Staying Home Sucks, home
Long Beach
Long Beach. Photo: Sergei Gussev, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Long Beach

Surf spot · United States

Is it worth the trip?

17Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Mon 2: too small (3 ft swell at 12 s), sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 27 out of 100

Swell
3 ft12 scrumbling
Energy
201kJ
Wind
W 3 kn
Temp
21°C

Tue 3 · 22 out of 100

Swell
3 ft12 scrumbling
Energy
175kJ
Wind
NNW 3 kn
Temp
22°C

Wed 4 · 16 out of 100

Swell
2 ft12 scrumbling
Energy
90kJ
Wind
N 3 kn
Temp
21°C

Thu 5 · 12 out of 100

Swell
2 ft12 scrumbling
Energy
64kJ
Wind
WNW 4 kn
Temp
23°C

Fri 6 · 9 out of 100

Swell
1 ft12 scrumbling
Energy
48kJ
Wind
W 3 kn
Temp
24°C

Sat 7 · 8 out of 100

Swell
1 ft12 scrumbling
Energy
40kJ
Wind
WSW 4 kn
Temp
27°C

Sun 8 · 7 out of 100

Swell
1 ft11 scrumbling
Energy
23kJ
Wind
N 2 kn
Temp
27°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 122, too small
  2. Mon 227, too small
  3. Tue 322, too small
  4. Wed 416, too small
  5. Thu 512, too small
  6. Fri 69, too small
  7. Sat 78, too small
  8. Sun 87, too small
  9. Mon 97, too small
  10. Tue 107, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces SEtakes swell from the SE
  • Offshore: NWwind from the land
  • Beginner +who it suits
  • Works 5–20 ftof swell
  • Water 18 °C2 mm shorty

Full forecast

every day, every number

Long Beach does not suit intermediates. This is the forecast for experts, so you can see what it does.

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Long Beach, each day
DayScorefor ExpertSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 1Nov22, too small3 ft13 scrumbling5 ft at break (est.)232kJwind from the west-south-west, 4 knots20°C
Mon 2Nov27, too small3 ft12 scrumbling5 ft at break (est.)201kJwind from the west, 3 knots21°C
Tue 3Nov22, too small3 ft12 scrumbling4 ft at break (est.)175kJwind from the north-north-west, 3 knots, offshore22°C
Wed 4Nov16, too small2 ft12 scrumbling3 ft at break (est.)90kJwind from the north, 3 knots, offshore21°C
Thu 5Nov12, too small2 ft12 scrumbling3 ft at break (est.)64kJwind from the west-north-west, 4 knots23°C
Fri 6Nov9, too small1 ft12 scrumbling3 ft at break (est.)48kJwind from the west, 3 knots24°C
Sat 7Nov8, too small1 ft12 scrumbling2 ft at break (est.)40kJwind from the west-south-west, 4 knots27°C
Sun 8Nov7, too small1 ft11 scrumbling2 ft at break (est.)23kJwind from the north, 2 knots, offshore27°C
Mon 9Nov7, too small1 ft12 scrumbling2 ft at break (est.)18kJwind from the north-north-west, 1 knot, offshore28°C
Tue 10Nov7, too small1 ft13 shollow2 ft at break (est.)22kJwind from the east, 1 knot26°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 NovHigh 03:40 +0.3 mLow 07:43 +0.1 mHigh 13:43 +0.6 mLow 21:22 −0.9 m
  • Mon 2 NovHigh 04:33 +0.4 mLow 09:42 −0.1 mHigh 15:21 +0.6 mLow 22:23 −0.8 m
  • Tue 3 NovHigh 05:13 +0.6 mLow 11:01 −0.3 mHigh 16:45 +0.5 mLow 23:14 −0.8 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, its town, photos

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.

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.

Photos of Long Beach

Alamitos Beach, Long Beach, CA, USA - panoramio (4)
Photo: peter boy12qq12, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Beach at Long Beach with development
Photo: MrBill3, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

More surf near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Long Beach

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

The spot faces SE (153°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (333°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits beginners and up. It works in 5–20 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 600 m out (1 in 62). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 15°C in January, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 21°C in August, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Long Beach, 1.6 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 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$1,060–US$1,930 each

about US$1,060–US$1,930 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 LGB, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bagabout US$248–US$516
Taxiairport and back, sharedabout US$20–US$33
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$1,060–US$1,930

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

Long Beach

3 min by car · 66 places to stay

about US$114/nightcountry average

See 66 places to stay in Long Beach · Booking.com

About Long Beach 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 6h 30m

About 6h 30m door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → LGB, direct, then 25 min by road

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