Is it worth the trip?
13Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Wed 4: 2 ft swell at 12 s, 3 hours of offshore wind
Tue 3 · 7 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft17 ssoft
- Energy
- 36kJ
- Wind
- NE 14 kn
- Temp
- 11°C
Wed 4 · 19 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft12 ssoft
- Energy
- 96kJ
- Wind
- ENE 10 kn
- Temp
- 11°C
Thu 5 · 17 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft11 ssoft
- Energy
- 89kJ
- Wind
- ESE 8 kn
- Temp
- 12°C
Fri 6 · 14 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft9 ssoft
- Energy
- 47kJ
- Wind
- E 5 kn
- Temp
- 13°C
Sat 7 · 9 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft9 ssoft
- Energy
- 28kJ
- Wind
- E 6 kn
- Temp
- 12°C
Sun 8 · 8 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft9 ssoft
- Energy
- 20kJ
- Wind
- ENE 4 kn
- Temp
- 14°C
Mon 9 · 3 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft8 smushy
- Energy
- 22kJ
- Wind
- S 11 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 9 days
Full forecast- Mon 225, too small
- Tue 37, too small
- Wed 419, too small
- Thu 517, too small
- Fri 614, too small
- Sat 79, too small
- Sun 88, too small
- Mon 93, too small
- Tue 1013, too small
The spot in six facts
- Faces SWtakes swell from the SW
- Offshore: NEwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 2–9 ftof swell
- Water 15 °C4/3 wetsuit and boots
- Best Mar–Apr, Oct2 good days in 7
Full forecast
every day, every number
| Day | Score for experts | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 2Nov | 25, too small | 3 ft10 ssoft4 ft at break (est.) | 143kJ | offshorewind from the north-east, 10 knots, offshore | 12°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 7, too small | 1 ft17 ssoft2 ft at break (est.) | 36kJ | offshorewind from the north-east, 14 knots, offshore | 11°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 19, too small | 2 ft12 ssoft3 ft at break (est.) | 96kJ | offshorewind from the east-north-east, 10 knots, offshore | 11°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 17, too small | 2 ft11 ssoft3 ft at break (est.) | 89kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 8 knots, offshore | 12°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 14, too small | 2 ft9 ssoft3 ft at break (est.) | 47kJ | offshorewind from the east, 5 knots, offshore | 13°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 9, too small | 1 ft9 ssoft2 ft at break (est.) | 28kJ | offshorewind from the east, 6 knots, offshore | 12°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 8, too small | 1 ft9 ssoft2 ft at break (est.) | 20kJ | offshorewind from the east-north-east, 4 knots, offshore | 14°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 3, too small | 1 ft8 smushy2 ft at break (est.) | 22kJ | wind from the south, 11 knots | 16°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 13, too small | 3 ft6 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 42kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 6 knots | 16°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 03:45 −1.3 mHigh 10:15 +1.3 mLow 16:32 −1.4 mHigh 23:24 +1.0 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 04:59 −1.3 mHigh 11:54 +1.3 mLow 17:46 −1.5 m
- Wed 4 NovHigh 00:45 +1.2 mLow 06:11 −1.4 mHigh 13:07 +1.5 mLow 18:52 −1.6 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
best Mar–Apr, Oct
Good days in a typical week, each month, for intermediate surfers, from 2016 on (history scored the same way).
- Jan1of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb1of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar2of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr2of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May1of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun1of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul0of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug1of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep1of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct2of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov1of 7: a trip from Tue 3 Nov
- Dec1of 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
Les Dunes on Google Maps · Directions
Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for experts: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.
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Live webcam
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Bretignolles-sur-Mer, 2 km away
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More surf near here
5 places
- Plage des Granges 2.2 km away
- La Sauzaie 5.9 km away
- Sauveterre 7 km away
- L'Aubraie 10.7 km away
- Saint gilles croix de vie 12.7 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Les Dunes
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces SW (241°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (61°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–9 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 10°C in January, its coldest month (4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves), and 20°C in August, its warmest (2 mm shorty). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually March, April and October, with about 2 good days in 7; in July, about 0. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Brem-sur-Mer, 1.3 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot and 1 wind sports spot.
Water about 15°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$1,310–US$2,420 each
about US$1,310–US$2,420 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 ORD to NTE, estimated from distance and season, changing at DUB, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$456–US$945 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$141–US$234 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$281–US$469 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$315–US$583 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$114–US$188 |
| Total | about US$1,310–US$2,420 |
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
about 5 min by car · 12 places to stay
about US$107/nightcountry average
About Brem-sur-Mer its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Bretignolles Sur Mer on Booking.com
about 5 min by car · 17 places to stay
- Beds in Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie on Booking.com
about 20 min by car · 23 places to stay
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 17h 30m
About 17h 30m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → NTE, changing at Dublin Airport (DUB), then 1h 25m by road
Flights ORD → NTE on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.