The Barracks
Surf spot · Taiwan
Is it worth the trip?
29Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Sun 8: 6 ft swell at 7 s
Mon 2 · 12 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft8 scrumbling
- Energy
- 146kJ
- Wind
- WNW 2 kn
- Temp
- 26°C
Tue 3 · 22 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft5 smushy
- Energy
- 97kJ
- Wind
- NNE 7 kn
- Temp
- 25°C
Wed 4 · 24 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft5 smushy
- Energy
- 82kJ
- Wind
- WSW 3 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Thu 5 · 20 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft9 shollow
- Energy
- 102kJ
- Wind
- ESE 4 kn
- Temp
- 28°C
Fri 6 · 18 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft5 smushy
- Energy
- 139kJ
- Wind
- NNE 9 kn
- Temp
- 26°C
Sat 7 · 33 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 225kJ
- Wind
- ESE 8 kn
- Temp
- 25°C
Sun 8 · 53 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 293kJ
- Wind
- SW 3 kn
- Temp
- 25°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 121, too small
- Mon 212, too small
- Tue 322, too small
- Wed 424, too small
- Thu 520, too small
- Fri 618, too small
- Sat 733, too small
- Sun 853, fair
- Mon 932, too small
- Tue 1042, poor
The spot in six facts
- Faces NEtakes swell from the NE
- Offshore: SWwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 2–10 ftof swell
- Water 26 °Cno wetsuit
- Best in Nov2 good days in 7
Full forecast
every day, every number
| Day | Score for experts | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 21, too small | 3 ft9 shollow4 ft at break (est.) | 170kJ | wind from the south, 7 knots | 28°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 12, too small | 3 ft8 scrumbling4 ft at break (est.) | 146kJ | wind from the west-north-west, 2 knots | 26°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 22, too small | 5 ft5 smushy5 ft at break (est.) | 97kJ | wind from the north-north-east, 7 knots | 25°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 24, too small | 4 ft5 smushy5 ft at break (est.) | 82kJ | offshorewind from the west-south-west, 3 knots, offshore | 27°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 20, too small | 3 ft9 shollow3 ft at break (est.) | 102kJ | wind from the east-south-east, 4 knots | 28°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 18, too small | 5 ft5 smushy6 ft at break (est.) | 139kJ | wind from the north-north-east, 9 knots | 26°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 33, too small | 5 ft6 smushy6 ft at break (est.) | 225kJ | wind from the east-south-east, 8 knots | 25°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 53, fair | 6 ft7 smushy7 ft at break (est.) | 293kJ | offshorewind from the south-west, 3 knots, offshore | 25°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 32, too small | 5 ft5 smushy6 ft at break (est.) | 139kJ | wind from the east-north-east, 5 knots | 25°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 42, poor | 7 ft6 smushy7 ft at break (est.) | 287kJ | wind from the north-west, 3 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 NovLow 04:34 −0.7 mHigh 11:49 +0.2 mLow 15:50 +0.0 mHigh 22:00 +0.5 m
- Mon 2 NovLow 05:52 −0.6 mHigh 13:19 +0.2 mLow 17:46 +0.0 mHigh 23:41 +0.4 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 07:12 −0.5 mHigh 14:20 +0.3 mLow 19:40 −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 in Nov
Good days in a typical week, each month, for intermediate surfers, from 2016 on (history scored the same way).
- Jan1of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb1of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar1of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May1of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun0of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug1of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep1of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct1of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov2of 7: a trip from Mon 2 Nov
- Dec1of 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
The Barracks 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
1 place
- Wu-shi harbor 29.3 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About The Barracks
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces NE (53°), so it takes swell from the NE. The wind blows offshore from the SW (233°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–10 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves moderately: 10 m deep about 200 m out (1 in 21). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 23°C in January, its coldest month (2 mm shorty), and 29°C in July, its warmest (no wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best month is usually November, with about 2 good days in 7; in June, about 0. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Yilan.
Water about 26°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$1,370–US$2,640 each
about US$1,370–US$2,640 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 TPE, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bag | about US$757–US$1,580 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$100–US$174 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$201–US$328 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$221–US$415 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$87–US$141 |
| Total | about US$1,370–US$2,640 |
For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: Yilan
35 min by car · 88 places to stay
About Yilan its beds, food and every spot near it
Nearest beds: Yilan, 20 km (about 35 min by car)
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 30m
About 21h 30m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → TPE, direct, then 1h 45m by road
Flights ORD → TPE on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.