The Island of Sumba is 400 kilometres east of Bali, the world famous tourist destination island, and directly south of Komodo and Flores islands.

By Indonesian standards, 11,150-square kilometers Sumba is relatively small, with a bent, irregularly oval shape. The dry, mountainous island stretches 210 kilometers along a northeast-southeast axis, and is 40-70 kilometers wide. Waikabubak and Waingapu are the Administrative Capitals of the island.

As our world develops, the traditions of the past are often discarded and forgotten. Unfortunately there are now only a few places left on earth where primitive tribal cultures are still intact and the traditional ways of living are still practiced.

Sumba is one of those special places where stone graves, traditional houses and the rituals of the animist religion have been well preserved. The funeral ceremonies still continue and huge blocks of stone are still cut and dragged by hundreds of men to the mortuary grounds.

Various numbers of livestock are still the only acceptable bride wealth of these villages and many still do not allow missionaries or native preachers to enter.

As there are few resorts in the world (let alone Indonesia or Sumba) that can compare to the total experience offered by Nihiwatu Resort located on this mystical island, our total focus for travel to Sumba is centered around Nihiwatu Resort.

Surfing at Nihiwatu / Sumba:
Although Sumba offers excellent year round surf potential, Nihiwatu is not a “Surf Resort” Nihiwatu is an upscale resort catering to general vacation travelers world wide. It just happens to be that the resort founder and developer, Claude Graves, is an avid surfer and chose a site located atop one of the best “left hand” reefs in Sumba. Surfer numbers are capped around 8 to assure no crowds.

The reef at Nihiwatu, sometimes referred to as “Occy’s Left” is a long reef with a slight bend through most it’s length, ending with a sharp bend into a deep water channel. Similar in nature to many of Indonesia’s better reef breaks, Nihiwatu is likened to a cross between G-Land and Uluwatu. Although the wave is quite powerful, it can show many different faces depending on the tide & swell direction. The end section of the wave breaking closer to the channel can be quite suitable for anybody with an intermediate level of surf ability, while the sections up the reef would typically be suitable for the more advanced surfer.

Nihiwatu left is a quick walk down a short path and a paddle out from in front of the “water sports/boat house”. In addition to this world class left hander, there is a variety of other left and right handers accessible only by boat within a relatively close proximity. Transfers to other breaks will incur an additional charge.