Staying Home Sucks, home
Southwick Beach at Southwick
Hot pipe. Photo: Mat Fascione, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Hot pipe

Surf spot · UK

Is it worth the trip?

6Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

2 days tie for best

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 8 out of 100

Swell
1 ft5 smushy
Energy
3kJ
Wind
NNE 13 kn
Temp
11°C

Wed 4 · 2 out of 100

Swell
under 1 ft9 s
Energy
2kJ
Wind
ENE 13 kn
Temp
10°C

Thu 5 · 6 out of 100

Swell
1 ft4 smushy
Energy
2kJ
Wind
ENE 11 kn
Temp
9°C

Fri 6 · 5 out of 100

Swell
1 ft5 s
Energy
1kJ
Wind
ENE 6 kn
Temp
9°C

Sat 7 · 5 out of 100

Swell
1 ft2 s
Energy
0kJ
Wind
S 1 kn
Temp
10°C

Sun 8 · 8 out of 100

Swell
1 ft3 smushy
Energy
1kJ
Wind
NNW 4 kn
Temp
9°C

Mon 9 · 2 out of 100

Swell
under 1 ft4 s
Energy
1kJ
Wind
E 12 kn
Temp
10°C

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

Forecast: next 9 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 26, too small
  2. Tue 38, too small
  3. Wed 42, too small
  4. Thu 56, too small
  5. Fri 65, too small
  6. Sat 75, too small
  7. Sun 88, too small
  8. Mon 92, too small
  9. Tue 1016, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces Stakes swell from the S
  • Offshore: Nwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 3–10 ftof swell
  • Water 14 °C4/3 wetsuit and boots

Full forecast

every day, every number

Hot pipe does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Hot pipe, each day
DayScorefor Inter­mediateSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov6, too small1 ft8 smushy1 ft at break (est.)5kJwind from the north, 12 knots, offshore12°C
Tue 3Nov8, too small1 ft5 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.)3kJwind from the north-north-east, 13 knots, offshore11°C
Wed 4Nov2, too smallunder 1 ft9 s1 ft at break (est.)2kJwind from the east-north-east, 13 knots10°C
Thu 5Nov6, too small1 ft4 smushy1 ft at break (est.)2kJwind from the east-north-east, 11 knots9°C
Fri 6Nov5, too small1 ft5 s1 ft at break (est.)1kJwind from the east-north-east, 6 knots9°C
Sat 7Nov5, too small1 ft2 s1 ft at break (est.)0kJwind from the south, 1 knot10°C
Sun 8Nov8, too small1 ft3 smushy1 ft at break (est.)1kJwind from the north-north-west, 4 knots, offshore9°C
Mon 9Nov2, too smallunder 1 ft4 s1 ft at break (est.)1kJwind from the east, 12 knots10°C
Tue 10Nov16, too small2 ft4 smushy2 ft at break (est.)8kJwind from the south-west, 5 knots14°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 04:15 +1.9 mLow 10:30 −1.6 mHigh 16:46 +1.8 mLow 23:09 −1.8 m
  • Tue 3 NovHigh 05:32 +1.8 mLow 11:56 −1.6 mHigh 18:05 +1.7 m
  • Wed 4 NovLow 00:33 −1.8 mHigh 06:49 +1.9 mLow 13:16 −1.7 mHigh 19:18 +1.8 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 beginners: 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 Hot pipe

Beaches at Southwick
Photo: Paul Gillett, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Beaches at Shoreham
Photo: Paul Gillett, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

More surf near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Hot pipe

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

The spot faces S (182°), so it takes swell from the S. The wind blows offshore from the N (2°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 3–10 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves very gently: 10 m deep about 4.8 km out (1 in 476). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 9°C in February, its coldest month (4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves), and 18°C in August, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Brighton, 6.2 km away (about 15 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 3 surf spots, 2 wind sports spots and 1 mountain bike area.

Water about 14°C: 4/3 wetsuit and boots. 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$1,320–US$2,440 each

about US$1,320–US$2,440 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 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to LHR, estimated from distance and season, 3 airlines on the route, with a hold bagabout US$449–US$925
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$141–US$234
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$281–US$469
Food7 days eating outabout US$315–US$583
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$134–US$228
Totalabout US$1,320–US$2,440

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

Hove

7 min by car · 101 places to stay

about US$107/nightcountry average

See 101 places to stay in Hove · Booking.com

About Hove its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$107 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

About 14h door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → LHR, direct, then 1h 40m by road

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