Staying Home Sucks, home
Oil-fired generators at Hawaiian Electric Kahe Power Plant in Kapolei on the Waianae Coast
Power Plant. Photo: Tony Webster, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Power Plant

Surf spot · United States

Is it worth the trip?

42Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Thu 5: 6 ft swell at 13 s, 4 hours of offshore wind, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 40 out of 100

Swell
5 ft10 scrumbling
Energy
396kJ
Wind
ENE 8 kn
Temp
27°C

Wed 4 · 14 out of 100

Swell
3 ft8 scrumbling
Energy
122kJ
Wind
ENE 12 kn
Temp
26°C

Thu 5 · 65 out of 100

Swell
6 ft13 scrumbling
Energy
1,026kJ
Wind
ENE 14 kn
Temp
27°C

Fri 6 · 41 out of 100

Swell
5 ft11 scrumbling
Energy
485kJ
Wind
ENE 9 kn
Temp
27°C

Sat 7 · 20 out of 100

Swell
3 ft10 scrumbling
Energy
229kJ
Wind
ENE 12 kn
Temp
27°C

Sun 8 · 47 out of 100

Swell
5 ft9 scrumbling
Energy
411kJ
Wind
ENE 12 kn
Temp
27°C

Mon 9 · 20 out of 100

Swell
4 ft9 scrumbling
Energy
197kJ
Wind
E 13 kn
Temp
28°C

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

Forecast: next 9 days

Full forecast
  1. Tue 340, too small
  2. Wed 414, too small
  3. Thu 565, good
  4. Fri 641, too small
  5. Sat 720, too small
  6. Sun 847, fair
  7. Mon 920, too small
  8. Tue 1042, too small
  9. Wed 1113, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces SWtakes swell from the SW
  • Offshore: NEwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 5–20 ftof swell
  • Water 27 °Cno wetsuit

Full forecast

every day, every number

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

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

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Power Plant, each day
DayScorefor ExpertSwellEnergyWindTemp
Tue 3Nov40, too small5 ft10 scrumblingunder 1 ft at break (est.)396kJwind from the east-north-east, 8 knots, offshore27°C
Wed 4Nov14, too small3 ft8 scrumblingunder 1 ft at break (est.)122kJwind from the east-north-east, 12 knots, offshore26°C
Thu 5Nov65, good6 ft13 scrumblingunder 1 ft at break (est.)1,026kJwind from the east-north-east, 14 knots, offshore27°C
Fri 6Nov41, too small5 ft11 scrumblingunder 1 ft at break (est.)485kJwind from the east-north-east, 9 knots, offshore27°C
Sat 7Nov20, too small3 ft10 scrumblingunder 1 ft at break (est.)229kJwind from the east-north-east, 12 knots, offshore27°C
Sun 8Nov47, fair5 ft9 scrumblingunder 1 ft at break (est.)411kJwind from the east-north-east, 12 knots, offshore27°C
Mon 9Nov20, too small4 ft9 scrumblingunder 1 ft at break (est.)197kJwind from the east, 13 knots, offshore28°C
Tue 10Nov42, too small5 ft10 scrumblingunder 1 ft at break (est.)420kJwind from the east-north-east, 8 knots, offshore27°C
Wed 11Nov13, too small2 ft13 shollow2 ft at break (est.)81kJwind from the north-east, 8 knots, offshore27°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 00:13 +0.1 mLow 04:54 −0.1 mHigh 11:23 +0.2 mLow 18:20 −0.2 m
  • Wed 4 NovHigh 00:59 +0.2 mLow 06:26 −0.1 mHigh 12:18 +0.2 mLow 18:50 −0.2 m
  • Thu 5 NovHigh 01:39 +0.2 mLow 07:37 −0.1 mHigh 13:06 +0.1 mLow 19:18 −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 beginners: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.

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More surf near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Power Plant

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

The spot faces SW (242°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (62°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 5–20 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves moderately: 10 m deep about 350 m out (1 in 36). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would crumble. The sea is about 25°C in January, its coldest month (no wetsuit), and 27°C in July, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is Kapolei, 5.9 km away (10 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 5 surf spots, 1 wind sports spot and 1 dive site.

Water about 27°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$2,420 each

about US$1,300–US$2,420 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 ORD to HNL, estimated from distance and season, 2 airlines on the route, with a hold bagabout US$476–US$986
Taxiairport and back, sharedabout US$34–US$54
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$302–US$503
Food7 days eating outabout US$342–US$637
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$148–US$242
Totalabout US$1,300–US$2,420

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

Kapolei

10 min by car · 7 places to stay

about US$114/nightcountry average

See 7 places to stay in Kapolei · Booking.com

About Kapolei its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$114 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 12h 05m

About 12h 05m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → HNL, direct, then 35 min 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.