Is it worth the trip?
51Fair out of 100 for your dates
Best on Sat 7: 3 ft swell at 8 s, 3 hours of offshore wind
Mon 2 · 48 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft8 scrumbling
- Energy
- 345kJ
- Wind
- NW 10 kn
- Temp
- 23°C
Tue 3 · 69 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft10 scrumbling
- Energy
- 385kJ
- Wind
- NNW 8 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Wed 4 · 44 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft10 scrumbling
- Energy
- 463kJ
- Wind
- NNE 9 kn
- Temp
- 20°C
Thu 5 · 18 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft10 scrumbling
- Energy
- 548kJ
- Wind
- NNE 9 kn
- Temp
- 21°C
Fri 6 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 8 ft10 ssoft
- Energy
- 1,208kJ
- Wind
- NNW 6 kn
- Temp
- 23°C
Sat 7 · 71 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft8 scrumbling
- Energy
- 150kJ
- Wind
- NNW 11 kn
- Temp
- 17°C
Sun 8 · 49 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft9 scrumbling
- Energy
- 106kJ
- Wind
- SSE 4 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 10, too big
- Mon 248, fair
- Tue 369, good
- Wed 444, poor
- Thu 518, poor
- Fri 60, too big
- Sat 771, good
- Sun 849, fair
- Mon 957, fair
- Tue 1056, fair
The spot in six facts
- Faces SEtakes swell from the SE
- Offshore: NWwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 3–11 ftof swell
- Water 23 °C2 mm shorty
- Best in Nov3 good days in 7
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.
Motel Shita does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.
| Day | Scorefor Intermediate | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 0, too big | 8 ft12 scrumbling11 ft at break (est.) | 1,638kJ | wind from the north, 4 knots | 21°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 48, fair | 5 ft8 scrumbling7 ft at break (est.) | 345kJ | offshorewind from the north-west, 10 knots, offshore | 23°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 69, good | 5 ft10 scrumbling7 ft at break (est.) | 385kJ | offshorewind from the north-north-west, 8 knots, offshore | 20°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 44, poor | 5 ft10 scrumbling7 ft at break (est.) | 463kJ | wind from the north-north-east, 9 knots | 20°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 18, poor | 6 ft10 scrumbling7 ft at break (est.) | 548kJ | wind from the north-north-east, 9 knots | 21°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 0, too big | 8 ft10 ssoft10 ft at break (est.) | 1,208kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 6 knots | 23°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 71, good | 3 ft8 scrumbling5 ft at break (est.) | 150kJ | offshorewind from the north-north-west, 11 knots, offshore | 17°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 49, fair | 3 ft9 scrumbling4 ft at break (est.) | 106kJ | wind from the south-south-east, 4 knots | 16°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 57, fair | 3 ft8 scrumbling4 ft at break (est.) | 90kJ | offshorewind from the north-north-west, 8 knots, offshore | 18°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 56, fair | 3 ft8 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 81kJ | offshorewind from the north, 7 knots, offshore | 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
- Sun 1 NovLow 03:42 −0.8 mHigh 11:19 +0.5 mLow 16:31 +0.1 mHigh 21:13 +0.4 m
- Mon 2 NovLow 04:59 −0.7 mHigh 12:46 +0.5 mLow 18:30 +0.1 mHigh 23:04 +0.3 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 06:26 −0.6 mHigh 13:51 +0.5 mLow 19:55 −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.
Best time to go
best in Nov
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
- May2of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun1of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul2of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug2of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep1of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct2of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov3of 7: a trip from Mon 2 Nov
- Dec2of 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
Motel Shita on Google Maps · Directions
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
2 places
- GoroGoro 0.6 km away
- Umigame Koen Mae 13.5 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Motel Shita
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces SE (130°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (310°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 3–11 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 18°C in January, its coldest month (2 mm shorty), and 28°C in August, its warmest (no wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best month is usually November, with about 3 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Katsuura, 2.4 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot.
Water about 23°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$1,310–US$2,510 each
about US$1,310–US$2,510 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 KIX, estimated from distance and season, changing at SFO, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$677–US$1,410 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$107–US$174 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$208–US$348 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$234–US$442 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$87–US$141 |
| Total | about US$1,310–US$2,510 |
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
4 min by car · 43 places to stay
about US$80/nightcountry average
About Katsuura its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Udono on Booking.com
19 min by car · 6 places to stay
- Beds in Kumano on Booking.com
57 min by car · 5 places to stay
About US$80 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 24h 40m
About 24h 40m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → KIX, changing at San Francisco International Airport (SFO), then 2h 10m by road
Flights MDW → KIX on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.