Staying Home Sucks, home
Beach at Freshwater Bay
Freshwater bay. Photo: Colin Park, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Freshwater bay

Surf spot · UK

Is it worth the trip?

3Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Fri 6: too small (1 ft swell at 3 s)

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 3 out of 100

Swell
under 1 ft8 s
Energy
1kJ
Wind
NNE 12 kn
Temp
12°C

Wed 4 · 3 out of 100

Swell
1 ft11 s
Energy
6kJ
Wind
ENE 17 kn
Temp
10°C

Thu 5 · 3 out of 100

Swell
1 ft6 shollow
Energy
2kJ
Wind
ENE 14 kn
Temp
10°C

Fri 6 · 5 out of 100

Swell
1 ft3 smushy
Energy
1kJ
Wind
ENE 8 kn
Temp
12°C

Sat 7 · 2 out of 100

Swell
under 1 ft14 s
Energy
1kJ
Wind
NNE 4 kn
Temp
11°C

Sun 8 · 2 out of 100

Swell
under 1 ft12 s
Energy
0kJ
Wind
N 2 kn
Temp
10°C

Mon 9 · 2 out of 100

Swell
1 ft3 smushy
Energy
1kJ
Wind
ESE 12 kn
Temp
12°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 28, too small
  2. Tue 33, too small
  3. Wed 43, too small
  4. Thu 53, too small
  5. Fri 65, too small
  6. Sat 72, too small
  7. Sun 82, too small
  8. Mon 92, too small
  9. Tue 1022, too small
  10. Wed 1164, good

The spot in five facts

  • Faces Stakes swell from the S
  • Offshore: Nwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 2–9 ftof swell
  • Water 13 °C4/3 wetsuit and boots

Full forecast

every day, every number

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

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Freshwater bay, each day
DayScore for intermediatesSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov8, too small1 ft8 shollow1 ft at break (est.)7kJwind from the north-north-east, 11 knots, offshore12°C
Tue 3Nov3, too smallunder 1 ft8 s1 ft at break (est.)1kJwind from the north-north-east, 12 knots, offshore12°C
Wed 4Nov3, too small1 ft11 s1 ft at break (est.)6kJwind from the east-north-east, 17 knots10°C
Thu 5Nov3, too small1 ft6 shollow1 ft at break (est.)2kJwind from the east-north-east, 14 knots10°C
Fri 6Nov5, too small1 ft3 smushy1 ft at break (est.)1kJwind from the east-north-east, 8 knots12°C
Sat 7Nov2, too smallunder 1 ft14 sunder 1 ft at break (est.)1kJwind from the north-north-east, 4 knots, offshore11°C
Sun 8Nov2, too smallunder 1 ft12 sunder 1 ft at break (est.)0kJwind from the north, 2 knots, offshore10°C
Mon 9Nov2, too small1 ft3 smushy1 ft at break (est.)1kJwind from the east-south-east, 12 knots12°C
Tue 10Nov22, too small2 ft9 shollow3 ft at break (est.)55kJwind from the east-south-east, 8 knots14°C
Wed 11Nov64, good3 ft10 scrumbling4 ft at break (est.)165kJwind from the east-north-east, 6 knots14°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 04:57 +0.5 mLow 09:26 −0.5 mHigh 17:01 +0.4 mLow 21:59 −0.8 m
  • Tue 3 NovHigh 06:02 +0.6 mLow 10:32 −0.5 mHigh 18:09 +0.5 mLow 23:02 −0.8 m
  • Wed 4 NovHigh 06:58 +0.7 mLow 11:36 −0.5 mHigh 19:06 +0.6 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, its town, photos

Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for intermediates: 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.

Photos of Freshwater bay

Freshwater Bay
Photo: Steve Daniels, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Freshwater Bay, Isle of Wight, England-26Dec2013
Photo: Linda Hartley from London, UK, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Canoes in Freshwater Bay, Isle of Wight
Photo: Peter Trimming, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

More surf near here

2 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Freshwater bay

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

The spot faces S (191°), so it takes swell from the S. The wind blows offshore from the N (11°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–9 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves moderately: 10 m deep about 250 m out (1 in 26). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would crumble. The sea is about 9°C in January, its coldest month (4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves), and 19°C in August, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Freshwater Bay, 0.1 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot and 1 wind sports spot.

Water about 13°C: 4/3 wetsuit and boots. 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$1,320–US$2,440 each

about US$1,320–US$2,440 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 2 November 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to LHR, estimated from distance and season, 3 airlines on the route, with a hold bagabout US$450–US$926
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$141–US$235
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$282–US$470
Food7 days eating outabout US$315–US$584
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$134–US$228
Totalabout US$1,320–US$2,440

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

Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn

Closest

Freshwater Bay

about 5 min by car · 16 places to stay

about US$107/nightcountry average

See 16 places to stay in Freshwater Bay · Booking.com

About Freshwater Bay 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 2 November 2026.

Getting there: about 14h 45m

About 14h 45m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → LHR, direct, then 2h 20m by road

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

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The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.