Staying Home Sucks, home
Plaza Colón Antofagasta, Chile
Antofagasta, the nearest town, 9 km away. Photo: Marca Chile, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

La Cupula

Surf spot · Chile

Is it worth the trip?

30Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Fri 6: 4 ft swell at 15 s, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 0 out of 100

Swell
6 ft12 scrumbling
Energy
851kJ
Wind
WSW 2 kn
Temp
21°C

Wed 4 · 38 out of 100

Swell
6 ft11 scrumbling
Energy
702kJ
Wind
SSW 5 kn
Temp
22°C

Thu 5 · 32 out of 100

Swell
4 ft11 scrumbling
Energy
323kJ
Wind
SW 5 kn
Temp
21°C

Fri 6 · 60 out of 100

Swell
4 ft15 scrumbling
Energy
516kJ
Wind
SSW 4 kn
Temp
21°C

Sat 7 · 0 out of 100

Swell
6 ft7 smushy
Energy
354kJ
Wind
SSW 3 kn
Temp
21°C

Sun 8 · 0 out of 100

Swell
7 ft10 ssoft
Energy
843kJ
Wind
WNW 1 kn
Temp
21°C

Mon 9 · 21 out of 100

Swell
2 ft16 shollow
Energy
130kJ
Wind
WNW 3 kn
Temp
22°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 223, poor
  2. Tue 30, too big
  3. Wed 438, poor
  4. Thu 532, poor
  5. Fri 660, good
  6. Sat 70, too big
  7. Sun 80, too big
  8. Mon 921, too small
  9. Tue 1071, good
  10. Wed 1158, fair

The spot in six facts

  • Faces Wtakes swell from the W
  • Offshore: Ewind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 3–10 ftof swell
  • Water 17 °C3/2 wetsuit
  • Best in May1 good days in 7

Full forecast

every day, every number

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

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at La Cupula, each day
DayScore for intermediatesSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov23, poor5 ft10 smushy6 ft at break (est.)543kJwind from the west-south-west, 7 knots21°C
Tue 3Nov0, too big6 ft12 scrumbling7 ft at break (est.)851kJwind from the west-south-west, 2 knots21°C
Wed 4Nov38, poor6 ft11 scrumbling6 ft at break (est.)702kJwind from the south-south-west, 5 knots22°C
Thu 5Nov32, poor4 ft11 scrumbling5 ft at break (est.)323kJwind from the south-west, 5 knots21°C
Fri 6Nov60, good4 ft15 scrumbling4 ft at break (est.)516kJwind from the south-south-west, 4 knots21°C
Sat 7Nov0, too big6 ft7 smushy5 ft at break (est.)354kJwind from the south-south-west, 3 knots21°C
Sun 8Nov0, too big7 ft10 ssoft6 ft at break (est.)843kJwind from the west-north-west, 1 knot21°C
Mon 9Nov21, too small2 ft16 shollow4 ft at break (est.)130kJwind from the west-north-west, 3 knots22°C
Tue 10Nov71, good4 ft12 smushy5 ft at break (est.)410kJwind from the west, 5 knots21°C
Wed 11Nov58, fair5 ft13 scrumbling6 ft at break (est.)714kJwind from the south-west, 2 knots21°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 03:48 +0.6 mLow 10:59 −0.5 mHigh 17:05 +0.1 mLow 22:22 −0.3 m
  • Tue 3 NovHigh 04:59 +0.5 mLow 12:00 −0.5 mHigh 18:14 +0.2 mLow 23:49 −0.3 m
  • Wed 4 NovHigh 06:08 +0.5 mLow 12:53 −0.5 mHigh 19:12 +0.3 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 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.

More surf near here

2 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About La Cupula

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

The spot faces W (283°), so it takes swell from the W. The wind blows offshore from the E (103°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 3–10 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 400 m out (1 in 40). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would crumble. The sea is about 15°C in July, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 20°C in January, its warmest (2 mm shorty). For intermediate surfers the best month is usually May, with about 1 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Antofagasta, 8.7 km away (about 15 min by car).

Water about 17°C: 3/2 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$1,000–US$1,920 each

about US$1,000–US$1,920 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, taxi, 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 MDW to ANF, estimated from distance and season, changing at ATL and LIM, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$510–US$1,060
Taxiairport and back, sharedabout US$47–US$81
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$195–US$322
Food7 days eating outabout US$174–US$329
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$74–US$127
Totalabout US$1,000–US$1,920

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

Where to stay: Antofagasta

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

Closest

Antofagasta

about 15 min by car · 116 places to stay

about US$74/nightcountry average

See 116 places to stay in Antofagasta · Booking.com

About Antofagasta its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$74 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 21h 15m

About 21h 15m door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → ANF, changing at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) and Jorge Chávez International Airport (LIM), then 40 min by road

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

Saved: this link opens the same trip

Email itRemind me to book

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