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El Brazo
Surf spot · Chile
Is it worth the trip?
36Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Sun 8: 7 ft swell at 10 s, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow
Mon 2 · 37 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft11 ssoft
- Energy
- 811kJ
- Wind
- SW 3 kn
- Temp
- 22°C
Tue 3 · 27 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft10 ssoft
- Energy
- 480kJ
- Wind
- S 1 kn
- Temp
- 22°C
Wed 4 · 37 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft11 ssoft
- Energy
- 762kJ
- Wind
- SSW 5 kn
- Temp
- 22°C
Thu 5 · 34 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft10 ssoft
- Energy
- 550kJ
- Wind
- SSW 2 kn
- Temp
- 22°C
Fri 6 · 25 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft9 ssoft
- Energy
- 404kJ
- Wind
- NW 5 kn
- Temp
- 22°C
Sat 7 · 32 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft11 ssoft
- Energy
- 488kJ
- Wind
- E 0 kn
- Temp
- 22°C
Sun 8 · 45 out of 100
- Swell
- 7 ft10 ssoft
- Energy
- 824kJ
- Wind
- SSW 3 kn
- Temp
- 22°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 139, poor
- Mon 237, poor
- Tue 327, too small
- Wed 437, poor
- Thu 534, too small
- Fri 625, too small
- Sat 732, too small
- Sun 845, fair
- Mon 928, too small
- Tue 1014, too small
The spot in six facts
- Faces Wtakes swell from the W
- Offshore: Ewind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 4–14 ftof swell
- Water 18 °C2 mm shorty
- Best in Jan2 good days in 7
Full forecast
every day, every number
| Day | Score for experts | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 39, poor | 6 ft12 ssoft8 ft at break (est.) | 1,002kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 5 knots | 22°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 37, poor | 6 ft11 ssoft7 ft at break (est.) | 811kJ | wind from the south-west, 3 knots | 22°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 27, too small | 5 ft10 ssoft6 ft at break (est.) | 480kJ | wind from the south, 1 knot | 22°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 37, poor | 6 ft11 ssoft6 ft at break (est.) | 762kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots | 22°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 34, too small | 6 ft10 ssoft6 ft at break (est.) | 550kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 2 knots | 22°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 25, too small | 5 ft9 ssoft5 ft at break (est.) | 404kJ | wind from the north-west, 5 knots | 22°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 32, too small | 5 ft11 ssoft4 ft at break (est.) | 488kJ | offshorewind from the east, 0 knots, offshore | 22°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 45, fair | 7 ft10 ssoft6 ft at break (est.) | 824kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 3 knots | 22°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 28, too small | 5 ft9 ssoft4 ft at break (est.) | 391kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 3 knots | 22°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 14, too small | 2 ft14 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 220kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 7 knots | 22°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 02:27 +0.6 mLow 09:45 −0.4 mHigh 15:30 +0.0 mLow 20:33 −0.3 m
- Mon 2 NovHigh 03:35 +0.6 mLow 10:50 −0.4 mHigh 16:53 +0.1 mLow 22:00 −0.2 m
- Tue 3 NovHigh 04:45 +0.5 mLow 11:48 −0.5 mHigh 18:02 +0.2 mLow 23:27 −0.3 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
best in Jan
Good days in a typical week, each month, for intermediate surfers, from 2016 on (history scored the same way).
- Jan2of 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
- Jun1of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug1of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep0of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct0of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov0of 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
El Brazo on Google Maps · Directions
Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for experts: 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 El Brazo
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More surf near here
5 places
- El Gringo 0.3 km away
- El Gringo 0.4 km away
- El Toro viejo 0.5 km away
- El Buey 1 km away
- El Rancio 3.3 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About El Brazo
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces W (279°), so it takes swell from the W. The wind blows offshore from the E (99°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 4–14 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 600 m out (1 in 58). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 17°C in July, its coldest month (3/2 wetsuit), and 22°C in February, its warmest (2 mm shorty). For intermediate surfers the best month is usually January, with about 2 good days in 7; in September, October and November, about 0. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Arica, 0.9 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 6 surf spots.
Water about 18°C: 2 mm shorty. 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$998–US$1,900 each
about US$998–US$1,900 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 MDW to TCQ, estimated from distance and season, changing at ATL and LIM, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$476–US$992 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$80–US$134 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$194–US$322 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$174–US$328 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$74–US$127 |
| Total | about US$998–US$1,900 |
For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: Arica
2 min by car · 75 places to stay
about US$74/nightcountry average
About Arica its beds, food and every spot near it
About US$74 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 21h 05m
About 21h 05m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → TCQ, changing at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) and Jorge Chávez International Airport (LIM), then 1h 10m by road
Flights MDW → TCQ on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.