Dunnet Bay
Surf spot · UK
Is it worth the trip?
54Fair out of 100 for your dates
Best on Wed 4: 3 ft swell at 10 s
Mon 2 · 55 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 120kJ
- Wind
- NW 8 kn
- Temp
- 11°C
Tue 3 · 51 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 56kJ
- Wind
- NNW 2 kn
- Temp
- 11°C
Wed 4 · 75 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft10 ssoft
- Energy
- 184kJ
- Wind
- S 5 kn
- Temp
- 10°C
Thu 5 · 56 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft9 ssoft
- Energy
- 95kJ
- Wind
- SE 3 kn
- Temp
- 10°C
Fri 6 · 40 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft8 smushy
- Energy
- 47kJ
- Wind
- ESE 6 kn
- Temp
- 9°C
Sat 7 · 27 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft8 ssoft
- Energy
- 40kJ
- Wind
- SSW 6 kn
- Temp
- 8°C
Sun 8 · 34 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 234kJ
- Wind
- SSW 8 kn
- Temp
- 10°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 133, poor
- Mon 255, fair
- Tue 351, fair
- Wed 475, good
- Thu 556, fair
- Fri 640, too small
- Sat 727, too small
- Sun 834, poor
- Mon 90, too big
- Tue 1012, poor
The spot in five facts
- Faces Wtakes swell from the W
- Offshore: Ewind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 3–12 ftof swell
- Water 11 °C4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.
| Day | Score for intermediates | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 33, poor | 3 ft9 smushy | 169kJ | wind from the west-south-west, 11 knots | 10°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 55, fair | 4 ft7 smushy | 120kJ | wind from the north-west, 8 knots | 11°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 51, fair | 3 ft6 smushy | 56kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 2 knots | 11°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 75, good | 3 ft10 ssoft | 184kJ | wind from the south, 5 knots | 10°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 56, fair | 3 ft9 ssoft | 95kJ | offshorewind from the south-east, 3 knots, offshore | 10°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 40, too small | 2 ft8 smushy | 47kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 6 knots, offshore | 9°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 27, too small | 2 ft8 ssoft | 40kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 6 knots | 8°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 34, poor | 5 ft7 smushy | 234kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 8 knots | 10°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 0, too big | 8 ft9 smushy | 845kJ | wind from the south-west, 9 knots | 8°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 12, poor | 5 ft10 smushy | 380kJ | wind from the west, 19 knots | 6°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 NovHigh 00:38 +0.9 mLow 06:50 −0.9 mHigh 12:52 +1.1 mLow 19:43 −1.3 m
- Mon 2 NovHigh 02:09 +0.8 mLow 08:05 −0.7 mHigh 14:17 +1.0 mLow 21:04 −1.3 m
- Tue 3 NovHigh 03:52 +0.7 mLow 09:28 −0.7 mHigh 15:51 +1.0 mLow 22:21 −1.4 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.
Best time to go
No month stands out
Good days in a typical week, each month, for intermediate surfers, from 2016 on (history scored the same way).
- Jan1of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb1of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar1of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May1of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun0of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul0of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug1of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep1of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct1of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov1of 7: a trip from Mon 2 Nov
- Dec1of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Dec
Tap a month to see this spot for a trip then.
Typical, not a forecast.
Map
the spot, its town, photos
Dunnet Bay on Google Maps · Directions
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.
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One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Photos of Dunnet Bay
More surf near here
5 places
- The spur 2 km away
- Thurso East 8.3 km away
- Sewer Pipe 8.9 km away
- Thurso beach 9 km away
- The Bowl 16.7 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Dunnet Bay
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces W (290°), so it takes swell from the W. The wind blows offshore from the E (110°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 3–12 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves very gently: 10 m deep about 1.4 km out (1 in 137). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 8°C in February, its coldest month (5/4 or 6/5, hood, boots and gloves), and 13°C in July, its warmest (4/3 wetsuit and boots). The town to stay in is Dunnet, 1.6 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot.
Water about 11°C: 4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves. 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$1,290–US$2,390 each
about US$1,290–US$2,390 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
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return ORD to INV, estimated from distance and season, changing at DUB, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$422–US$871 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$141–US$234 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$281–US$469 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$315–US$583 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$134–US$228 |
| Total | about US$1,290–US$2,390 |
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
3 min by car · 6 places to stay
about US$107/nightcountry average
About Dunnet its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Thurso on Booking.com
16 min by car · 28 places to stay
- Beds in Melvich on Booking.com
58 min by car · 4 places to stay
About US$107 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 18h 10m
About 18h 10m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → INV, changing at Dublin Airport (DUB), then 2h 30m by road
Flights ORD → INV on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.