Mao Mao Surf, experience a tropical way of life in Siargao

Mao Mao surf is a surf camp, is a place for travellers that want to experience a tropical way of life, surf, stay salty and heal in Siargao of Philippines.

Chara and Marco met each other in London 5 years ago and they both shared the same dream of creating a surf camp in a tropical paradise. That’s how Mao Mao surf was born. They started travelling the world together to find the place they would like to live in for the rest of their lives. That place was Siargao.

All images © λ3 by Mao Mao Surf

Mao Mao surf consists of 5 jungle huts (native bungalows), a chill out – bar with vegan/veggie food where you can meet other travellers and exchange stories or just read a book and chill and of course the surf school. Also Chara’s and Marco’s house is in Mao Mao surf, again a jungle hut just a bigger one this time. They wanted to live inside the surfcamp, run it theirselves and interact with the people that visit their place. I guess its their way of never getting old. A final touch, there is a small library where you can leave a book you already read and take a new one that was left from someone else, that way the books get to travel as well.

The couple wanted to create a place where people can stay close to nature, learn to surf, gaze at the stars and eat fresh and healthy food to help their body and mind heal from their stressful everyday life.

The idea was to forge a place where the travellers can find everything they need and ask for their holidays.

Cara was a pretty wild kid. According to her father she would climb on everything and that’s why he called her Mao Mao. He says that’s a tribe in Africa that used to leave on trees (we still haven’t been able to verify this fact). Then Marco was added to the picture and they became a couple of Mao Mao-s.

What does Mao Mao offer?

It offers surf packages (surf lesson is always 1-1) , secret spot surfing through jungle trails, surfboard rental, scooter rental, healthy food to boost your energy. Plus the rad tips on what to see on the island, what to do, where to eat and where to party.

All images © λ3 by Mao Mao Surf

All images © λ3 by Mao Mao Surf

All images © λ3 by Mao Mao Surf

Mao Mao Mao is the best choice Chara and Marco ever made (both of them). They traded their 9to5 big city life with a slice of paradise.

Why in Siargao?

We travelled quite a bit around the world , always visiting tropical places with warm waves. I was in Siargao a few years ago and I really wanted Cara to see it. On the second day here we both agreed that that’s the place. This Island has an energy like nothing I’ve ever seen in the rest of the world, it has a raw beauty, the locals are very nice and welcoming and happy to share the little they have. The kids have big smiles, give you high-five on the streets and of course the surf blows your mind. It’s just Siargao.

Why it stands out?

Siargao is a slice of heaven, it combines warm waves, summer all year around, amazing jungle trails, caves, lagoons and waterfalls to explore. Incredible scenery, sunsets that will knock you of your feet and then there’s the locals, we believe they know some great secret to life that you don’t.

All images © λ3 by Mao Mao Surf

All images © λ3 by Mao Mao Surf

The pros and cons of

Pros are mentioned above or we will get too cheesy and for the cons it’s still a very raw island, so doing construction here and dealing with the bureaucracy can get quite challenging.

Tell us more about the construction, if it is based on a philosophy or a design idea, and more.

We are fairly proud to say that we designed everything all by ourselves. The jungle huts have a triangle shape and they are build with nipa (the local word for palm leaves) , wood and huge windows to let plenty of light in. We both love the 70’s, the surf, the music, the vibe, everything about that decade. Mao Mao is really inspired from California in the 70’s and the architectural design is taken by the cabin in the woods in north America.

Interior design is also us, the furniture and all the decoration is also designed and built here with natural materials. There is no IKEA here so you really have to make your own furniture, that to be honest was and still is an amazing journey for us. Our jungle huts are a combination of wood, white and a few turquoise details here and there, because well, my wife is Greek and she is all about the greek islands.

All images © λ3 by Mao Mao Surf

Each jungle hut has a private bamboo open-air bathroom that makes you feel like you are actually showering in the jungle and because the devil’s in the details, the water in the shower comes out of bamboo.

In Mao Mao we try to create a different experience for our guests, away from concrete houses. We designed everything so the travellers can experience a different way of life, live in a natural environment, walk barefoot on wood and sand, breath fresh air, eat healthy food, gaze at the stars and shower with the view of palm trees.

Where you can find us? Well, our website www.maomaosrf.com is still under construction, just hit us up on our instagram @maomaosurf, feel our vibe and just message us your questions, comments or if you just connect with us.