Punta Mala
Surf spot · Ecuador
Is it worth the trip?
19Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Mon 2: 4 ft swell at 11 s, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow
Mon 2 · 31 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft11 shollow
- Energy
- 323kJ
- Wind
- SSE 6 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Tue 3 · 23 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft11 shollow
- Energy
- 261kJ
- Wind
- SE 4 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Wed 4 · 13 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft10 shollow
- Energy
- 134kJ
- Wind
- ESE 2 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Thu 5 · 20 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft11 shollow
- Energy
- 191kJ
- Wind
- SSE 8 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Fri 6 · 6 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft12 shollow
- Energy
- 21kJ
- Wind
- SSE 2 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Sat 7 · 8 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft14 shollow
- Energy
- 52kJ
- Wind
- SE 2 kn
- Temp
- 28°C
Sun 8 · 9 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft13 shollow
- Energy
- 41kJ
- Wind
- WNW 3 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 127, too small
- Mon 231, too small
- Tue 323, too small
- Wed 413, too small
- Thu 520, too small
- Fri 66, too small
- Sat 78, too small
- Sun 89, too small
- Mon 913, too small
- Tue 1011, too small
The spot in six facts
- Faces NWtakes swell from the NW
- Offshore: SEwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 2–9 ftof swell
- Water 24 °Cno wetsuit
- Best Feb–Mar6 good days in 7
Full forecast
every day, every number
| Day | Score for experts | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 27, too small | 3 ft12 shollow3 ft at break (est.) | 317kJ | offshorewind from the south-south-east, 3 knots, offshore | 28°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 31, too small | 4 ft11 shollow3 ft at break (est.) | 323kJ | offshorewind from the south-south-east, 6 knots, offshore | 27°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 23, too small | 3 ft11 shollow3 ft at break (est.) | 261kJ | offshorewind from the south-east, 4 knots, offshore | 27°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 13, too small | 3 ft10 shollow2 ft at break (est.) | 134kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 2 knots, offshore | 27°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 20, too small | 3 ft11 shollow2 ft at break (est.) | 191kJ | offshorewind from the south-south-east, 8 knots, offshore | 27°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 6, too small | 1 ft12 shollow2 ft at break (est.) | 21kJ | offshorewind from the south-south-east, 2 knots, offshore | 27°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 8, too small | 1 ft14 shollow1 ft at break (est.) | 52kJ | offshorewind from the south-east, 2 knots, offshore | 28°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 9, too small | 1 ft13 shollow3 ft at break (est.) | 41kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 3 knots | 27°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 13, too small | 2 ft13 shollow3 ft at break (est.) | 73kJ | offshorewind from the south, 5 knots, offshore | 27°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 11, too small | 2 ft12 shollow3 ft at break (est.) | 69kJ | wind from the north-north-east, 2 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
- Sun 1 NovLow 01:56 −0.7 mHigh 07:59 +0.8 mLow 14:19 −0.9 mHigh 20:51 +0.9 m
- Mon 2 NovLow 03:07 −0.7 mHigh 09:11 +0.7 mLow 15:30 −0.8 mHigh 22:03 +0.8 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 04:26 −0.7 mHigh 10:31 +0.6 mLow 16:47 −0.8 mHigh 23:15 +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–Mar
Good days in a typical week, each month, for intermediate surfers, from 2016 on (history scored the same way).
- Jan5of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb6of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar6of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr5of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May3of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun2of 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
- Nov2of 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 Mala 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
- La playita 0.5 km away
- Piqueros 1 km away
- Puerto Rico 7.8 km away
- Viejamar 8 km away
- Las Tunas 9.8 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Punta Mala
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces NW (308°), so it takes swell from the NW. The wind blows offshore from the SE (128°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up, because of a steep sea floor. It works in 2–9 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves steeply: 10 m deep about 100 m out (1 in 11). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 23°C in August, its coldest month (2 mm shorty), and 27°C in February, its warmest (no wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually February and March, with about 6 good days in 7; in September, about 1. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Puerto López, 3.5 km away (about 10 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 2 surf spots and 3 dive sites.
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$784–US$1,470 each
about US$784–US$1,470 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 MEC, estimated from distance and season, changing at PTY, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$362–US$750 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$67–US$114 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$134–US$221 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$154–US$281 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$67–US$107 |
| Total | about US$784–US$1,470 |
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
6 min by car · 58 places to stay
about US$47/nightcountry average
About Puerto López its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Puerto Rico on Booking.com
14 min by car · 10 places to stay
- Beds in Ayampe on Booking.com
22 min by car · 26 places to stay
About US$47 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 15h 35m
About 15h 35m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → MEC, changing at Tocumen International Airport (PTY), then 1h 35m by road
Flights ORD → MEC on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.