Staying Home Sucks, home
Pretty sea
Near Mandara. Photo: Abanoub Victor, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Mandara

Surf spot · Egypt

Is it worth the trip?

40Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Thu 5: 4 ft swell at 7 s

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 5 out of 100

Swell
under 1 ft5 s
Energy
1kJ
Wind
N 2 kn
Temp
26°C

Wed 4 · 41 out of 100

Swell
4 ft8 smushy
Energy
186kJ
Wind
NNW 7 kn
Temp
27°C

Thu 5 · 53 out of 100

Swell
4 ft7 smushy
Energy
112kJ
Wind
NNW 4 kn
Temp
24°C

Fri 6 · 43 out of 100

Swell
4 ft5 smushy
Energy
88kJ
Wind
NW 8 kn
Temp
23°C

Sat 7 · 34 out of 100

Swell
4 ft7 smushy
Energy
124kJ
Wind
NW 11 kn
Temp
22°C

Sun 8 · 19 out of 100

Swell
5 ft6 smushy
Energy
174kJ
Wind
NW 12 kn
Temp
21°C

Mon 9 · 44 out of 100

Swell
4 ft5 smushy
Energy
78kJ
Wind
N 6 kn
Temp
21°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 25, too small
  2. Tue 35, too small
  3. Wed 441, poor
  4. Thu 553, fair
  5. Fri 643, poor
  6. Sat 734, poor
  7. Sun 819, poor
  8. Mon 944, poor
  9. Tue 1019, too small
  10. Wed 1111, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces NWtakes swell from the NW
  • Offshore: SEwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 2–8 ftof swell
  • Water 24 °Cno wetsuit

Full forecast

every day, every number

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

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Mandara, each day
DayScorefor Inter­mediateSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov5, too small1 ft5 s1 ft at break (est.)2kJwind from the east-south-east, 5 knots, offshore28°C
Tue 3Nov5, too smallunder 1 ft5 s1 ft at break (est.)1kJwind from the north, 2 knots26°C
Wed 4Nov41, poor4 ft8 smushy5 ft at break (est.)186kJwind from the north-north-west, 7 knots27°C
Thu 5Nov53, fair4 ft7 smushy5 ft at break (est.)112kJwind from the north-north-west, 4 knots24°C
Fri 6Nov43, poor4 ft5 smushy5 ft at break (est.)88kJwind from the north-west, 8 knots23°C
Sat 7Nov34, poor4 ft7 smushy5 ft at break (est.)124kJwind from the north-west, 11 knots22°C
Sun 8Nov19, poor5 ft6 smushy6 ft at break (est.)174kJwind from the north-west, 12 knots21°C
Mon 9Nov44, poor4 ft5 smushy4 ft at break (est.)78kJwind from the north, 6 knots21°C
Tue 10Nov19, too small2 ft4 smushy2 ft at break (est.)9kJwind from the south-south-west, 4 knots22°C
Wed 11Nov11, too small1 ft4 smushy2 ft at break (est.)4kJwind from the west, 7 knots23°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 04:18 +0.1 mLow 11:30 −0.1 mHigh 18:32 +0.1 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 00:09 −0.0 mHigh 06:05 +0.1 mLow 12:36 −0.1 mHigh 19:15 +0.1 m
  • Wed 4 NovLow 01:05 −0.0 mHigh 07:06 +0.1 mLow 13:23 −0.1 mHigh 19:48 +0.1 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 Mandara

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

The spot faces NW (310°), so it takes swell from the NW. The wind blows offshore from the SE (130°). 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 28). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would crumble. The sea is about 18°C in February, its coldest month (2 mm shorty), and 28°C in August, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is Abū Qīr, 6.1 km away (about 15 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot.

Water about 24°C: no wetsuit. 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$859–US$1,700 each

about US$859–US$1,700 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 2 November 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to CAI, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bagabout US$644–US$1,340
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$27–US$40
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$47–US$81
Food7 days eating outabout US$54–US$101
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$87–US$141
Totalabout US$859–US$1,700

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

Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn

Closest

Abū Qīr

about 15 min by car · 4 places to stay

about US$20/nightcountry average

See 4 places to stay in Abū Qīr · Booking.com

About Abū Qīr its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$20 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 2 November 2026.

Getting there: about 20h 30m

About 20h 30m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → CAI, direct, then 3h 30m by road

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