Quiksilver Unveil Concept Surf House in Hossegor

We received word this morning from the horse's mouth that things were going to change in the surf hospitality game. The way people booked accommodation, and how they viewed their options was about to change. The NEW concept is called an 'Open House' and will be launching on the 29th May. Check out the short video below to understand fully.

Now you have a basic idea of what we are looking at. There are so many different ways to view this, I find it almost overwhelming to pick something to focus on. So I won't, I will instead draw from others. As my wife was passing by my computer screen she caught a glimpse of this above video and muttered in an 'unimpressed' tone that it looked like it was for old people who were trying to be young. The off-hand comment resonated with me and encouraged a trip down memory lane, into cul-de-sac I had thought I would not visit again.

In another lifetime I owned my own small surf house. Kind of like the above but less 'forced', or so I used to think. I would take great pride in the service we offered and believed it to be adaptable and for most people. At the centre of this belief was sharing a passion which was surf and lifestyle. Please note that I have said surf and lifestyle separately as they are very different. Surfing is surfing, the lifestyle that evolves around surfing does not include guitars, fire, beards or getting smashed every night. These things you can do without ever having to set foot near a beach or a surfboard. The reality is that surfing means getting up early, normally in the dark, and being sober enough to drive to the beach and surf. It means being hungry, eating good food and keeping hydrated. It means relaxing on the beach inbetween surfs or when the wind turns, and sure, there are drink involved evenings, but they are at the mercy of the forever hailed 'surf forecast'.

The NEW thing then, the idea that this Open House is that it is one place where people who expect different things from a surf holiday can exist together is benign. It is folly, surely, to mix the serious party goers with the genuine surfers?

The two parties who are behind this NEW idea are Quiksilver/Roxy and Accorhotels which are,  lets face it, two huge multinationals that care about one thing. Stamped and approved pieces of debit on paper, otherwise referred to as money. Both of these companies are owned by their shareholders who have probably never surfed or been near a wave, let alone know what joys these can bring to life. They are after cash, percentages and profit. That's it.

The question is, "Will this change the way that the hospitality industry works" and the answer is yes, it probably will and I don't much care. I do however wish them to leave the surfers out of it. As I have said, the perceived surfers' lifestyle and the realities are very different. I just don't want them to get surfing wrong I guess, and I would like the places that cater for the real surfers to be left alone.

To me, it looks like someone has got some 'concept' IKEA room designers together and said "Surfers lifestyle" annnnddd go. The partnership has developed two new titles for guests. You are either a 'Tripster' or a 'Townster'. The difference being that you are either just passing through (Tripster) or staying for a bit/a local resident (Townster). They have entitled different types of guest access to different areas and named them differently such as THE PLAYGROUND which is open to all and includes a restaurant, bar and a garden with hammocks (apparently for overnight guests). The Tripsters get a private communal area called 'THE FUNHOUSE' with lockers, cooking facilities, a place to work and do their laundry which sounds very hostel based.

In addition to this, in the Hossegor house, that has been inspired by and will include a pop up Quiksilver/Roxy shop, there will be 'local' company sponsored surf pros who will be available to give surf lessons. They are calling these 'master classes'.

That's the concept right there. Personally I can not think of anything more offensive to people that surf. It seems to me to be all about limiting experiences. About pulling in everything under one roof so it's 'safe' and 'trusted'. Gone will be the days of trying a different restaurant or having some local food in a weird backstreet cafe, meeting someone by chance, having random adventures that are not planned, organised or censored.

I am aware of banging the war drum for too long and too loudly as the reality that this will happen dawns on me. It is inevitable. All I am saying is this, don't let it be you. Don't let these people censor your holiday in the name of surfing.

Let the romance of travel live on in not being a number or a profit margin, think free and talk to real people.