Elbow Key
Surf spot · Bahamas
Is it worth the trip?
31Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Fri 6: 6 ft swell at 8 s
Tue 3 · 16 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft7 s
- Energy
- 283kJ
- Wind
- ENE 13 kn
- Temp
- 28°C
Wed 4 · 16 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft6 s
- Energy
- 211kJ
- Wind
- NE 12 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Thu 5 · 23 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft7 s
- Energy
- 234kJ
- Wind
- NNE 12 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Fri 6 · 47 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft8 s
- Energy
- 362kJ
- Wind
- N 11 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Sat 7 · 42 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft8 s
- Energy
- 275kJ
- Wind
- NNW 8 kn
- Temp
- 26°C
Sun 8 · 27 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft7 s
- Energy
- 179kJ
- Wind
- NNE 7 kn
- Temp
- 26°C
Mon 9 · 18 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft7 s
- Energy
- 122kJ
- Wind
- ESE 8 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 9 days
Full forecast- Mon 214, poor
- Tue 316, too small
- Wed 416, too small
- Thu 523, too small
- Fri 647, fair
- Sat 742, too small
- Sun 827, too small
- Mon 918, too small
- Tue 1023, too small
The spot in five facts
- Faces Etakes swell from the E
- Offshore: Wwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 2–9 ftof swell
- Water 27 °Cno wetsuit
Full forecast
every day, every number
| Day | Score for experts | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 2Nov | 14, poor | 6 ft6 s7 ft at break (est.) | 296kJ | wind from the east, 15 knots | 28°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 16, too small | 6 ft7 s6 ft at break (est.) | 283kJ | wind from the east-north-east, 13 knots | 28°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 16, too small | 5 ft6 s6 ft at break (est.) | 211kJ | wind from the north-east, 12 knots | 27°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 23, too small | 5 ft7 s6 ft at break (est.) | 234kJ | wind from the north-north-east, 12 knots | 27°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 47, fair | 6 ft8 s7 ft at break (est.) | 362kJ | wind from the north, 11 knots | 27°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 42, too small | 5 ft8 s6 ft at break (est.) | 275kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 8 knots | 26°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 27, too small | 4 ft7 s5 ft at break (est.) | 179kJ | wind from the north-north-east, 7 knots | 26°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 18, too small | 4 ft7 s4 ft at break (est.) | 122kJ | wind from the east-south-east, 8 knots | 27°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 23, too small | 3 ft7 s4 ft at break (est.) | 79kJ | offshorewind from the west-south-west, 12 knots, offshore | 28°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
- Mon 2 NovHigh 01:10 +0.3 mLow 07:11 −0.3 mHigh 13:40 +0.5 mLow 20:08 −0.3 m
- Tue 3 NovHigh 02:17 +0.4 mLow 08:24 −0.3 mHigh 14:41 +0.5 mLow 21:03 −0.4 m
- Wed 4 NovHigh 03:20 +0.4 mLow 09:33 −0.3 mHigh 15:39 +0.4 mLow 21:54 −0.4 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
- May0of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun0of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul0of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug0of 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 Tue 3 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 and its town
Elbow Key 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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More surf near here
5 places
- Rush Reef 0.1 km away
- Indicas 0.2 km away
- Rights 0.2 km away
- Sugar Shack 0.7 km away
- Garbanzo 1 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Elbow Key
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces E (107°), so it takes swell from the E. The wind blows offshore from the W (287°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–9 ft of swell. The sea is about 24°C in February, its coldest month (no wetsuit), and 30°C in August, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is Hope Town, 3.1 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 5 surf spots and 1 wind sports spot.
Water about 27°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$1,170–US$2,100 each
about US$1,170–US$2,100 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 NAS, estimated from distance and season, 2 airlines on the route, with a hold bag | about US$208–US$435 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$167–US$275 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$328–US$549 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$375–US$697 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$87–US$141 |
| Total | about US$1,170–US$2,100 |
For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: Hope Town
about 10 min by car · 4 places to stay
about US$121/nightcountry average
About Hope Town its beds, food and every spot near it
About US$121 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 → NAS, direct, then 3h 15m by road
Flights ORD → NAS on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.