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Le petit train
Surf spot · France
Is it worth the trip?
41Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Thu 5: 3 ft swell at 10 s
Tue 3 · 21 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft9 scrumbling
- Energy
- 42kJ
- Wind
- NE 10 kn
- Temp
- 12°C
Wed 4 · 47 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft12 scrumbling
- Energy
- 125kJ
- Wind
- E 9 kn
- Temp
- 12°C
Thu 5 · 59 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft10 scrumbling
- Energy
- 147kJ
- Wind
- NNW 1 kn
- Temp
- 12°C
Fri 6 · 49 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft9 ssoft
- Energy
- 99kJ
- Wind
- ESE 5 kn
- Temp
- 14°C
Sat 7 · 35 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft9 scrumbling
- Energy
- 47kJ
- Wind
- ESE 8 kn
- Temp
- 15°C
Sun 8 · 26 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft9 scrumbling
- Energy
- 30kJ
- Wind
- ESE 9 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Mon 9 · 11 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft9 scrumbling
- Energy
- 10kJ
- Wind
- SE 12 kn
- Temp
- 19°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Mon 271, good
- Tue 321, too small
- Wed 447, fair
- Thu 559, fair
- Fri 649, fair
- Sat 735, too small
- Sun 826, too small
- Mon 911, too small
- Tue 1017, too small
- Wed 1113, too small
The spot in five facts
- Faces Wtakes swell from the W
- Offshore: Ewind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 2–8 ftof swell
- Water 16 °C3/2 wetsuit
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.
| Day | Score for intermediates | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 2Nov | 71, good | 4 ft10 ssoft6 ft at break (est.) | 242kJ | wind from the north-north-east, 8 knots | 13°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 21, too small | 2 ft9 scrumbling3 ft at break (est.) | 42kJ | wind from the north-east, 10 knots | 12°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 47, fair | 2 ft12 scrumbling4 ft at break (est.) | 125kJ | offshorewind from the east, 9 knots, offshore | 12°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 59, fair | 3 ft10 scrumbling5 ft at break (est.) | 147kJ | wind from the north-north-west, 1 knot | 12°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 49, fair | 3 ft9 ssoft4 ft at break (est.) | 99kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 5 knots, offshore | 14°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 35, too small | 2 ft9 scrumbling3 ft at break (est.) | 47kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 8 knots, offshore | 15°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 26, too small | 1 ft9 scrumbling2 ft at break (est.) | 30kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 9 knots, offshore | 16°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 11, too small | 1 ft9 scrumbling2 ft at break (est.) | 10kJ | offshorewind from the south-east, 12 knots, offshore | 19°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 17, too small | 1 ft10 scrumbling3 ft at break (est.) | 36kJ | wind from the south-south-east, 11 knots | 20°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 13, too small | 2 ft9 scrumbling3 ft at break (est.) | 58kJ | wind from the south, 15 knots | 18°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 03:32 −1.1 mHigh 10:04 +1.2 mLow 16:26 −1.2 mHigh 23:02 +1.0 m
- Tue 3 NovLow 04:53 −1.0 mHigh 11:30 +1.3 mLow 17:45 −1.3 m
- Wed 4 NovHigh 00:20 +1.1 mLow 06:09 −1.1 mHigh 12:42 +1.4 mLow 18:53 −1.4 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
No month stands out
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
- Mar2of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr2of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May2of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun2of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug2of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep2of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct2of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov2of 7: a trip from Tue 3 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
Le petit train on Google Maps · Directions
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.
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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
5 places
- Les Dunes 1.1 km away
- Le Sail Fish 1.6 km away
- Le Cimetière 3.5 km away
- La Torchere 3.6 km away
- Cap Ferret Chenal 3.7 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Le petit train
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces W (273°), so it takes swell from the W. The wind blows offshore from the E (93°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–8 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 550 m out (1 in 55). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 12°C in February, its coldest month (4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves), and 22°C in August, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Arcachon, 7.1 km away (1h 23m by car). Within 5 km we also list 8 surf spots and 2 wind sports spots.
Water about 16°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$1,320–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
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return ORD to BOD, estimated from distance and season, changing at CDG, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$470–US$966 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$141–US$235 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$282–US$470 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$315–US$584 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$114–US$188 |
| Total | about 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: Arcachon
Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn
1h 23m by car · 47 places to stay
about US$107/nightcountry average
About Arcachon 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 17h 55m
About 17h 55m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → BOD, changing at Charles de Gaulle International Airport (CDG), then 1h 10m by road
Flights ORD → BOD on your dates · AviasalesAdeSIM for your phone · Search on AiraloAd
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.
In the water
Saved: this link opens the same trip
The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.