I tried out surfing at the world's best surf park - and it was only a 10-minute drive from Edinburgh Airport

As someone who has only recently moved to Edinburgh, and who has always wanted to give surfing a go, I couldn’t think of a better opportunity to check it out for myself.

And, luckily for me, my visit to Lost Shore coincided with the introduction of a new Ember bus service between the resort and Edinburgh city centre - perfect for people like myself who don’t own a car.

I boarded the bus from George Street during a bright Sunday morning and only 30 minutes later, myself alongside four other passengers arrived at the resort’s car park. After a short walk, I was at my destination and with one look at my surroundings, it instantly felt like I had been transported thousands of miles away from my home in Edinburgh.

Surfers were catching waves at the resort’s two pools while others enjoyed amenities including the saunas and restaurants as well as relaxing within waterside pods and hilltop lodges as part of their luxury accommodation.

Beginning my lesson, I and two others - a woman who had completed a previous surfing lesson and another who had experience as a lifeguard - met our instructor Euan who, after telling us about the wave pool, took us to the boards where we practised our positioning and went over the basics while on land.

It was then time to head out to the wave pool and put what we had learned to good use.

I felt as though I was the one with the least water sports experience in the group so I was quite nervous to see how things would pan out when we were actually in the wave pool. Not to mention that I felt like my swimming skills are on the shabbier side and I have little to no sense of balance.

We paddled to the other end of the pool and took it in turns to mount the board, facing the shore, before attempting to ride the wave while eventually standing up on our boards.

My first attempt went how I expected it to go and soon after setting off, I found myself falling off the board once I tried to stand up. I then returned back to where my instructor and the rest of our class were within the pool.

That routine continued for a while and I could tell I was (very slowly) improving despite still not having the courage to actually stand up on the board. The optimism from my instructor certainly helped soften the blow that I wasn’t a natural surfer.

It was a few goes later when I had fallen off my board again. I was again in the shallow end where I made my attempt at wading through the water, gradually making it to the deeper side of the pool, so I could be reunited with my instructor.

However, in a turn of events that I couldn’t anticipate, I was caught up in the strong current and I found myself helplessly being pulled into the deeper side of the pool further and further from my instructor and fellow classmates who had now become small blobs in the distance and I was now parallel with the pool edge, stuck alone in the deep end clinging to my board for dear life.

A near rescue

I wasn’t on my own though. As if an angel had came to rescue me, I looked up to see the pool lifeguard watching me like a hawk.

After having a chat with her and reassuring her that I was fine (something along the lines of “sorry, I’m just a bad surfer!”), I spotted my instructor in the distance who was making his way towards me.

“Am I the worst surf student you’ve ever had? Be honest,” I asked him as the pair of us returned to the rest of the class.

To my dismay, he said I wasn’t.

I didn’t believe this at first but I later learned from another student that some people don’t make it through the entire lesson so it was my mission to at least do that.

After my 90-minute lesson at the wave pool, and thankfully pulling through right to the end, I took some time to wind down at the sauna.

Two saunas at Lost Shore

There are two saunas at the Lost Shore Surf Park - the larger Spear Sauna alongside the warmer horse shoe box. Both are next to each other and located a stone’s throw distance away from the wave pools.

Perhaps it was even more exciting for me as it was my first time at a sauna.

Spear Sauna was quite busy during my visit but everyone there was very accommodating and the whole experience was relaxing.

It felt like I was able to take a step back from busy everyday life for a moment as I alternated between dousing myself with cold water and then feeling the strong heat inside the sauna. I was also introduced to the bucket of water outside the sauna that I then cooled myself off with during intervals between time spent in the sauna.

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Lost Shore was named as the world’s best by leading attractions industry title Blooloop last month.

Surf park reviewer Mike Goldys said it delivered one of the “strongest combinations” of technology, experience, and atmosphere.

He added: “It’s not just about the waves, it’s about creating a complete experience for the paying customer. That balance isn’t always understood on the business end, but Lost Shore has nailed it.”

At Lost Shore, there are three kitchens under one roof - Lost Kitchen, Lost Taco, and pizza spot Civerinos - and I decided to end my day sitting down with a portion of loaded fries before boarding my Ember bus back home.

All in all, it was a great experience for a beginner - especially one who had never surfed before - and I felt supported from the first moment I stepped into the resort. Perhaps it will take a few more lessons before I become an avid surfer though.

On being called the world’s best surf resort, founder Andy Hadden said: “It’s not every day you’re recognised as the world’s best and it is incredibly humbling.

“It reflects the dedication of our team, the belief of our partners, and the support of the surfing community who’ve backed us from the beginning.

“We set out to build more than a wave pool - we wanted to create a destination that brings people together through adventure, wellbeing and world-class experiences.

“To have that vision acknowledged internationally means a huge amount, and we’re excited to welcome even more visitors from around the world in the year ahead.”