Staying Home Sucks, home
Swami's Beach, Encinitas
Little Tahitis. Photo: Tim Buss from North County, San Diego, California, USA, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Little Tahitis

Surf spot · United States

Is it worth the trip?

45Fair out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Tue 3: 3 ft swell at 12 s

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 64 out of 100

Swell
3 ft12 scrumbling
Energy
279kJ
Wind
ENE 4 kn
Temp
22°C

Wed 4 · 55 out of 100

Swell
4 ft5 smushy
Energy
51kJ
Wind
E 7 kn
Temp
22°C

Thu 5 · 52 out of 100

Swell
3 ft9 scrumbling
Energy
107kJ
Wind
N 1 kn
Temp
22°C

Fri 6 · 28 out of 100

Swell
2 ft12 shollow
Energy
91kJ
Wind
ENE 4 kn
Temp
24°C

Sat 7 · 29 out of 100

Swell
1 ft13 shollow
Energy
68kJ
Wind
NNW 2 kn
Temp
26°C

Sun 8 · 24 out of 100

Swell
1 ft14 shollow
Energy
67kJ
Wind
NNW 3 kn
Temp
26°C

Mon 9 · 22 out of 100

Swell
2 ft12 shollow
Energy
74kJ
Wind
ENE 4 kn
Temp
26°C

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

Forecast: next 9 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 276, good
  2. Tue 364, good
  3. Wed 455, fair
  4. Thu 552, fair
  5. Fri 628, too small
  6. Sat 729, too small
  7. Sun 824, too small
  8. Mon 922, too small
  9. Tue 1041, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces Wtakes swell from the W
  • Offshore: Ewind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 2–8 ftof swell
  • Water 18 °C2 mm shorty

Full forecast

every day, every number

The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.

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

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Little Tahitis, each day
DayScorefor Inter­mediateSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov76, good3 ft12 scrumbling5 ft at break (est.)311kJwind from the west-north-west, 3 knots21°C
Tue 3Nov64, good3 ft12 scrumbling5 ft at break (est.)279kJwind from the east-north-east, 4 knots, offshore22°C
Wed 4Nov55, fair4 ft5 smushy4 ft at break (est.)51kJwind from the east, 7 knots, offshore22°C
Thu 5Nov52, fair3 ft9 scrumbling4 ft at break (est.)107kJwind from the north, 1 knot22°C
Fri 6Nov28, too small2 ft12 shollow3 ft at break (est.)91kJwind from the east-north-east, 4 knots, offshore24°C
Sat 7Nov29, too small1 ft13 shollow3 ft at break (est.)68kJwind from the north-north-west, 2 knots26°C
Sun 8Nov24, too small1 ft14 shollow3 ft at break (est.)67kJwind from the north-north-west, 3 knots26°C
Mon 9Nov22, too small2 ft12 shollow3 ft at break (est.)74kJwind from the east-north-east, 4 knots, offshore26°C
Tue 10Nov41, too small2 ft11 scrumbling3 ft at break (est.)97kJwind from the south-south-west, 3 knots25°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 04:26 +0.4 mLow 09:38 −0.1 mHigh 15:17 +0.6 mLow 22:19 −0.8 m
  • Tue 3 NovHigh 05:07 +0.6 mLow 10:56 −0.3 mHigh 16:39 +0.5 mLow 23:09 −0.8 m
  • Wed 4 NovHigh 05:42 +0.7 mLow 11:53 −0.5 mHigh 17:46 +0.5 mLow 23:52 −0.7 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

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Little Tahitis

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

The spot faces W (252°), so it takes swell from the W. The wind blows offshore from the E (72°). 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 350 m out (1 in 33). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would crumble. The sea is about 15°C in January, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 22°C in August, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Encinitas, 0.3 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 22 surf spots and 1 wind sports spot.

Water about 18°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$1,120–US$2,030 each

about US$1,120–US$2,030 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 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn MDW to SAN, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bagabout US$248–US$516
Taxiairport and back, sharedabout US$80–US$134
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$301–US$502
Food7 days eating outabout US$342–US$636
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$147–US$241
Totalabout US$1,120–US$2,030

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

Encinitas

about 5 min by car · 27 places to stay

about US$114/nightcountry average

See 27 places to stay in Encinitas · Booking.com

About Encinitas its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$114 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 7h

About 7h door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → SAN, direct, then 55 min by road

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