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La Castilla-El Tabo
Surf spot · Chile
Is it worth the trip?
12Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Thu 5: 5 ft swell at 10 s
Tue 3 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 7 ft10 scrumbling
- Energy
- 999kJ
- Wind
- SSW 1 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Wed 4 · 15 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft10 scrumbling
- Energy
- 519kJ
- Wind
- SSW 5 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Thu 5 · 31 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft15 shollow
- Energy
- 424kJ
- Wind
- S 8 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Fri 6 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 401kJ
- Wind
- S 11 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Sat 7 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 8 ft9 smushy
- Energy
- 1,069kJ
- Wind
- SSW 7 kn
- Temp
- 21°C
Sun 8 · 16 out of 100
- Swell
- 8 ft9 ssoft
- Energy
- 830kJ
- Wind
- NW 3 kn
- Temp
- 21°C
Mon 9 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft12 smushy
- Energy
- 438kJ
- Wind
- NW 9 kn
- Temp
- 22°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 9 days
Full forecast- Mon 235, poor
- Tue 30, too big
- Wed 422, poor
- Thu 528, poor
- Fri 60, too big
- Sat 70, too big
- Sun 80, too big
- Mon 941, poor
- Tue 100, too big
The spot in five facts
- Faces SWtakes swell from the SW
- Offshore: NEwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 2–8 ftof swell
- Water 14 °C4/3 wetsuit and boots
Full forecast
every day, every number
| Day | Score for intermediates | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 2Nov | 35, poor | 3 ft15 shollow6 ft at break (est.) | 478kJ | wind from the west-south-west, 6 knots | 20°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 0, too big | 7 ft10 scrumbling10 ft at break (est.) | 999kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 1 knot | 20°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 22, poor | 5 ft10 scrumbling7 ft at break (est.) | 519kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots | 19°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 28, poor | 3 ft15 shollow6 ft at break (est.) | 424kJ | wind from the south, 8 knots | 19°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 0, too big | 6 ft7 smushy7 ft at break (est.) | 401kJ | wind from the south, 11 knots | 18°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 0, too big | 8 ft9 smushy10 ft at break (est.) | 1,069kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 7 knots | 21°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 0, too big | 8 ft9 ssoft9 ft at break (est.) | 830kJ | wind from the north-west, 3 knots | 21°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 41, poor | 4 ft12 smushy6 ft at break (est.) | 438kJ | wind from the north-west, 9 knots | 22°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 0, too big | 6 ft12 scrumbling9 ft at break (est.) | 1,049kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots | 23°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 04:48 +0.6 mLow 12:01 −0.5 mHigh 18:12 +0.2 mLow 23:34 −0.3 m
- Tue 3 NovHigh 06:05 +0.6 mLow 13:03 −0.6 mHigh 19:21 +0.3 m
- Wed 4 NovLow 00:59 −0.3 mHigh 07:16 +0.5 mLow 13:56 −0.6 mHigh 20:15 +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).
- Jan0of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb0of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar0of 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
- Sep1of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct0of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov0of 7: a trip from Tue 3 Nov
- Dec0of 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
La Castilla-El Tabo on Google Maps · Directions
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.
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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.
More surf near here
5 places
- Isla Negra 1.5 km away
- Chepica 3.8 km away
- La cruz 4.4 km away
- Ahogados 6.4 km away
- Las Cruces 6.8 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About La Castilla-El Tabo
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces SW (245°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (65°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–8 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves moderately: 10 m deep about 300 m out (1 in 32). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would crumble. The sea is about 12°C in August, its coldest month (4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves), and 17°C in February, its warmest (3/2 wetsuit). The town to stay in is El Tabo, 0.8 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 3 surf spots.
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$1,090–US$2,090 each
about US$1,090–US$2,090 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 MDW to SCL, estimated from distance and season, changing at ATL, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$569–US$1,180 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$80–US$134 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$194–US$322 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$174–US$328 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$74–US$127 |
| Total | about US$1,090–US$2,090 |
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
1 min by car · 58 places to stay
about US$74/nightcountry average
About El Tabo its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in El Quisco on Booking.com
11 min by car · 136 places to stay
- Beds in Las Cruces on Booking.com
13 min by car · 31 places to stay
About US$74 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 20h 20m
About 20h 20m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → SCL, changing at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), then 1h 45m by road
Flights MDW → SCL on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.