Girls enjoying surf lessons

Stranger talks to Chris Thomson about surfing the globe, searching for adventures and the inspiration behind Errant Surf Holidays

When did you set up Errant?

Errant Surf Holidays was set up in 2004, alongside 121 Surf Coach, the private surf coaching company.

What was your motivation with it? Was it something you've always wanted to do, or did it come out of a bad experience travelling somewhere yourself and wanting to create better experiences for people?

I wanted to set up Errant after I realised I could combine my passion for travel with my work at the time as a private surf coach. I could see that there was a real need for a company to be able to offer holiday locations, support and advice for surfing. You can't book to go surfing on the North Shore of the Canary Islands with a generic holiday company, so that's where Errant comes in, in fact that is what Errant means, "Wandering, roving, especially in search of adventure" or "to stray from the normal path"


Errant surf student in Ghana

How did it start out? Did it take a long time to set up? Were there a lot of hurdles to overcome as starting out as a small independent?

I had run my own business since I was 20, so starting out was not too much of a struggle. Dealing with all the regulations in place for travel companies took sometime, but all in all I could see what I wanted to achieve and what companies where in the market at the time, and I knew that I could offer a much better service for our clients.

What makes Errant different from other surf travel companies?

Errant started from Newquay, Cornwall and we operate our own locations and surf schools in the UK, and overseas. At the time we started our two (now one) bigger competitors in the UK were based in Kent. To me this didn't make much sense. If you are selling a specialist holiday, shouldn't you and your team be involved in the sport on a day to day basis? I had personally travelled to over 30 countries before I turned 22, so I knew a lot about the surf travel industry and what people want to get out of their trip.

What's the best thing about running your own travel surf company?

The best things for me about running Errant is being involved in my two greatest passions, Travel and Surfing.


Errant surfing instructor with his class