Motels
Surf spot · Tonga
Is it worth the trip?
39Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Wed 4: 4 ft swell at 7 s, 4 hours of offshore wind, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow
Tue 3 · 57 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft7 shollow
- Energy
- 194kJ
- Wind
- ESE 14 kn
- Temp
- 24°C
Wed 4 · 66 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft7 shollow
- Energy
- 146kJ
- Wind
- ESE 12 kn
- Temp
- 24°C
Thu 5 · 26 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft12 shollow
- Energy
- 63kJ
- Wind
- E 15 kn
- Temp
- 24°C
Fri 6 · 29 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft12 shollow
- Energy
- 93kJ
- Wind
- E 15 kn
- Temp
- 24°C
Sat 7 · 23 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft10 shollow
- Energy
- 48kJ
- Wind
- ESE 13 kn
- Temp
- 24°C
Sun 8 · 17 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft14 shollow
- Energy
- 41kJ
- Wind
- ESE 13 kn
- Temp
- 24°C
Mon 9 · 24 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft12 shollow
- Energy
- 97kJ
- Wind
- ESE 15 kn
- Temp
- 24°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 9 days
Full forecast- Tue 357, fair
- Wed 466, good
- Thu 526, too small
- Fri 629, too small
- Sat 723, too small
- Sun 817, too small
- Mon 924, too small
- Tue 1029, too small
- Wed 1137, too small
The spot in five facts
- Faces NWtakes swell from the NW
- Offshore: SEwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 3–12 ftof swell
- Water 26 °Cno wetsuit
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.
Motels does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.
| Day | Scorefor Intermediate | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 3Nov | 57, fair | 5 ft7 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 194kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 14 knots, offshore | 24°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 66, good | 4 ft7 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 146kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 12 knots, offshore | 24°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 26, too small | 2 ft12 shollow2 ft at break (est.) | 63kJ | offshorewind from the east, 15 knots, offshore | 24°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 29, too small | 2 ft12 shollowunder 1 ft at break (est.) | 93kJ | offshorewind from the east, 15 knots, offshore | 24°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 23, too small | 2 ft10 shollow2 ft at break (est.) | 48kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 13 knots, offshore | 24°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 17, too small | 1 ft14 shollow2 ft at break (est.) | 41kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 13 knots, offshore | 24°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 24, too small | 2 ft12 shollow2 ft at break (est.) | 97kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 15 knots, offshore | 24°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 29, too small | 2 ft12 shollow2 ft at break (est.) | 90kJ | offshorewind from the east-south-east, 13 knots, offshore | 24°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 37, too small | 2 ft11 shollow2 ft at break (est.) | 103kJ | offshorewind from the east, 14 knots, offshore | 25°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
- Tue 3 NovHigh 01:45 +0.6 mLow 08:07 −0.6 mHigh 14:28 +0.6 mLow 20:40 −0.5 m
- Wed 4 NovHigh 02:50 +0.5 mLow 09:05 −0.6 mHigh 15:25 +0.6 mLow 21:42 −0.5 m
- Thu 5 NovHigh 03:51 +0.5 mLow 10:00 −0.6 mHigh 16:17 +0.6 mLow 22:39 −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.
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
- Feb0of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar1of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr0of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May0of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun0of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul0of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug0of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep0of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct1of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov1of 7: a trip from Wed 4 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
Motels on Google Maps · Directions
Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for beginners: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.
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More surf near here
5 places
- Kamikaze's 0.2 km away
- The Peak 1.1 km away
- The Pass 1.2 km away
- The Corners 1.6 km away
- Leftovers 2 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Motels
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces NW (297°), so it takes swell from the NW. The wind blows offshore from the SE (117°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up, because of a steep sea floor. It works in 3–12 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves steeply: 10 m deep about 100 m out (1 in 11). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 24°C in August, its coldest month (no wetsuit), and 28°C in January, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is Nukuʻalofa. Within 5 km we also list 8 surf spots.
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$1,300–US$2,500 each
about US$1,300–US$2,500 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
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return MDW to TBU, estimated from distance and season, changing at DFW and AKL, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$725–US$1,510 |
| Taxi | airport and back, shared | about US$67–US$107 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$201–US$329 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$221–US$416 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$87–US$141 |
| Total | about US$1,300–US$2,500 |
For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: Nukuʻalofa
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about 30 min by car · 31 places to stay
About Nukuʻalofa its beds, food and every spot near it
Nearest beds: Nukuʻalofa, 17 km (about 30 min by car)
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 31h 15m
About 31h 15m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → TBU, changing at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) and Auckland International Airport (AKL), then 50 min by road
Flights MDW → TBU 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.