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El Medano
Surf spot · Spain
Is it worth the trip?
7Poor out of 100 for your dates
2 days tie for best
Mon 2 · 6 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft10 scrumbling
- Energy
- 31kJ
- Wind
- NNW 4 kn
- Temp
- 24°C
Tue 3 · 6 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft12 scrumbling
- Energy
- 27kJ
- Wind
- WNW 4 kn
- Temp
- 25°C
Wed 4 · 8 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft11 scrumbling
- Energy
- 32kJ
- Wind
- SSW 0 kn
- Temp
- 24°C
Thu 5 · 8 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft10 scrumbling
- Energy
- 28kJ
- Wind
- WSW 9 kn
- Temp
- 24°C
Fri 6 · 6 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft10 scrumbling
- Energy
- 29kJ
- Wind
- ENE 4 kn
- Temp
- 23°C
Sat 7 · 5 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft10 scrumbling
- Energy
- 18kJ
- Wind
- E 1 kn
- Temp
- 24°C
Sun 8 · 2 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft9 scrumbling
- Energy
- 11kJ
- Wind
- SW 13 kn
- Temp
- 26°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 18, too small
- Mon 26, too small
- Tue 36, too small
- Wed 48, too small
- Thu 58, too small
- Fri 66, too small
- Sat 75, too small
- Sun 82, too small
- Mon 922, too small
- Tue 1016, too small
The spot in five facts
- Faces SEtakes swell from the SE
- Offshore: NWwind from the land
- Beginner +who it suits
- Works 5–20 ftof swell
- Water 23 °C2 mm shorty
Full forecast
every day, every number
| Day | Score for experts | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 8, too small | 2 ft10 scrumblingunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 48kJ | wind from the south-west, 4 knots | 25°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 6, too small | 1 ft10 scrumblingunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 31kJ | offshorewind from the north-north-west, 4 knots, offshore | 24°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 6, too small | 1 ft12 scrumbling1 ft at break (est.) | 27kJ | offshorewind from the west-north-west, 4 knots, offshore | 25°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 8, too small | 1 ft11 scrumbling1 ft at break (est.) | 32kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 0 knots | 24°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 8, too small | 1 ft10 scrumbling1 ft at break (est.) | 28kJ | offshorewind from the west-south-west, 9 knots, offshore | 24°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 6, too small | 1 ft10 scrumbling1 ft at break (est.) | 29kJ | wind from the east-north-east, 4 knots | 23°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 5, too small | 1 ft10 scrumbling1 ft at break (est.) | 18kJ | wind from the east, 1 knot | 24°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 2, too small | 1 ft9 scrumbling1 ft at break (est.) | 11kJ | wind from the south-west, 13 knots | 26°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 22, too small | 4 ft7 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 142kJ | offshorewind from the west, 11 knots, offshore | 25°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 16, too small | 3 ft6 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 61kJ | offshorewind from the west, 12 knots, offshore | 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 05:20 +0.7 mLow 11:57 −0.6 mHigh 18:20 +0.4 m
- Mon 2 NovLow 00:13 −0.4 mHigh 06:43 +0.6 mLow 13:28 −0.6 mHigh 19:51 +0.4 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 01:47 −0.4 mHigh 08:08 +0.6 mLow 14:50 −0.6 mHigh 21:07 +0.5 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, its town, photos
El Medano 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 Medano
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More surf near here
5 places
- El Cabezo - El Bunker 1.1 km away
- La Tejita (El Medano) 1.5 km away
- Atlantic Playa 1.7 km away
- La Machacona 2.6 km away
- Las Galletas 11.4 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About El Medano
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces SE (117°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (297°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits beginners and up. It works in 5–20 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 650 m out (1 in 67). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 19°C in March, its coldest month (2 mm shorty), and 24°C in September, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is El Medano, 0.9 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 4 surf spots and 1 wind sports spot.
Water about 23°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$1,020–US$1,940 each
about US$1,020–US$1,940 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, taxi, 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 TFS, estimated from distance and season, changing at LIS, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$456–US$945 |
| Taxi | airport and back, shared | about US$20–US$33 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$208–US$348 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$234–US$442 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$100–US$167 |
| Total | about US$1,020–US$1,940 |
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
2 min by car · 29 places to stay
about US$80/nightcountry average
About El Medano its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Palm Mar on Booking.com
28 min by car · 20 places to stay
- Beds in Arico on Booking.com
29 min by car · 9 places to stay
About US$80 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
About 18h door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → TFS, changing at Lisbon Humberto Delgado Airport (LIS), then 25 min by road
Flights ORD → TFS on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.