Staying Home Sucks, home
Paardenbaai Bay - panoramio
Paardenbaai. Photo: James Martins, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

harbour

Surf spot · Aruba

Is it worth the trip?

7Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Wed 4: too small (2 ft swell at 5 s), sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 8 out of 100

Swell
2 ft5 smushy
Energy
23kJ
Wind
ENE 17 kn
Temp
30°C

Tue 3 · 10 out of 100

Swell
3 ft5 smushy
Energy
30kJ
Wind
E 13 kn
Temp
30°C

Wed 4 · 11 out of 100

Swell
2 ft5 smushy
Energy
18kJ
Wind
ENE 7 kn
Temp
29°C

Thu 5 · 2 out of 100

Swell
1 ft8 shollow
Energy
6kJ
Wind
NW 6 kn
Temp
28°C

Fri 6 · 2 out of 100

Swell
1 ft8 shollow
Energy
5kJ
Wind
WSW 5 kn
Temp
28°C

Sat 7 · 2 out of 100

Swell
1 ft7 shollow
Energy
5kJ
Wind
WNW 5 kn
Temp
28°C

Sun 8 · 3 out of 100

Swell
1 ft7 shollow
Energy
5kJ
Wind
E 10 kn
Temp
29°C

Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 16, too small
  2. Mon 28, too small
  3. Tue 310, too small
  4. Wed 411, too small
  5. Thu 52, too small
  6. Fri 62, too small
  7. Sat 72, too small
  8. Sun 83, too small
  9. Mon 93, too small
  10. Tue 103, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces SWtakes swell from the SW
  • Offshore: NEwind from the land
  • Beginner +who it suits
  • Works 5–20 ftof swell
  • Water 29 °Cno wetsuit

Full forecast

every day, every number

harbour does not suit intermediates. This is the forecast for experts, so you can see what it does.

Forecast and score for expert surfers at harbour, each day
DayScorefor ExpertSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 1Nov6, too small2 ft5 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.)19kJwind from the east, 17 knots, offshore30°C
Mon 2Nov8, too small2 ft5 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.)23kJwind from the east-north-east, 17 knots, offshore30°C
Tue 3Nov10, too small3 ft5 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.)30kJwind from the east, 13 knots, offshore30°C
Wed 4Nov11, too small2 ft5 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.)18kJwind from the east-north-east, 7 knots, offshore29°C
Thu 5Nov2, too small1 ft8 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.)6kJwind from the north-west, 6 knots28°C
Fri 6Nov2, too small1 ft8 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.)5kJwind from the west-south-west, 5 knots28°C
Sat 7Nov2, too small1 ft7 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.)5kJwind from the west-north-west, 5 knots28°C
Sun 8Nov3, too small1 ft7 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.)5kJwind from the east, 10 knots, offshore29°C
Mon 9Nov3, too small1 ft5 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.)4kJwind from the east, 12 knots, offshore29°C
Tue 10Nov3, too small2 ft5 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.)11kJwind from the east, 15 knots, offshore30°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 01:05 −0.2 mHigh 16:57 +0.2 m
  • Mon 2 NovLow 01:38 −0.1 mHigh 17:49 +0.2 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 02:06 −0.1 mHigh 08:53 +0.1 mLow 11:14 +0.0 mHigh 18:43 +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, its town, photos

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.

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Photos of harbour

Aruba Oranjestad Paardenbaai Bay Lagoon L.G. Smith Blvd. - panoramio
Photo: James Martins, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Last remaining Mangroves at the coast of Paardenbaai, Oranjestad Aruba
Photo: Ginelly.Q, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

More surf near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About harbour

Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.

The spot faces SW (227°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (47°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits beginners and up. It works in 5–20 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves moderately: 10 m deep about 200 m out (1 in 20). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 26°C in January, its coldest month (no wetsuit), and 29°C in September, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is Oranjestad, 0.5 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 2 surf spots and 1 dive site.

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$951–US$1,760 each

about US$951–US$1,760 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 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to AUA, estimated from distance and season, 2 airlines on the route, with a hold bagabout US$301–US$623
Taxiairport and back, sharedabout US$20–US$33
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$255–US$422
Food7 days eating outabout US$288–US$536
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$87–US$141
Totalabout US$951–US$1,760

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

Closest

Oranjestad

1 min by car · 45 places to stay

about US$94/nightcountry average

See 45 places to stay in Oranjestad · Booking.com

About Oranjestad its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$94 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 9h 20m

About 9h 20m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → AUA, direct, then 25 min by road

An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.