So How Long Does it Take to Learn How to surf? You can expect to ride waves at a beginner level within the first day to 1-2 months (worst case) of surfing. It'll take a year or two to breach into the intermediate territory, and the journey never ends after that!

Instead, if your goal is to just enjoy riding straight to the beach with your friends, then you will surely achieve this in less than 6 years. Ultimately, it will take most people a few weeks to a few years to learn to surf. Learning correct etiquette, theory, and technique will make this process faster.