an amazing barrel section! Look at the photos on the right, yes there are two people inside of this barrel! There are few waves in the world that are good enough to allow two people to share this moment together.

When the Professional Women Surfers from all over the world travel to Maui to determine who is the best in the last contest of the year, the pressure is high. These women surf at their top level. This is a spectacle you want to add to your bucket list! Make sure to go there for sunset when the sun rays shine through the waves, creating hues of green and blue. Your chances of seeing a rainbow are pretty high too! 2020 has been a strange year for everyone, the world surf league has been especially affected by the travelling restrictions due to Covid-19.

After canceling all of the events of the year, they managed to gather the staff and surfers for a contest that would determine who is the best female surfer of 2020! How exciting! The Iirst day of the competition was beautiful. The show was ON! Waves were great and the girls were on Iire! Another beautiful day at ‘The Bay’. Despite these pristine conditions, the cursed year of 2020 was not planning to give the World Surf League a break. On the morning of the second day of the contest, the women were practicing in the water and local surfers enjoying their home break.

Unfortunately, a terrible incident occurred in the channel of Honolua Bay. A local and respected surfer of 56 years lost his life after getting bit on his leg by a tiger shark. With such a terrible incident, the WSL and the professionals are not feeling completely safe surIing a place where a 12 foot tiger shark has shown aggressive behavior. Shark incidents happens all around the world and surfers accept to take that risk every time they go into the ocean. There are plenty of measures that can be taken to reduce the risk, and surIing the same spot where a shark attack just happened is not one of them! This year, the Maui Pro Iinals will actually be held on a surf spot on Oahu as a safety measure.

Do not let this incident alarm you! Surfing in Maui is not as dangerous as it seems. This type of tragedy is very rare and something you do not need to be worried about.

On a brighter note, the surf breaks in front of Belle Surf Cafe are very safe! Our favorite spot ‘BreakWall’, offers ideal conditions for every level. The reason that this spot is so safe, is because the water is clear, waves are soft, and it’s shallow. This is not the type of environment where the tiger sharks like to roam.

When you are visiting Maui, make sure to go watch the Maui Pro at Honolua Bay! The contest happens every year at the beginning of December, and if you cannot make it in time, do not worry, the locals surfers are extremely talented and will keep you entertained! After that, if you feel brave enough to confront the waves, come take a surf lesson in Lahaina! We will make you some Bulletproof Coffee to pump you up, and some good brunch to recover. Here are some basic tips & tricks with the ocean to help make your visit to Maui safe:

1. Do not swim or surf in murky/brown ocean.
2. Avoid swimming far from shore, or in very deep areas.
3. Avoid swimming or surfing at dawn or dusk.
4. The buddy system! Always be accompanied by a friend or relative when exploring the ocean.