Macaronis Resort - Overview

The main benefit of staying at Macaronis Resort in comparison to a charter boat is you get more comfort, more privacy and also the resort is more suitable for your non-surfing partner or the family with access to more facilities and activities.

For the surfer, the major advantage is that you have every day access to the most consistent and talked about left hander in the Mentawais; unlike being on a charter boat where you can only expect at best 2-3 days surfing at Macaronis before moving on to a new surf destination. This is why Macaronis Resort really is for those die hard surfers who aim to score Macaronis at its best at some point during their stay, with a managed number of surfers in the area, it is likely that you will score Macas perfection with only a handfull of people in the water, just like the old days.

Of course, the downside of staying at Macaronis Resort is that the breaks you can surf are more limited than if you were on a boat trip. But the good news is that Macaronis Resort offers surf excursions away on its speedboats. From five to forty five minutes’ speedboat ride away you’ll find Macas Right, Bowls Right, Bat Cave Right, Green Bush Left and Silabu Left among others. A bit further afield you’ll find Rags Left, Rags Right, Thunders, rednuht and Roxies among others. If you’ve seen any Indo surf DVDs, you’re likely to have seen a few of these waves. While there is no official surf instructor or surf board hire at Macas Resort, beginners can surf Fish Fingers (a right hand beach break) while Silabu Left and Bat Cave can be tame introductory reef breaks to surf when small, but really this isn’t a learn-to-surf destination.

Your home at Macaronis Resort is a private villa (single, double or triple) that is situated over Silabu lagoon – you can see a variety of fish and other marine life in the lagoon from the deck. There are eight of these villas lined up along the lagoon, each sleeping up to four with air conditioning, water dispenser, satellite TV, two-person bath tub, hot shower, cold shower on the deck, DVD player and safe deposit box. The communal complex is home to the restaurant and bar, where you can eat, drink, watch international sport, surf DVDs and footage of the day’s session on the big screen, or play pool, table tennis and table soccer on the second floor. On the third floor 15m above sea level there is a library and a look out over Macaronis Bay and the surrounding coastline.

Like a charter boat, everything you need is included in the package once you arrive in Padang (choose between 8 days and 9 nights or 15 days and 16 nights). Transfers to and from the Resort are included – this sounds a lot simpler than it is, but its all part of the adventure. From the airport you will take a one-hour minibus ride to the Bungus Harbor. There you will board the Ambu Ambu Ferry for an overnight ferry ride (in an air-conditioned private cabin) to Sikakap Port located in the channel between North and South Pagai Islands. You will then be transferred by speedboat to Macaronis Resort approximately 1 hour away arriving at 9.00am. Any travel weariness will disappear completely when you drop your bags, wax up your board and get out in the surf.

Also included in the package price is all boat transfers to and from the various waves. You’ll get three meals daily served either at the Resort or on the boat and complimentary use of the Resort recreational equipment (snorkeling gear, spear gunds, sea kayaks, stand up paddle board and fishing equipment). The only things not included in the package price are drinks purchased from the bar, deep tissue massages ($US12 and heaven after a surf); laundry service (but you won’t be wearing much in the tropical climate and boardies are semi-clean after a surf, aren’t they?), and satellite telephone use; although internet and skype use is more common. The fast internet even allows some frequent visitors to continue operating their businesses between surfs whilst on their annual extended stay at Macaronis Resort.

Mark Loughran the Aussie operator from Tasmania accompanied by the likes of Tim ‘Bootsy’ Geyer, Christian Jon Barton, Damien Kennedy and other Aussie surf guides, are living the dream – it’s hard not to get jealous – but they are doing it with care for the village so that they’re benefitting from the presence of the resort. One of the major issues facing Indonesia is poverty, which is spread across its 17,000 plus islands, and existence of these remote island resorts are important in the fight against it. Macaronis Resort not only donates a fixed amount per guest per night to the local village, but also employs the villagers to work at the resort, purchases fresh produce from them and also contributes toward local community projects. Mark has been in the Mentawai Islands since March 2001, this is his 10th year working in the region. He worked as a chef and surf guide on charter boats for three years before leaving to establish a land-based resort nearby his favorite wave.

Macaronis Resort was built in 2004 and 2005, officially opening in 2006. Mark is still in charge of managing the Resort but has kept up his part time role as surf guide with help from other experienced Indo surf guides like Bootsy and Christian who travel to Indo every year to get their share of mezmeriziing waves. So don’t let all those years of experience of the local conditions go to waste. You’ll get to know Mark, Bootsy, Christian and the rest of the team pretty well during your stay. They provide a really personalized and friendly service and make sure you get what you want out of your holiday, whether you want to surf for nine hours a day or catch up on some R and R.

Contributing Writer: Megan Piper from X-Trips