Staying Home Sucks, home
El Zonte (01.2011) - panoramio
El Zonte, the nearest town, 2 km away. Photo: Martin Haeusler, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

Atamis

Surf spot · El Salvador

Is it worth the trip?

80Good out of 100 for your dates

Home sucks

Best on Thu 5: 4 ft swell at 12 s

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 77 out of 100

Swell
4 ft12 shollow
Energy
522kJ
Wind
NNW 1 kn
Temp
29°C

Tue 3 · 86 out of 100

Swell
4 ft12 shollow
Energy
446kJ
Wind
S 4 kn
Temp
29°C

Wed 4 · 85 out of 100

Swell
4 ft11 shollow
Energy
360kJ
Wind
ESE 4 kn
Temp
29°C

Thu 5 · 90 out of 100

Swell
4 ft12 shollow
Energy
340kJ
Wind
E 2 kn
Temp
28°C

Fri 6 · 82 out of 100

Swell
3 ft12 shollow
Energy
296kJ
Wind
NNW 3 kn
Temp
29°C

Sat 7 · 59 out of 100

Swell
3 ft11 shollow
Energy
197kJ
Wind
ENE 6 kn
Temp
29°C

Sun 8 · 37 out of 100

Swell
2 ft13 shollow
Energy
88kJ
Wind
N 5 kn
Temp
28°C

Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 181, good
  2. Mon 277, good
  3. Tue 386, good
  4. Wed 485, good
  5. Thu 590, good
  6. Fri 682, good
  7. Sat 759, fair
  8. Sun 837, too small
  9. Mon 949, fair
  10. Tue 1042, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces Stakes swell from the S
  • Offshore: Nwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 2–8 ftof swell
  • Water 30 °Cno wetsuit

Full forecast

every day, every number

The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Atamis, each day
DayScore for intermediatesSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 1Nov81, good4 ft14 shollow7 ft at break (est.)520kJwind from the west-south-west, 5 knots30°C
Mon 2Nov77, good4 ft12 shollow7 ft at break (est.)522kJwind from the north-north-west, 1 knot, offshore29°C
Tue 3Nov86, good4 ft12 shollow6 ft at break (est.)446kJwind from the south, 4 knots29°C
Wed 4Nov85, good4 ft11 shollow6 ft at break (est.)360kJwind from the east-south-east, 4 knots29°C
Thu 5Nov90, good4 ft12 shollow6 ft at break (est.)340kJwind from the east, 2 knots28°C
Fri 6Nov82, good3 ft12 shollow6 ft at break (est.)296kJwind from the north-north-west, 3 knots, offshore29°C
Sat 7Nov59, fair3 ft11 shollow5 ft at break (est.)197kJwind from the east-north-east, 6 knots29°C
Sun 8Nov37, too small2 ft13 shollow3 ft at break (est.)88kJwind from the north, 5 knots, offshore28°C
Mon 9Nov49, fair2 ft12 shollow4 ft at break (est.)133kJwind from the east-south-east, 2 knots28°C
Tue 10Nov42, too small2 ft12 shollow4 ft at break (est.)106kJwind from the north-north-east, 4 knots, offshore29°C

Energy is the swell's power, in kJ per metre of wave. Wind is in knots, the arrow where it blows to; green is offshore. More

Tide

  • Sun 1 NovLow 00:37 −0.9 mHigh 06:52 +1.0 mLow 13:15 −0.9 mHigh 19:29 +0.8 m
  • Mon 2 NovLow 01:39 −0.8 mHigh 07:53 +0.8 mLow 14:14 −0.8 mHigh 20:33 +0.8 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 02:49 −0.7 mHigh 09:00 +0.7 mLow 15:19 −0.8 mHigh 21:41 +0.8 m

Local clock times; heights about mean sea level. On open coasts the times are usually within a quarter of an hour; in bays, estuaries and on the Gulf of Mexico they can be an hour or more out. Tide: EOT20 global ocean tide model, Hart-Davis et al. 2021, DGFI-TUM (doi:10.17882/79489), CC BY 4.0. Times and heights computed by us. A model, not a tide table: check a local table before you go.

Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.

Map

the spot and its town

Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for intermediates: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

More surf near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Atamis

Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.

The spot faces S (187°), so it takes swell from the S. The wind blows offshore from the N (7°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–8 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves steeply: 10 m deep about 150 m out (1 in 15). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 28°C in January, its coldest month (no wetsuit), and 30°C in April, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is El Zonte, 2.3 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 6 surf spots.

Water about 30°C: no wetsuit. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).

Rough cost (estimate): about US$717–US$1,330 each

about US$717–US$1,330 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, stay, food, board and wetsuit.

Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to SAL, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bagabout US$268–US$563
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$74–US$121
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$141–US$234
Food7 days eating outabout US$161–US$295
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$74–US$121
Totalabout US$717–US$1,330

For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: 3 towns

Closest

El Zonte

4 min by car · 28 places to stay

about US$54/nightcountry average

See 28 places to stay in El Zonte · Booking.com

About El Zonte its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$54 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

Getting there: about 9h 35m

About 9h 35m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → SAL, direct, then 1h 05m by road

An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.