Staying Home Sucks, home
Mancora en la calle
Máncora, the nearest town, 3 km away. Photo: Charles Gadbois, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

Punta Ballenas

Surf spot · Peru

Is it worth the trip?

17Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Tue 3: 4 ft swell at 12 s, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 27 out of 100

Swell
4 ft12 shollow
Energy
374kJ
Wind
SSE 8 kn
Temp
32°C

Wed 4 · 22 out of 100

Swell
3 ft13 shollow
Energy
356kJ
Wind
SSE 9 kn
Temp
28°C

Thu 5 · 11 out of 100

Swell
3 ft12 shollow
Energy
279kJ
Wind
SSE 8 kn
Temp
28°C

Fri 6 · 7 out of 100

Swell
1 ft16 shollow
Energy
70kJ
Wind
NW 5 kn
Temp
27°C

Sat 7 · 10 out of 100

Swell
1 ft15 shollow
Energy
70kJ
Wind
SSE 9 kn
Temp
29°C

Sun 8 · 12 out of 100

Swell
2 ft14 shollow
Energy
86kJ
Wind
SE 6 kn
Temp
29°C

Mon 9 · 14 out of 100

Swell
2 ft13 shollow
Energy
95kJ
Wind
SE 7 kn
Temp
28°C

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

Forecast: next 9 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 236, too small
  2. Tue 327, too small
  3. Wed 422, too small
  4. Thu 511, too small
  5. Fri 67, too small
  6. Sat 710, too small
  7. Sun 812, too small
  8. Mon 914, too small
  9. Tue 109, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces NWtakes swell from the NW
  • Offshore: SEwind from the land
  • Beginner +who it suits
  • Works 3–14 ftof swell
  • Water 22 °C2 mm shorty

Full forecast

every day, every number
Forecast and score for expert surfers at Punta Ballenas, each day
DayScore for expertsSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov36, too small4 ft12 shollow3 ft at break (est.)474kJwind from the south-south-east, 9 knots, offshore28°C
Tue 3Nov27, too small4 ft12 shollow2 ft at break (est.)374kJwind from the south-south-east, 8 knots, offshore32°C
Wed 4Nov22, too small3 ft13 shollow2 ft at break (est.)356kJwind from the south-south-east, 9 knots, offshore28°C
Thu 5Nov11, too small3 ft12 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.)279kJwind from the south-south-east, 8 knots, offshore28°C
Fri 6Nov7, too small1 ft16 shollow1 ft at break (est.)70kJwind from the north-west, 5 knots27°C
Sat 7Nov10, too small1 ft15 shollow3 ft at break (est.)70kJwind from the south-south-east, 9 knots, offshore29°C
Sun 8Nov12, too small2 ft14 shollow3 ft at break (est.)86kJwind from the south-east, 6 knots, offshore29°C
Mon 9Nov14, too small2 ft13 shollow3 ft at break (est.)95kJwind from the south-east, 7 knots, offshore28°C
Tue 10Nov9, too small1 ft17 shollow3 ft at break (est.)56kJwind from the south-south-east, 10 knots, offshore31°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 03:26 −0.4 mHigh 09:19 +0.4 mLow 15:38 −0.6 mHigh 22:21 +0.7 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 04:49 −0.5 mHigh 10:46 +0.4 mLow 16:58 −0.6 mHigh 23:33 +0.7 m
  • Wed 4 NovLow 06:03 −0.6 mHigh 12:06 +0.5 mLow 18:12 −0.6 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 experts: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.

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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 Punta Ballenas

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

The spot faces NW (315°), so it takes swell from the NW. The wind blows offshore from the SE (135°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits beginners and up. It works in 3–14 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves steeply: 10 m deep about 150 m out (1 in 16). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 22°C in July, its coldest month (2 mm shorty), and 26°C in February, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is Máncora, 3.1 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 2 surf spots.

Water about 22°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$884–US$1,670 each

about US$884–US$1,670 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 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn MDW to TYL, estimated from distance and season, changing at ATL and LIM, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$382–US$797
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$80–US$134
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$161–US$268
Food7 days eating outabout US$181–US$342
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$80–US$134
Totalabout US$884–US$1,670

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

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

Closest

Máncora

about 10 min by car · 147 places to stay

about US$60/nightcountry average

See 147 places to stay in Máncora · Booking.com

About Máncora its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$60 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 21h 10m

About 21h 10m door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → TYL, changing at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) and Jorge Chávez International Airport (LIM), then 1h 20m by road

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