Photos from the 2025 Conference and from URBNSurf
This note serves as a general update for those considering attending the Surfing Doctors Wavepool Wellness Conference 2026, summarising the day’s structure, surf schedule, and practical arrangements.
The conference takes place on Saturday, 28 March at URBNSURF Melbourne, only minutes from Melbourne’s Tullamarine Airport. The format remains intentionally straightforward. A day built around surf sessions, a small number of focused discussions and a relaxed dinner to close things out in the evening.
Lagoon Access
The lagoon has been secured exclusively for Surfing Doctors participants for the day. In short, it’s all ours.
Four sessions are currently scheduled at 06:00, 08:00, 12:00 and 14:00, with both lefts and rights running for the group during each window. The spacing between sessions allows time to recover, catch up with colleagues and ease into the discussion sessions without feeling rushed.
The waves are currently booked in barrel mode, with the roll-in take-off feeding into a tubing section. As always with URBNSURF settings, this can be adjusted on the day depending on the mix of abilities across the group and how ambitious everyone feels as the sessions unfold.
Educational Between Surfs
The educational component sits comfortably between surf sessions.
The focus is on wellness, lifestyle medicine, surf performance and surf-related injuries, keeping the discussions practical and directly relevant.
Confirmed speakers include Dr Mark Wilson and Jason Gilbert, with additional contributors to be confirmed. The sessions are intended to remain conversational rather than lecture-heavy, allowing room for genuine discussion and shared experience.
Suggested Travel Window
Although the official program runs on Saturday, arriving in Melbourne on Friday evening and departing on Sunday will likely make the weekend more relaxed.
If there is sufficient interest, the organisers will explore hiring the lagoon for an optional Friday evening surf session. Expressions of interest for that will be collected during registration.
Dinner Beside the Lagoon
Saturday evening will conclude with the conference dinner at Three Blue Ducks, located within the URBNSURF precinct overlooking the lagoon.
It provides a relaxed setting to wind down after the day’s sessions and continue the conversations that often begin in the water.
Food is also available on-site throughout the day.
CPD & Professional Development
The conference structure is suitable for self-claimed Continuing Professional Development (CPD).
Participants will receive a program outline, session descriptions and confirmation of attendance to support CPD claims with ACEM, RACGP and other professional colleges, in line with individual requirements.
The content aligns with wellbeing, performance, injury prevention and broader professional development.
Accommodation
URBNSURF Melbourne sits very close to Melbourne Airport, making travel straightforward for interstate attendees.
Nearby accommodation options include Ciloms Airport Lodge directly across the road, Mantra Melbourne Airport, and several other airport hotels within a short distance.
Participation:
Attendance remains limited to 30 participants, keeping surf rotations manageable and discussions small enough to remain engaging.
The cost is $700 per participant, which includes four exclusive lagoon surf sessions along with the conference component.
Enquiries:
If you have questions or would like to confirm your place, please contact:
david.hateley@uqconnect.edu.au
loosepc65@hotmail.com
Further updates will follow as speaker confirmations and final scheduling elements are locked in.
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