Is it worth the trip?
7Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Mon 2: too small (1 ft swell at 10 s)
Mon 2 · 10 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft10 s
- Energy
- 6kJ
- Wind
- WNW 7 kn
- Temp
- 30°C
Tue 3 · 8 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft10 s
- Energy
- 6kJ
- Wind
- S 1 kn
- Temp
- 29°C
Wed 4 · 5 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft9 s
- Energy
- 5kJ
- Wind
- S 5 kn
- Temp
- 28°C
Thu 5 · 7 out of 100
- Swell
- under 1 ft10 s
- Energy
- 4kJ
- Wind
- WSW 2 kn
- Temp
- 28°C
Fri 6 · 6 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft3 smushy
- Energy
- 2kJ
- Wind
- S 9 kn
- Temp
- 28°C
Sat 7 · 5 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft9 s
- Energy
- 4kJ
- Wind
- S 2 kn
- Temp
- 29°C
Sun 8 · 3 out of 100
- Swell
- under 1 ft16 s
- Energy
- 3kJ
- Wind
- N 2 kn
- Temp
- 31°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 18, too small
- Mon 210, too small
- Tue 38, too small
- Wed 45, too small
- Thu 57, too small
- Fri 66, too small
- Sat 75, too small
- Sun 83, too small
- Mon 97, too small
- Tue 108, too small
The spot in six facts
- Faces SEtakes swell from the SE
- Offshore: NWwind from the land
- Beginner +who it suits
- Works 2–7 ftof swell
- Water 28 °Cno wetsuit
- Best Jun–Jul, Sep3 good days in 7
Full forecast
every day, every number
| Day | Score for intermediates | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 8, too small | 1 ft11 s1 ft at break (est.) | 6kJ | offshorewind from the north-west, 10 knots, offshore | 29°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 10, too small | 1 ft10 s1 ft at break (est.) | 6kJ | offshorewind from the west-north-west, 7 knots, offshore | 30°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 8, too small | 1 ft10 s1 ft at break (est.) | 6kJ | wind from the south, 1 knot | 29°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 5, too small | 1 ft9 s1 ft at break (est.) | 5kJ | wind from the south, 5 knots | 28°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 7, too small | under 1 ft10 s1 ft at break (est.) | 4kJ | wind from the west-south-west, 2 knots | 28°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 6, too small | 1 ft3 smushy1 ft at break (est.) | 2kJ | wind from the south, 9 knots | 28°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 5, too small | 1 ft9 s1 ft at break (est.) | 4kJ | wind from the south, 2 knots | 29°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 3, too small | under 1 ft16 sunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 3kJ | offshorewind from the north, 2 knots, offshore | 31°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 7, too small | under 1 ft13 s1 ft at break (est.) | 5kJ | offshorewind from the north-north-west, 8 knots, offshore | 30°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 8, too small | under 1 ft12 s1 ft at break (est.) | 6kJ | offshorewind from the north-west, 7 knots, offshore | 30°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 01:52 −1.8 mHigh 07:56 +1.9 mLow 14:21 −2.0 mHigh 20:39 +1.8 m
- Mon 2 NovLow 02:57 −1.6 mHigh 09:04 +1.6 mLow 15:27 −1.8 mHigh 21:51 +1.7 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 04:09 −1.5 mHigh 10:23 +1.4 mLow 16:38 −1.6 mHigh 23:08 +1.7 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 Jun–Jul, Sep
Good days in a typical week, each month, for beginners, from 2016 on (history scored the same way).
- Jan0of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb0of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar0of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May2of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun3of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul3of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug2of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep3of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct2of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov2of 7: a trip from Mon 2 Nov
- Dec0of 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 and its town
El Chumical 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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More surf near here
2 places
- Las Bovedas 13.8 km away
- La zurda 18.2 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About El Chumical
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces SE (157°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (337°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits beginners and up. It works in 2–7 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves very gently: 10 m deep about 4.3 km out (1 in 435). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 25°C in February, its coldest month (no wetsuit), and 29°C in May, its warmest (no wetsuit). For beginners the best months are usually June, July and September, with about 3 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Veracruz, 1.6 km away (about 5 min by car).
Water about 28°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$764–US$1,450 each
about US$764–US$1,450 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 PTY, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bag | about US$301–US$630 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$74–US$127 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$147–US$248 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$167–US$315 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$74–US$127 |
| Total | about US$764–US$1,450 |
For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: 2 towns
3 min by car · 1 place to stay
about US$54/nightcountry average
About Veracruz its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Ciudad de Panama on Booking.com
31 min by car · 153 places to stay
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 10h 10m
About 10h 10m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → PTY, direct, then 55 min by road
Flights ORD → PTY on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.