Staying Home Sucks, home
JR若狭高浜駅 - panoramio
Takahama, the nearest town, 2 km away. Photo: kcomiida, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

Wakasa

Surf spot · Japan

Is it worth the trip?

19Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Sat 7: 7 ft swell at 7 s, onshore wind, 12 kn (22 km/h)

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 15 out of 100

Swell
3 ft5 smushy
Energy
45kJ
Wind
N 8 kn
Temp
14°C

Wed 4 · 9 out of 100

Swell
2 ft4 smushy
Energy
7kJ
Wind
NNE 4 kn
Temp
17°C

Thu 5 · 8 out of 100

Swell
1 ft5 shollow
Energy
5kJ
Wind
E 3 kn
Temp
17°C

Fri 6 · 5 out of 100

Swell
2 ft5 smushy
Energy
13kJ
Wind
WNW 8 kn
Temp
19°C

Sat 7 · 33 out of 100

Swell
7 ft7 smushy
Energy
536kJ
Wind
NNW 12 kn
Temp
11°C

Sun 8 · 25 out of 100

Swell
5 ft7 smushy
Energy
268kJ
Wind
NNW 11 kn
Temp
13°C

Mon 9 · 14 out of 100

Swell
4 ft6 smushy
Energy
96kJ
Wind
NNE 10 kn
Temp
12°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 213, too small
  2. Tue 315, too small
  3. Wed 49, too small
  4. Thu 58, too small
  5. Fri 65, too small
  6. Sat 733, poor
  7. Sun 825, too small
  8. Mon 914, too small
  9. Tue 1015, too small
  10. Wed 1111, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces Ntakes swell from the N
  • Offshore: Swind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 3–10 ftof swell
  • Water 19 °C2 mm shorty

Full forecast

every day, every number
Forecast and score for expert surfers at Wakasa, each day
DayScore for expertsSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov13, too small2 ft6 smushy3 ft at break (est.)25kJwind from the south-west, 2 knots16°C
Tue 3Nov15, too small3 ft5 smushy4 ft at break (est.)45kJwind from the north, 8 knots14°C
Wed 4Nov9, too small2 ft4 smushy2 ft at break (est.)7kJwind from the north-north-east, 4 knots17°C
Thu 5Nov8, too small1 ft5 shollow2 ft at break (est.)5kJwind from the east, 3 knots17°C
Fri 6Nov5, too small2 ft5 smushy2 ft at break (est.)13kJwind from the west-north-west, 8 knots19°C
Sat 7Nov33, poor7 ft7 smushy8 ft at break (est.)536kJwind from the north-north-west, 12 knots11°C
Sun 8Nov25, too small5 ft7 smushy6 ft at break (est.)268kJwind from the north-north-west, 11 knots13°C
Mon 9Nov14, too small4 ft6 smushy5 ft at break (est.)96kJwind from the north-north-east, 10 knots12°C
Tue 10Nov15, too small3 ft5 smushy3 ft at break (est.)36kJwind from the north-east, 5 knots14°C
Wed 11Nov11, too small2 ft4 smushy2 ft at break (est.)6kJwind from the west, 4 knots12°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 NovHigh 05:31 +0.2 mLow 15:14 −0.1 m
  • Tue 3 NovHigh 00:59 +0.1 mLow 02:51 +0.1 mHigh 07:15 +0.1 mLow 16:19 −0.1 m
  • Wed 4 NovHigh 00:30 +0.1 mLow 04:30 +0.1 mHigh 09:28 +0.1 mLow 17:13 −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.

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.

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.

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Wakasa

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

The spot faces N (4°), so it takes swell from the N. The wind blows offshore from the S (184°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 3–10 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves steeply: 10 m deep about 200 m out (1 in 19). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 12°C in February, its coldest month (4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves), and 28°C in August, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is Takahama, 2.4 km away (about 5 min by car).

Water about 19°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$1,310–US$2,510 each

about US$1,310–US$2,510 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 KIX, estimated from distance and season, changing at SFO, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$677–US$1,410
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$107–US$174
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$208–US$348
Food7 days eating outabout US$234–US$442
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$87–US$141
Totalabout US$1,310–US$2,510

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

Where to stay: Takahama

Closest

Takahama

about 5 min by car · 21 places to stay

about US$80/nightcountry average

See 21 places to stay in Takahama · Booking.com

About Takahama its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$80 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 24h 55m

About 24h 55m door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → KIX, changing at San Francisco International Airport (SFO), then 2h 25m by road

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