Playa cocles
Surf spot · Costa Rica
Is it worth the trip?
10Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Tue 3: 3 ft swell at 6 s
Tue 3 · 18 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 50kJ
- Wind
- WSW 5 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Wed 4 · 13 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 24kJ
- Wind
- WSW 5 kn
- Temp
- 28°C
Thu 5 · 9 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 12kJ
- Wind
- WSW 4 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Fri 6 · 7 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 9kJ
- Wind
- WSW 5 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Sat 7 · 7 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft3 smushy
- Energy
- 2kJ
- Wind
- WSW 6 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Sun 8 · 4 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft3 smushy
- Energy
- 2kJ
- Wind
- SW 3 kn
- Temp
- 28°C
Mon 9 · 2 out of 100
- Swell
- under 1 ft8 s
- Energy
- 1kJ
- Wind
- WSW 5 kn
- Temp
- 28°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 9 days
Full forecast- Mon 225, too small
- Tue 318, too small
- Wed 413, too small
- Thu 59, too small
- Fri 67, too small
- Sat 77, too small
- Sun 84, too small
- Mon 92, too small
- Tue 102, too small
The spot in six facts
- Faces NEtakes swell from the NE
- Offshore: SWwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 2–8 ftof swell
- Water 29 °Cno wetsuit
- Best Feb–Mar, Jul, Dec4 good days in 7
Full forecast
every day, every number
| Day | Score for experts | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 2Nov | 25, too small | 3 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 74kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 5 knots | 28°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 18, too small | 3 ft6 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 50kJ | offshorewind from the west-south-west, 5 knots, offshore | 27°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 13, too small | 2 ft6 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 24kJ | wind from the west-south-west, 5 knots | 28°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 9, too small | 1 ft6 smushy2 ft at break (est.) | 12kJ | wind from the west-south-west, 4 knots | 27°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 7, too small | 1 ft6 smushy2 ft at break (est.) | 9kJ | offshorewind from the west-south-west, 5 knots, offshore | 27°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 7, too small | 1 ft3 smushy1 ft at break (est.) | 2kJ | offshorewind from the west-south-west, 6 knots, offshore | 27°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 4, too small | 1 ft3 smushy1 ft at break (est.) | 2kJ | offshorewind from the south-west, 3 knots, offshore | 28°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 2, too small | under 1 ft8 s1 ft at break (est.) | 1kJ | offshorewind from the west-south-west, 5 knots, offshore | 28°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 2, too small | under 1 ft5 s1 ft at break (est.) | 1kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 3 knots | 28°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 00:09 −0.2 mHigh 06:42 +0.1 mLow 11:12 −0.0 mHigh 17:34 +0.2 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 00:47 −0.2 mHigh 07:25 +0.1 mLow 12:34 −0.0 mHigh 18:30 +0.2 m
- Wed 4 NovLow 01:23 −0.1 mHigh 08:09 +0.1 mLow 14:07 −0.0 mHigh 19:37 +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 Feb–Mar, Jul, Dec
Good days in a typical week, each month, for intermediate surfers, from 2016 on (history scored the same way).
- Jan3of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb4of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar4of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr2of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May2of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun3of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul4of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug2of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep1of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct0of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov1of 7: a trip from Tue 3 Nov
- Dec4of 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
Playa cocles 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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More surf near here
5 places
- Salsa Brava 2.8 km away
- Playa negra 3.8 km away
- Punta Uva 5.1 km away
- Black Beach 6.6 km away
- Playa grande 6.6 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Playa cocles
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces NE (27°), so it takes swell from the NE. The wind blows offshore from the SW (207°). 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 gently: 10 m deep about 550 m out (1 in 55). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 28°C in January, its coldest month (no wetsuit), and 30°C in September, its warmest (no wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually February, March, July and December, with about 4 good days in 7; in October, about 0. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Cocles, 0.5 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 2 surf spots.
Water about 29°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$878–US$1,630 each
about US$878–US$1,630 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 SJO, estimated from distance and season, 2 airlines on the route, with a hold bag | about US$295–US$610 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$94–US$161 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$188–US$315 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$208–US$389 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$94–US$154 |
| Total | about US$878–US$1,630 |
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 · 66 places to stay
about US$74/nightcountry average
About Cocles its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Playa Chiquita on Booking.com
about 5 min by car · 61 places to stay
- Beds in Kekoldi on Booking.com
about 10 min by car
About US$74 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 14h 20m
About 14h 20m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → SJO, direct, then 5h 20m by road
Flights ORD → SJO on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.