Now it’s time to make the epic packing checklist. As a general rule, the less you bring, the happier you will be. You don’t need ten t-shirts and that lucky Chinese cat your gran gave you for Christmas.

Obviously there are some things you can’t do without…

Boards

It’s likely you’ll want to bring with a couple of boards. Don’t go without buying a decent padded board bag. You don’t want your board arriving at the baggage reclaim in two pieces. Ocean & Earth do a great range, as do Dakine. We’d also recommend a good bit of bubble wrap and pad the edges with t-shirts.

Don’t count on your destination having spare leashes/wax/fins. If you need it to surf, bring it.

However, if you’ve just started surfing, you may not mind renting when you get there – provided there’s a hire available.

Wetsuit

Wetsuit wise, it totally depends on the water temperature. Here is where Google becomes your friend. If we’re going with Europe in summer, a decent 3/2 will be enough to keep you warm for hours. Hell, if you go far enough south, you won’t need a wetsuit at all (but it’s good to bring one, just in case).

Other essentials

You’ll also need: a guide book (try The Stormrider’s Guide To Europe), lots of suncream, a ding repair kit, a First Aid kit, camera, and a fat roll of duct tape for last minute repairs!