Is it worth the trip?
35Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Wed 4: 3 ft swell at 5 s
Mon 2 · 40 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft5 shollow
- Energy
- 27kJ
- Wind
- ENE 4 kn
- Temp
- 26°C
Tue 3 · 43 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft5 shollow
- Energy
- 29kJ
- Wind
- NE 3 kn
- Temp
- 28°C
Wed 4 · 49 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft5 shollow
- Energy
- 34kJ
- Wind
- NNE 4 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Thu 5 · 33 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft5 shollow
- Energy
- 20kJ
- Wind
- ENE 1 kn
- Temp
- 26°C
Fri 6 · 22 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft5 shollow
- Energy
- 10kJ
- Wind
- ENE 4 kn
- Temp
- 26°C
Sat 7 · 2 out of 100
- Swell
- under 1 ft12 s
- Energy
- 0kJ
- Wind
- ENE 2 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Sun 8 · 13 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft3 shollow
- Energy
- 2kJ
- Wind
- E 4 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 145, fair
- Mon 240, too small
- Tue 343, too small
- Wed 449, fair
- Thu 533, too small
- Fri 622, too small
- Sat 72, too small
- Sun 813, too small
- Mon 921, too small
- Tue 1026, too small
The spot in five facts
- Faces SEtakes swell from the SE
- Offshore: NWwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 2–8 ftof swell
- Water 29 °Cno wetsuit
Full forecast
every day, every number
El Manda does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.
| Day | Scorefor Intermediate | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 45, fair | 3 ft5 shollow4 ft at break (est.) | 36kJ | wind from the north-east, 6 knots | 28°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 40, too small | 3 ft5 shollow3 ft at break (est.) | 27kJ | wind from the east-north-east, 4 knots | 26°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 43, too small | 3 ft5 shollow3 ft at break (est.) | 29kJ | wind from the north-east, 3 knots | 28°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 49, fair | 3 ft5 shollow3 ft at break (est.) | 34kJ | wind from the north-north-east, 4 knots | 27°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 33, too small | 2 ft5 shollow3 ft at break (est.) | 20kJ | wind from the east-north-east, 1 knot | 26°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 22, too small | 2 ft5 shollow2 ft at break (est.) | 10kJ | wind from the east-north-east, 4 knots | 26°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 2, too small | under 1 ft12 sunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 0kJ | wind from the east-north-east, 2 knots | 27°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 13, too small | 1 ft3 shollow1 ft at break (est.) | 2kJ | wind from the east, 4 knots | 27°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 21, too small | 2 ft3 shollow2 ft at break (est.) | 5kJ | wind from the north-east, 5 knots | 27°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 26, too small | 2 ft4 shollow2 ft at break (est.) | 15kJ | wind from the east, 3 knots | 27°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 00:31 −0.1 mHigh 15:56 +0.2 m
- Mon 2 NovLow 00:28 −0.1 mHigh 16:38 +0.1 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 00:28 −0.1 mHigh 07:46 +0.0 mLow 10:39 +0.0 mHigh 17:11 +0.1 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
El Manda on Google Maps · Directions
Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for beginners: 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.
More surf near here
3 places
- Patos 4.3 km away
- San Rafael 6.7 km away
- Bahoruco 12.1 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About El Manda
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces SE (129°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (309°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up, because of a steep sea floor. It works in 2–8 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves steeply: 10 m deep about 100 m out (1 in 10). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 27°C in January, its coldest month (no wetsuit), and 30°C in September, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is Paraíso, 0.3 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot.
Water about 29°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$670–US$1,230 each
about US$670–US$1,230 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 SDQ, estimated from distance and season, changing at ATL, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$268–US$556 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$60–US$94 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$121–US$194 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$134–US$241 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$87–US$141 |
| Total | about US$670–US$1,230 |
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
1 min by car · 9 places to stay
about US$47/nightcountry average
About Paraíso its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Los Patos on Booking.com
8 min by car · 1 place to stay
- Beds in Baoruco on Booking.com
21 min by car · 3 places to stay
About US$47 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 14h 30m
About 14h 30m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → SDQ, changing at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), then 3h 10m by road
Flights MDW → SDQ on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.