Editor Pick
Great Place to Shop for an Affordable Shortboard
- July 18, 2008
- Rated 4 of 5 by
golden101 from Honokaa, Hawaii
I decided to go to Haleiwa's Surf N Sea surf shop since this place has been around for a very long time. I used to pass by this surf shop when I went camping with my family over 30 years ago. Back then it was a small outfit and Haleiwa Town was not as built up as it is now. My husband and I didn't want to shop for my son's shortboard in town since surfboards in town are very expensive and many shops don't offer used boards. There were a few used longboards and shortboards for sale on the surf rack outside but the boards looked a bit worn so we continued to look at more boards inside. Wow! There were rows and rows of surfboards inside of the wooden building, some were used, some were new, some had skegs and leashes, some had none, and some were hanging horizontally on racks near the ceiling. They also had racks of surf clothing for shoppers that were just looking for clothes. After looking at some used shortboards near the entrance my son and I went to the back where they were selling used shortboards with skegs and leashes already attached. My husband noticed a beautiful 6'3" HIC (Hawaiian Island Creations) blue fiberglass shortboard next to the green shortboard that my son was looking at. We all admired the HIC blue shortboard so my son asked the salesperson if he could look at it. The salesperson was awesome since he didn't pressure sell any surfboards and he just talked about the one that my son picked out. The salesperson put the surfboard on a rack and explained to my son about the shape of the board and what kind of waves it could handle. They talked more about the board and then proceeded out of the building to the back near the beach. My husband and I were wondering where they were going but soon found out that the salesperson took my son to the beach to let him try out the board in the water. This was great because my son instantly fell in love with the board! I ended up buying the board (about $335) and a travel bag (that was under $50) so that we could take it back with us on the plane (go! airlines charges a $25 baggage fee for shortboards). I would highly recommend shopping for a new or used surfboard at this shop because there is no pressure selling at this store and the salespersons are great. They also carry a large inventory of surfboards, surf accessories and clothing. They let you try out your board in the water behind the shop so that you can get a better feel of the board. To get to Surf N Sea from Waikiki, take the H1 freeway West until you see the Wahiawa/Mililani turn off to the H1 freeway heading North. Get off the H1 West freeway and turn toward the right until you merge with the H1 North freeway that heads toward Wahiawa and Mililani. Continue toward Wahiawa and follow the signs that say Haleiwa North. Continue driving North past the pineapple fields until you see a sign that reads Haleiwa Town. Don't take the Haleiwa Bypass but drive in to Historic Haleiwa Town and continue down Kamehameha Highway. Surf N Sea is located on the makai (beach side) of the highway past Jameson's restaurant (which will be on your right side). You can't miss Surf N Sea because it is located in a bright yellow and brown building that has surfboards lined up on surf racks in front of the store.
From journal Week in Honolulu from July 12 - 17, 2008