Staying Home Sucks, home
Shima City Library
Shima, the nearest town, 4 km away. Photo: Miyuki Meinaka, CC0, Wikimedia Commons

kounohama

Surf spot · Japan

Is it worth the trip?

26Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Sat 7: 3 ft swell at 8 s, onshore wind, 17 kn (32 km/h), sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 0 out of 100

Swell
3 ft10 ssoft
Energy
201kJ
Wind
NW 14 kn
Temp
20°C

Wed 4 · 0 out of 100

Swell
5 ft10 ssoft
Energy
460kJ
Wind
N 12 kn
Temp
19°C

Thu 5 · 0 out of 100

Swell
8 ft7 smushy
Energy
466kJ
Wind
NNW 13 kn
Temp
19°C

Fri 6 · 0 out of 100

Swell
8 ft10 ssoft
Energy
1,065kJ
Wind
NW 16 kn
Temp
22°C

Sat 7 · 50 out of 100

Swell
3 ft8 ssoft
Energy
104kJ
Wind
NW 17 kn
Temp
15°C

Sun 8 · 44 out of 100

Swell
2 ft10 ssoft
Energy
50kJ
Wind
NW 14 kn
Temp
16°C

Mon 9 · 39 out of 100

Swell
2 ft9 ssoft
Energy
52kJ
Wind
NNW 16 kn
Temp
16°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 20, too big
  2. Tue 30, too big
  3. Wed 40, too big
  4. Thu 50, too big
  5. Fri 60, too big
  6. Sat 750, fair
  7. Sun 844, poor
  8. Mon 939, poor
  9. Tue 1054, fair
  10. Wed 110, too big

The spot in five facts

  • Faces Etakes swell from the E
  • Offshore: Wwind from the land
  • Beginner +who it suits
  • Works 2–8 ftof swell
  • Water 22 °C2 mm shorty

Full forecast

every day, every number
Forecast and score for beginner surfers at kounohama, each day
DayScore for beginnersSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov0, too big5 ft9 ssoft6 ft at break (est.)402kJwind from the north, 7 knots20°C
Tue 3Nov0, too big3 ft10 ssoft4 ft at break (est.)201kJwind from the north-west, 14 knots20°C
Wed 4Nov0, too big5 ft10 ssoft6 ft at break (est.)460kJwind from the north, 12 knots19°C
Thu 5Nov0, too big8 ft7 smushy8 ft at break (est.)466kJwind from the north-north-west, 13 knots19°C
Fri 6Nov0, too big8 ft10 ssoft8 ft at break (est.)1,065kJwind from the north-west, 16 knots22°C
Sat 7Nov50, fair3 ft8 ssoft4 ft at break (est.)104kJwind from the north-west, 17 knots, offshore15°C
Sun 8Nov44, poor2 ft10 ssoft3 ft at break (est.)50kJwind from the north-west, 14 knots16°C
Mon 9Nov39, poor2 ft9 ssoft3 ft at break (est.)52kJwind from the north-north-west, 16 knots16°C
Tue 10Nov54, fair2 ft8 smushy4 ft at break (est.)65kJwind from the north-north-west, 11 knots16°C
Wed 11Nov0, too big6 ft7 smushy7 ft at break (est.)380kJwind from the north, 9 knots15°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 NovLow 04:51 −0.7 mHigh 12:37 +0.5 mLow 18:25 +0.1 mHigh 23:05 +0.3 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 06:19 −0.6 mHigh 13:43 +0.5 mLow 19:53 −0.1 m
  • Wed 4 NovHigh 01:09 +0.3 mLow 07:41 −0.5 mHigh 14:31 +0.5 mLow 20:47 −0.3 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 and its town

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.

More surf near here

1 place

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About kounohama

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

The spot faces E (90°), so it takes swell from the E. The wind blows offshore from the W (270°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits beginners and up. It works in 2–8 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves very gently: 10 m deep about 1.3 km out (1 in 127). 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 28°C in August, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is Shima, 3.8 km away (about 10 min by car).

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$1,310–US$2,490 each

about US$1,310–US$2,490 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 NGO, estimated from distance and season, changing at HNL, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$670–US$1,390
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$107–US$174
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$208–US$348
Food7 days eating outabout US$234–US$442
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$87–US$141
Totalabout US$1,310–US$2,490

For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: 2 towns

Closest

Shima

about 10 min by car · 10 places to stay

about US$80/nightcountry average

See 10 places to stay in Shima · Booking.com

About Shima its beds, food and every spot near it

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 26h 05m

About 26h 05m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → NGO, changing at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL), then 1h 20m by road

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