Is it worth the trip?
59Fair out of 100 for your dates
Best on Mon 2: 4 ft swell at 12 s
Mon 2 · 83 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft12 shollow
- Energy
- 434kJ
- Wind
- NNE 5 kn
- Temp
- 21°C
Tue 3 · 65 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft15 shollow
- Energy
- 762kJ
- Wind
- N 8 kn
- Temp
- 21°C
Wed 4 · 53 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft13 shollow
- Energy
- 600kJ
- Wind
- NNE 13 kn
- Temp
- 21°C
Thu 5 · 19 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft12 shollow
- Energy
- 113kJ
- Wind
- W 4 kn
- Temp
- 21°C
Fri 6 · 63 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft8 scrumbling
- Energy
- 241kJ
- Wind
- N 6 kn
- Temp
- 22°C
Sat 7 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft11 shollow
- Energy
- 857kJ
- Wind
- N 6 kn
- Temp
- 25°C
Sun 8 · 62 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft11 shollow
- Energy
- 621kJ
- Wind
- WSW 1 kn
- Temp
- 26°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 157, fair
- Mon 283, good
- Tue 365, good
- Wed 453, fair
- Thu 519, too small
- Fri 663, good
- Sat 70, too big
- Sun 862, good
- Mon 980, good
- Tue 1065, good
The spot in six facts
- Faces SWtakes swell from the SW
- Offshore: NEwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 2–8 ftof swell
- Water 18 °C2 mm shorty
- Best Feb, Oct–Dec3 good days in 7
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.
Punta China 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 | 57, fair | 4 ft13 shollow6 ft at break (est.) | 448kJ | wind from the north, 8 knots | 21°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 83, good | 4 ft12 shollow6 ft at break (est.) | 434kJ | offshorewind from the north-north-east, 5 knots, offshore | 21°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 65, good | 4 ft15 shollow5 ft at break (est.) | 762kJ | wind from the north, 8 knots | 21°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 53, fair | 4 ft13 shollow5 ft at break (est.) | 600kJ | offshorewind from the north-north-east, 13 knots, offshore | 21°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 19, too small | 2 ft12 shollow4 ft at break (est.) | 113kJ | wind from the west, 4 knots | 21°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 63, good | 4 ft8 scrumbling4 ft at break (est.) | 241kJ | offshorewind from the north, 6 knots, offshore | 22°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 0, too big | 6 ft11 shollow6 ft at break (est.) | 857kJ | wind from the north, 6 knots | 25°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 62, good | 5 ft11 shollow5 ft at break (est.) | 621kJ | wind from the west-south-west, 1 knot | 26°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 80, good | 4 ft10 shollow4 ft at break (est.) | 340kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 4 knots | 25°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 65, good | 5 ft11 shollow5 ft at break (est.) | 642kJ | wind from the west-south-west, 2 knots | 24°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 03:25 +0.2 mLow 07:22 +0.1 mHigh 13:25 +0.6 mLow 21:09 −0.8 m
- Mon 2 NovHigh 04:18 +0.4 mLow 09:28 −0.1 mHigh 15:06 +0.5 mLow 22:10 −0.8 m
- Tue 3 NovHigh 04:57 +0.5 mLow 10:46 −0.3 mHigh 16:29 +0.5 mLow 22:59 −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.
Best time to go
best Feb, Oct–Dec
Good days in a typical week, each month, for intermediate surfers, from 2016 on (history scored the same way).
- Jan2of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb3of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar2of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May2of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun1of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug1of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep2of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct3of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov3of 7: a trip from Mon 2 Nov
- Dec3of 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
Punta China 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.
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More surf near here
4 places
- stack's 42.2 km away
- staks 42.2 km away
- 3 emes 42.9 km away
- San Miguel Ensenada 44 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Punta China
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces SW (228°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (48°). 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 steeply: 10 m deep about 200 m out (1 in 18). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 15°C in March, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 20°C in August, its warmest (2 mm shorty). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually February, October, November and December, with about 3 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Ensenada.
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$811–US$1,480 each
about US$811–US$1,480 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 SAN, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bag | about US$248–US$516 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$94–US$154 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$181–US$295 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$201–US$375 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$87–US$141 |
| Total | about US$811–US$1,480 |
For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: Ensenada
67 min by car · 91 places to stay
about US$67/nightcountry average
About Ensenada its beds, food and every spot near it
Nearest beds: Ensenada, 38 km (about 1h 10m by car)
About US$67 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 8h 50m
About 8h 50m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → SAN, direct, then 2h 50m by road
Flights MDW → SAN on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.