St Ives can pick up some excellent surf, with beach breaks at Porthmeor, and bigger breaks a few miles away at Gwithian/Godrevy off Hayle Towans. Some of the other beaches which are more sheltered and do not normally have any surf to speak of, can work if the surf is big and blown out at Porthmeor. Hawks Point (Porthkidney) just round from Carbis Bay will pick it up first, and if it is extra big you can find that Wheal Dream and Porthgwidden work at low tide, being more sheltered from the westerlys.

There are also many other excellent breaks within half an hours drive, The BBC include a surfing section on their website which includes a beach guide at http://www.bbc.co.uk/cornwall/surfing/surfinguide.shtml

Also try the A1 Surf http://www.a1surf.com  where you can get the latest surf forecast (SJ's Forecast) and get other relevant links

There are also a couple of good Surf Schools which operate in the area.  One operates from Porthmeor Beach, call in at the beach to book up a lesson, another is based at Hayle and is a mobile school with their own surf bus, and have a web site at www.shoresurf.com.

Paddling out

Looking at the breaks around St Ives:

Porthmeor (which has lifeguards in the summer)

North/North-westerly facing. This beach is the biggest in St Ives and is very popular with surfers, body boarders and families. As a consequence it is very crowded in the water in the summer, with the swimmers and surfers being separated by the lifeguards so the surfing area can be quite small.

On the majority of summer days, Porthmeor is excellent for
learning the basics on a bodyboard or taking a lesson with the surf school. 
There are lifeguards in attendance every day during the summer. 

During the autumn and winter the Atlantic weather can bring in
overhead or occasionally double overhead sets (not always as clean as this)



It is more suited to short boarders as the break can be short and snappy,
but there are days when an excellent long boarding wave can be had as well

The break also makes it excellent for body boarding,
especially towards the boiler near The Island

On good days it will be a foot or two bigger when the tide is going out. High tide can be good on bigger days but otherwise it tends to be a shore dump. Low tide can also work but it can quite hollow and dumpy. You will often get a couple of decent breaks along the beach, but it all very much depends on the shape of the beach after the winter storms.

Gwithian (which has lifeguards in the summer)

Being much more westerly facing, this picks up more than Porthmeor under most conditions. Being a long beach it is not so crowded, although the main surf is at the North near Godrevy, peaking at Red River which does see more people. The surf will tend to get smaller the nearer you get to Hayle estuary (the estuary is VERY tidal with a dangerous rip so avoid Hayle estuary itself).

It can work at any tide depending on the conditions, giving a good shaped rolling break, it can hold huge waves when the big winter swells push in. Slower and more rideable than Porthmeor it is popular with longboarders as well. High tide can be more of a wash out on average days. 

Hawkes Point

You get to this by going to the end of Headland Road in Carbis Bay, then walking for 5 to 10 minutes down a path, over the railway line and down the path/rocks to the beach. It cannot be accessed at high tide as the path comes out below high tide.

This is sheltered by St Ives and Carbis Bay, but can be a good bet if Porthmeor is big and blown out. Being more secluded it is quieter than the large beaches, but will be popular with locals looking for a decent break when conditions dictate it.

Porthgwidden and Wheal Dream

These are Easterly facing so do not get any surf under normal conditions. However when Porthmeor is way too big with westerlys or North westerlys, the surf can wrap around the Island and give a break at these two small beaches, giving a good break with the offshore winds.

Porthgwidden is the first break round the Island, and can work at anything but high tide, with good bodyboarding especially.

Wheal Dream or Bambaluz just off the old pier, is just round the corner. It only works at low or preferably very low tides, but it can be a good Secret Spot when everywhere else has gone off.

Carbis Bay

Very sheltered by St Ives will only pick up anything if there is a lot of Northerly in it.