Staying Home Sucks, home
Portmagee Main Street 1987 08 16
Portmagee, the nearest town, 7 km away. Photo: Andreas F. Borchert, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

St.Finnnians bay

Surf spot · Ireland

Is it worth the trip?

62Good out of 100 for your dates

Home sucks

Best on Tue 3: 4 ft swell at 13 s, 3 hours of offshore wind

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 87 out of 100

Swell
4 ft13 s
Energy
479kJ
Wind
NNE 7 kn
Temp
12°C

Wed 4 · 73 out of 100

Swell
5 ft11 s
Energy
501kJ
Wind
NE 10 kn
Temp
12°C

Thu 5 · 71 out of 100

Swell
3 ft9 s
Energy
178kJ
Wind
ENE 9 kn
Temp
11°C

Fri 6 · 57 out of 100

Swell
3 ft9 s
Energy
116kJ
Wind
E 5 kn
Temp
11°C

Sat 7 · 31 out of 100

Swell
2 ft8 s
Energy
58kJ
Wind
ESE 8 kn
Temp
11°C

Sun 8 · 16 out of 100

Swell
2 ft6 s
Energy
18kJ
Wind
ESE 13 kn
Temp
11°C

Mon 9 · 31 out of 100

Swell
4 ft8 s
Energy
182kJ
Wind
ESE 26 kn
Temp
12°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 274, good
  2. Tue 387, good
  3. Wed 473, good
  4. Thu 571, good
  5. Fri 657, fair
  6. Sat 731, too small
  7. Sun 816, too small
  8. Mon 931, poor
  9. Tue 1031, poor
  10. Wed 1121, poor

The spot in five facts

  • Faces SWtakes swell from the SW
  • Offshore: NEwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 2–9 ftof swell
  • Water 12 °C4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves

Full forecast

every day, every number

The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.

St.Finnnians bay does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at St.Finnnians bay, each day
DayScorefor Inter­mediateSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov74, good4 ft8 s4 ft at break (est.)198kJwind from the east-north-east, 7 knots, offshore13°C
Tue 3Nov87, good4 ft13 s6 ft at break (est.)479kJwind from the north-north-east, 7 knots, offshore12°C
Wed 4Nov73, good5 ft11 s7 ft at break (est.)501kJwind from the north-east, 10 knots, offshore12°C
Thu 5Nov71, good3 ft9 s4 ft at break (est.)178kJwind from the east-north-east, 9 knots, offshore11°C
Fri 6Nov57, fair3 ft9 s3 ft at break (est.)116kJwind from the east, 5 knots, offshore11°C
Sat 7Nov31, too small2 ft8 s3 ft at break (est.)58kJwind from the east-south-east, 8 knots11°C
Sun 8Nov16, too small2 ft6 s2 ft at break (est.)18kJwind from the east-south-east, 13 knots11°C
Mon 9Nov31, poor4 ft8 s4 ft at break (est.)182kJwind from the east-south-east, 26 knots12°C
Tue 10Nov31, poor4 ft10 s6 ft at break (est.)295kJwind from the east-north-east, 8 knots, offshore15°C
Wed 11Nov21, poor5 ft8 s6 ft at break (est.)342kJwind from the north, 4 knots13°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 03:37 −0.8 mHigh 10:04 +1.0 mLow 16:28 −1.1 mHigh 23:01 +0.9 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 05:04 −0.8 mHigh 11:24 +1.0 mLow 17:51 −1.1 m
  • Wed 4 NovHigh 00:17 +1.0 mLow 06:25 −0.9 mHigh 12:36 +1.1 mLow 19:00 −1.2 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 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

4 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About St.Finnnians bay

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

The spot faces SW (230°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (50°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–9 ft of swell. The sea is about 10°C in January, its coldest month (4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves), and 16°C in August, its warmest (3/2 wetsuit). The town to stay in is Portmagee, 7.4 km away (about 15 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot.

Water about 12°C: 4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves. 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$1,300–US$2,390 each

about US$1,300–US$2,390 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 ORD to KIR, estimated from distance and season, changing at DUB, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$415–US$858
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$147–US$241
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$288–US$482
Food7 days eating outabout US$322–US$596
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$127–US$208
Totalabout US$1,300–US$2,390

For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: 2 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

Portmagee

about 15 min by car · 8 places to stay

about US$107/nightcountry average

See 8 places to stay in Portmagee · Booking.com

About Portmagee its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$107 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 16h 55m

About 16h 55m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → KIR, changing at Dublin Airport (DUB), then 1h 30m by road

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