Staying Home Sucks, home
Brett Campbell 2016 (Unsplash)
Paco illescas. Photo: Brett Campbell workweek, CC0, Wikimedia Commons

Paco illescas

Surf spot · Ecuador

Is it worth the trip?

23Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Tue 3: too small (4 ft swell at 12 s), sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 33 out of 100

Swell
4 ft12 ssoft
Energy
406kJ
Wind
E 5 kn
Temp
27°C

Wed 4 · 27 out of 100

Swell
3 ft13 ssoft
Energy
339kJ
Wind
NNW 2 kn
Temp
27°C

Thu 5 · 30 out of 100

Swell
4 ft12 ssoft
Energy
342kJ
Wind
SSW 7 kn
Temp
27°C

Fri 6 · 9 out of 100

Swell
1 ft17 shollow
Energy
68kJ
Wind
SW 8 kn
Temp
27°C

Sat 7 · 13 out of 100

Swell
2 ft14 scrumbling
Energy
113kJ
Wind
SSE 6 kn
Temp
27°C

Sun 8 · 13 out of 100

Swell
2 ft14 scrumbling
Energy
94kJ
Wind
SW 2 kn
Temp
28°C

Mon 9 · 14 out of 100

Swell
2 ft13 scrumbling
Energy
92kJ
Wind
S 3 kn
Temp
27°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 241, too small
  2. Tue 333, too small
  3. Wed 427, too small
  4. Thu 530, too small
  5. Fri 69, too small
  6. Sat 713, too small
  7. Sun 813, too small
  8. Mon 914, too small
  9. Tue 1010, too small
  10. Wed 1113, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces Ntakes swell from the N
  • Offshore: Swind from the land
  • Beginner +who it suits
  • Works 5–20 ftof swell
  • Water 24 °Cno wetsuit

Full forecast

every day, every number

Paco illescas does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for experts, so you can see what it does.

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Paco illescas, each day
DayScorefor ExpertSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov41, too small4 ft12 ssoftunder 1 ft at break (est.)484kJwind from the south-south-east, 6 knots, offshore27°C
Tue 3Nov33, too small4 ft12 ssoftunder 1 ft at break (est.)406kJwind from the east, 5 knots27°C
Wed 4Nov27, too small3 ft13 ssoftunder 1 ft at break (est.)339kJwind from the north-north-west, 2 knots27°C
Thu 5Nov30, too small4 ft12 ssoftunder 1 ft at break (est.)342kJwind from the south-south-west, 7 knots, offshore27°C
Fri 6Nov9, too small1 ft17 shollow2 ft at break (est.)68kJwind from the south-west, 8 knots, offshore27°C
Sat 7Nov13, too small2 ft14 scrumblingunder 1 ft at break (est.)113kJwind from the south-south-east, 6 knots, offshore27°C
Sun 8Nov13, too small2 ft14 scrumbling3 ft at break (est.)94kJwind from the south-west, 2 knots, offshore28°C
Mon 9Nov14, too small2 ft13 scrumbling3 ft at break (est.)92kJwind from the south, 3 knots, offshore27°C
Tue 10Nov10, too small2 ft13 scrumbling3 ft at break (est.)76kJwind from the north-east, 2 knots28°C
Wed 11Nov13, too small2 ft14 scrumbling3 ft at break (est.)111kJwind from the west, 5 knots28°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 03:13 −0.6 mHigh 09:15 +0.6 mLow 15:35 −0.8 mHigh 22:10 +0.8 m
  • Tue 3 NovLow 04:33 −0.6 mHigh 10:36 +0.6 mLow 16:52 −0.7 mHigh 23:22 +0.8 m
  • Wed 4 NovLow 05:48 −0.7 mHigh 11:55 +0.6 mLow 18:04 −0.7 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 beginners: 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

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Paco illescas

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

The spot faces N (1°), so it takes swell from the N. The wind blows offshore from the S (181°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits beginners and up. It works in 5–20 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 700 m out (1 in 68). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 23°C in August, its coldest month (2 mm shorty), and 27°C in February, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is Salinas Santa Elena, 1.7 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 4 surf spots and 3 wind sports spots.

Water about 24°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$792–US$1,490 each

about US$792–US$1,490 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 MDW to GYE, estimated from distance and season, changing at MIA, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$369–US$765
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$67–US$114
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$134–US$221
Food7 days eating outabout US$154–US$282
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$67–US$107
Totalabout US$792–US$1,490

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

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Closest

Salinas Santa Elena

about 5 min by car · 71 places to stay

about US$47/nightcountry average

See 71 places to stay in Salinas Santa Elena · Booking.com

About Salinas Santa Elena its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$47 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 16h 20m

About 16h 20m door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → GYE, changing at Miami International Airport (MIA), then 2h 25m 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.