The Wave Bristol finalises deal to open Europe's first Wavegarden Cove

Construction work will finally begin on The Wave Bristol project, after the team behind the inland surfing attraction secured a partnership deal with surf technology specialist Wavegarden.

The Wave Bristol will use Wavegarden’s new Cove technology to generate up to 1,000 waves per hour.

With the ability to host up to 80 users at the same time, the Cove will have six different surfing zones, offering waves of different size – with heights starting at 50cm and peaking at 2m (6.5ft) – designed to provide surfing conditions for all abilities.

Work on the attraction is set to begin later this year, six years after the plans were first announced by The Wave's founder, Nick Hounsfield. The site was given planning permission in 2014.

“It has been a long journey," Hounsfield said.

"We have now secured the land, planning permits, finance, as well as an expert team to make our vision a reality.

"It is all systems go and we are now on site preparing for construction.

"We looked at a number of different wave-making suppliers to provide us with what we needed: a high frequency of ocean-like waves and a commercially viable business plan.

"Our research concluded with the Wavegarden Cove that clearly meets these requirements and so much more.”

The Bristol site will be the first full-size Wavegarden Cove facility in Europe and the second in the world after Melbourne, Australia.

Hounsfield and his team aim to test the first waves mid-2019 and open the complex to the public in Autumn 2019.

Spain-based Wavegarden has so far installed its surfing technology at three inland surfing attractions and has a pipeline of more than 20 projects in various stages of development across five continents.

"We are pleased to finalise our partnership with The Wave and build a Wavegarden Cove in Bristol”, said Josema Odriozola, Wavegarden’s founder and CEO.

“We know the UK has a strong appetite for surfing and we're confident The Wave Bristol is going to be a great destination for surfing”.