Is it worth the trip?
52Fair out of 100 for your dates
Best on Sat 7: 4 ft swell at 8 s, onshore wind, 14 kn (27 km/h)
Mon 2 · 59 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft9 ssoft
- Energy
- 440kJ
- Wind
- WSW 4 kn
- Temp
- 23°C
Tue 3 · 63 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft9 ssoft
- Energy
- 207kJ
- Wind
- NNE 11 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Wed 4 · 48 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft9 ssoft
- Energy
- 236kJ
- Wind
- NE 15 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Thu 5 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 12 ft8 smushy
- Energy
- 1,462kJ
- Wind
- WNW 8 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Fri 6 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft8 ssoft
- Energy
- 444kJ
- Wind
- NW 6 kn
- Temp
- 22°C
Sat 7 · 75 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft8 ssoft
- Energy
- 184kJ
- Wind
- NNW 14 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Sun 8 · 52 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft8 ssoft
- Energy
- 99kJ
- Wind
- NE 7 kn
- Temp
- 15°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 131, poor
- Mon 259, fair
- Tue 363, good
- Wed 448, fair
- Thu 50, too big
- Fri 60, too big
- Sat 775, good
- Sun 852, fair
- Mon 935, too small
- Tue 1025, too small
The spot in five facts
- Faces SEtakes swell from the SE
- Offshore: NWwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 2–10 ftof swell
- Water 22 °C2 mm shorty
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.
Katagai 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 | 31, poor | 4 ft13 ssoft7 ft at break (est.) | 556kJ | offshorewind from the north-north-west, 4 knots, offshore | 19°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 59, fair | 5 ft9 ssoft8 ft at break (est.) | 440kJ | wind from the west-south-west, 4 knots | 23°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 63, good | 4 ft9 ssoft6 ft at break (est.) | 207kJ | wind from the north-north-east, 11 knots | 18°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 48, fair | 4 ft9 ssoft6 ft at break (est.) | 236kJ | wind from the north-east, 15 knots | 18°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 0, too big | 12 ft8 smushy13 ft at break (est.) | 1,462kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 8 knots | 19°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 0, too big | 6 ft8 ssoft7 ft at break (est.) | 444kJ | wind from the north-west, 6 knots | 22°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 75, good | 4 ft8 ssoft5 ft at break (est.) | 184kJ | offshorewind from the north-north-west, 14 knots, offshore | 16°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 52, fair | 3 ft8 ssoft4 ft at break (est.) | 99kJ | wind from the north-east, 7 knots | 15°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 35, too small | 3 ft5 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 39kJ | wind from the north-north-east, 8 knots | 14°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 25, too small | 2 ft8 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 39kJ | wind from the north-east, 9 knots | 15°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 02:07 −0.7 mHigh 10:13 +0.3 mLow 13:52 +0.2 mHigh 18:58 +0.4 m
- Mon 2 NovLow 03:17 −0.6 mHigh 11:35 +0.3 mLow 16:11 +0.1 mHigh 20:29 +0.3 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 04:39 −0.5 mHigh 12:26 +0.3 mLow 18:05 +0.0 mHigh 22:57 +0.2 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).
- Jan2of 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
- May1of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun1of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug1of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep2of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct2of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov2of 7: a trip from Mon 2 Nov
- Dec2of 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
Katagai 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.
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Katagai
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces SE (137°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (317°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–10 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves very gently: 10 m deep about 1.9 km out (1 in 189). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 16°C in February, its coldest month (3/2 wetsuit), and 26°C in August, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is Funabashi.
Water about 22°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$1,250–US$2,390 each
about US$1,250–US$2,390 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 NRT, estimated from distance and season, 4 airlines on the route, with a hold bag | about US$657–US$1,360 |
| Taxi | airport and back, shared | about US$60–US$100 |
| 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$87–US$141 |
| Total | about US$1,250–US$2,390 |
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
23 min by car · 2 places to stay
about US$80/nightcountry average
About Yokoshiba its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Ichinomiya on Booking.com
33 min by car · 17 places to stay
- Beds in Funabashi on Booking.com
81 min by car · 36 places to stay
Nearest beds: Funabashi, 46 km (about 1h 25m by car)
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 05m
About 18h 05m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → NRT, direct, then 50 min by road
Flights ORD → NRT on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.