Lesson booking
Group, private and semi-private lessons by level and beach, paid online and confirmed instantly.
Surf school booking software: tides, levels & waivers
Surf schools: lessons booked around the tide. More water time, less paperwork.
Lessons get booked by Instagram DM, waivers flap around on a clipboard in the wind and when the swell blows out someone spends the morning texting forty families one by one. We build lesson booking, waiver, rebooking, hire and roster systems for surf schools that all talk to each other. Then we host them and look after them.
Looking for surf school booking software that understands tides, levels and weather?
A surf school isn't a normal booking business. The best lesson time moves with the tide every day, a beginner can't go in with the kid who's already doing turns and the whole day can be called off at 6am because the wind swung onshore. Generic tour booking apps don't get any of that. So it ends up as a booking app, a waiver form, a group chat for coaches and a whiteboard in the van holding it together.
Wollopit builds custom surf school software around how your school actually runs. Lesson times are set from the tide chart for your beach. Students book by level and location. Waivers are signed before anyone hits the sand. When conditions turn, one tap moves everyone to a new session and tells them by SMS. Boards, wetsuits, coaches and their tickets are all tracked in the same place. We connect what you already use, replace what's holding you back and look after the lot on our own servers.
01The problems
What we hear from surf schools
Does your surf school have these problems? Here's how we'd fix them.
Most surf schools we talk to run brilliant lessons and run the office side from a phone on the beach. It works fine until the school holidays hit.
- The problemBookings come in by DMInstagram, Facebook, texts and missed calls while you're in the water. Half the leads are cold by the time you reply.How we fix itOnline lesson booking on your website and socials that takes payment and confirms on the spot, even while you're out the back.
- The problemLesson times fight the tideThe 9am slot is fixed on the website, but on Thursday it's dead low and the bank's closed out.How we fix itLesson times suggested from tide predictions for each beach. You approve the week and the booking page follows.
- The problemLevels get mixed upA nervous first-timer ends up in a group with a kid who wants to learn bottom turns. Nobody has a good time.How we fix itBookings by level with a quick self-check question, capacity per level and coach ratios that hold.
- The problemWaivers on a wet clipboardTwenty people signing on the sand, pens that don't work and a soggy pile of paper in the van.How we fix itOnline waivers and medical questions signed before arrival, with parent signatures for under 18s and a check-in list on your phone.
- The problemWeather calls take all morningThe wind swings onshore at 6am and you're texting, calling and DMing every booking one at a time.How we fix itCall the session off once. Everyone gets an SMS with rebooking options and picks a new time themselves.
- The problemBoards and wetsuits double bookedTwo lessons and three hire customers all want the same 8ft softboards at 10am.How we fix itBoard and wetsuit stock by size, allocated to lessons and hire, so you never promise gear you don't have.
- The problemCoach rosters by group chatWho's on Saturday, who's got their surf rescue certificate current and who can take the kids' group?How we fix itCoach rosters built from bookings, with ratios, tickets and expiry dates checked before anyone's rostered on.
- The problemSchool groups by email chainA school wants 60 Year 9s for a PE day and it takes three weeks of emails, a spreadsheet and an invoice by hand.How we fix itGroup and school bookings with one contact, rotations, bulk waivers and invoices straight into Xero.
- The problemPackages and passes on paperA punch card in someone's wallet or a note in your phone about who's got three lessons left.How we fix itMulti-lesson packs and holiday programs tracked online, with credits used as they book.
- The problemNobody knows how they're progressingParents ask if their kid's ready for the next level and the answer lives in a coach's head.How we fix itSimple progress notes and levels per student, shared with parents after each lesson.
02What we build
Solutions
What we build for surf schools. Usually all talking to each other.
Pick the one that's hurting most or join the whole lot up. Everything is built around how your team works, not the other way round.
Tide-based scheduling
Lesson times proposed from tide predictions for each location, approved by you a week at a time.
Online waivers & check-in
Waivers, medical details and parent signatures done before arrival, with a tick-off list on the beach.
Weather calls & rebooking
Cancel or move a session once and everyone gets an SMS with new times or a credit.
Board & wetsuit hire
Hire by the hour or day, gear tracked by size and added to lesson bookings in one click.
Coach rosters & tickets
Rosters from bookings, coach ratios and surf rescue, first aid and Working with Children checks with expiry alerts.
School & group bookings
School PE days, birthday parties and corporate groups with one contact, rotations and bulk waivers.
Holiday programs & camps
Multi-day kids' programs with daily rolls, pickup notes and early drop-off options.
Packages, passes & vouchers
Multi-lesson packs, credits and gift vouchers that people can buy and redeem online.
Student progress
Levels, skills ticked off and coach notes, sent to parents after each lesson.
Reviews & follow-ups
Thank-you messages, photo links and a nudge to leave a Google review after the lesson.
A website that paddles out
Hand-built, quick on phones, with live availability and built to rank for 'surf lessons near me'.
03The systems
The big ones
Your whole surf school, on one system.
These are the systems surf schools ask us about most. Each one works on its own and they get properly clever when they're joined up.
Lesson booking
Lessons booked around the tide, not the clock.
Each beach has its own tide window and your schedule follows it. You approve the suggested times for the week and students book by level, location and lesson type. Payments, confirmations and reminders happen without you touching your phone.
- Tide predictions per beach
- Suggested lesson times you approve
- Group, private and semi-private lessons
- Booking by level with a self-check
- Capacity and coach ratios per session
- Multiple beaches and meeting points
- Payment or deposit at booking
- SMS and email reminders
- Bookable from Instagram and Google
- Waitlists for full sessions
Waivers & check-in
Every waiver signed before they hit the sand.
Waivers, medical questions and swimming ability go out with the booking confirmation and get signed on their phone. On the beach your coaches see a check-in list with who's signed, who's missing and who has asthma.
- Waivers sent with every booking
- Parent signatures for under 18s
- Medical and swimming ability questions
- Group bookers chase their own group
- Check-in list on any phone
- Missing waiver alerts before the lesson
- Signed copies stored securely
- Waivers reused for returning students
Weather calls & rebooking
Swell's blown out? Rebook everyone in one tap.
Call off a session or a whole morning in one go. Every booking gets an SMS with a choice of new times or a credit and they pick for themselves. Coaches and hire bookings update with it, so nobody turns up to an empty beach.
- Cancel a session or a whole day at once
- SMS and email to every booking
- Customers pick their own new time
- Credits or refunds per your policy
- Coaches told automatically
- Linked hire bookings moved too
- Conditions note on the booking page
- Rebook history for every student
Boards & wetsuit hire
The right board in the right hands.
Every softboard, fibreglass board and wetsuit is tracked by size and type. Lessons reserve the gear they need and the rest is free for hire, so the 10am rush doesn't end with someone on a board that's far too small.
- Boards and wetsuits by size
- Gear reserved for each lesson
- Hourly, half-day and day hire
- Hire added to lesson bookings
- Deposits and ID at pickup
- Overdue returns flagged
- Damage and repair log
- Usage reports per board
Coaches & rosters
Rosters that check the tickets for you.
Coach rosters build themselves from the week's bookings and the ratios you set. Surf rescue certificates, first aid and Working with Children checks are stored with expiry dates, so nobody gets rostered on with a lapsed ticket.
- Rosters built from bookings
- Coach to student ratios
- Availability from coaches' phones
- Surf rescue and first aid tracking
- Working with Children check expiries
- Expiry alerts weeks ahead
- Shift swaps with approval
- Hours exported for payroll
Groups, schools & camps
Sixty Year 9s without sixty emails.
Schools, birthday parties, corporate days and holiday programs booked through one contact. Rotations, bulk waivers, daily rolls and invoices are handled in one place instead of a spreadsheet and a long email chain.
- One contact for the whole group
- Group links for waivers and details
- Rotations for big school groups
- Holiday program daily rolls
- Pickup and medical notes
- Quotes and invoices into Xero
- Deposits and balance reminders
- Repeat bookings for next term
04How it changes
Before and after
A blown-out Sunday, wolloped.
Here's how a weather call could change. Every surf school is different, so we map yours first.
Before
- Wake up to onshore wind and a full day booked
- Scroll through the booking app to find everyone's number
- Text, call and DM every family one at a time
- Juggle new times in your head and on a notepad
- Coaches find out in the group chat
- Two families still turn up to the beach
After
- Check the forecast and call the morning off on your phone
- Every booking gets an SMS straight away
- Families pick a new time or a credit themselves
- The schedule and board allocation update on their own
- Coaches are told automatically
- Nobody turns up to an empty beach
05Services
Everything under one roof
Software, websites and systems for surf schools.
Whether you're starting fresh or upgrading what you've got, it's one team from the first sketch to the support call.
Custom software for surf schools
Built around how your surf school actually runs: lesson booking, tide-based scheduling and the admin in between, in one system you own.
Websites for surf schools
Fast, hand-built websites that rank for the searches your customers make and turn visits into enquiries, bookings or orders.
Surf school system upgrades
Running on spreadsheets, old software or a platform you've outgrown? We move your data across and upgrade in stages so the business never stops.
Apps and portals for surf schools
Online waivers & check-in and weather calls & rebooking: customer and staff portals that work on any phone without an app store.
Integrations and automation
We connect Rezdy, FareHarbor and Bookeo so information moves on its own and nobody retypes it.
Hosting, support and care
Managed hosting, updates, backups and security for your surf school, looked after by the people who built it.
06Integrations
Connections
Plays nicely with what you already use.
We connect to the tools you rely on, work alongside booking platforms you're happy with or replace the ones holding you back.
- Rezdy
- FareHarbor
- Bookeo
- Checkfront
- Stripe
- Square
- Xero
- MYOB
- Mailchimp
- Twilio SMS
- Google Calendar
- Google Workspace
- Microsoft 365
- Google Business Profile
- TripAdvisor
- Viator
- Deputy
- Canva
07How we work
The process
Some people dip their toe in. We turn up in a rebreather.
We get properly below the surface of your surf school: the systems, the busy days and the jobs everyone hates. Then we fix the bits that matter most first.
- 01
Think
We spend a morning on the beach and in the van with you, then work out what's actually eating your time between sessions.
- 02
Archi-tech
We plan it before writing code: your beaches, tides, levels, gear, coaches, groups, hosting and cost.
- 03
Build
Real engineering, shown to you early and often. Usually the most painful bit first, so you get a win before the next school holidays.
- 04
Look after
We host it, maintain it and keep improving it. When something breaks you call the people who built it.
08Questions
FAQ
Things surf schools ask us.
Something else on your mind? Ring 0423 011 252 and ask the people who'd build it.
Can lesson times really follow the tide?
Yes. We pull tide predictions for each beach you teach at and suggest lesson times that suit the window you like. You approve the week and the booking page updates. You always get the final say.
What happens when we call off a session for weather?
You cancel it once on your phone. Every booking gets an SMS with new times or a credit based on your policy and they choose for themselves. Coaches and hire bookings move with it.
Can parents sign waivers for their kids?
Yes. Waivers go out with the booking and parents sign for anyone under 18. Group bookers can send a link to everyone in their group and you can see who's still missing before the lesson.
Can schools and groups book together?
Yes. Group and school bookings are made with one contact, with group links for waivers, rotations for big groups and invoices straight into Xero or MYOB.
We already use Rezdy or FareHarbor. Do we have to switch?
No. If your booking platform is doing its job, we build around it: tide scheduling, waivers, weather rebooking, gear and rosters on top. If it's holding you back, we'll show you what replacing it would involve before anything changes.
Can it keep our Viator or TripAdvisor listings in sync?
Usually yes, through the booking platform you use or directly where the channel allows it, so you're not overbooking a session from two places.
How much does a surf school system cost?
It depends on what you need, so we quote up front once we understand it. No surprise invoices, no lock-in and you own what we build.
How long does it take?
Smaller jobs like online waivers or weather rebooking can be quick. Bigger systems are planned in stages so you get the first win early, ideally before the next school holidays.
Who looks after it once it's built?
We do. We host it on our own managed servers and keep it updated and secure. When you need something you ring the people who built it.
We already have systems. Can you upgrade them instead of starting again?
Usually, yes. Most surf schools we work with keep what's working and upgrade the rest in stages. We move your data across, connect the old and new while we switch and retire the old system only when the new one is proven.
Contact
Got a surf school problem? Consider it wolloped.
Tell us what's slow, broken, manual or missing. You don't need a spec, just describe what's going on.