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Bikini Beach - Ilha do Sal
Santa Maria. Photo: Lenilda Duarte, CC0, Wikimedia Commons

Santa Maria

Surf spot · Cabo Verde

Is it worth the trip?

15Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Mon 2: too small (5 ft swell at 11 s), 4 hours of offshore wind, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 42 out of 100

Swell
5 ft11 s
Energy
428kJ
Wind
NNW 7 kn
Temp
30°C

Tue 3 · 18 out of 100

Swell
4 ft10 s
Energy
223kJ
Wind
N 7 kn
Temp
29°C

Wed 4 · 4 out of 100

Swell
1 ft8 s
Energy
7kJ
Wind
ENE 5 kn
Temp
29°C

Thu 5 · 6 out of 100

Swell
1 ft10 s
Energy
37kJ
Wind
E 9 kn
Temp
29°C

Fri 6 · 5 out of 100

Swell
2 ft9 s
Energy
49kJ
Wind
NE 13 kn
Temp
30°C

Sat 7 · 8 out of 100

Swell
2 ft7 s
Energy
57kJ
Wind
NNE 14 kn
Temp
31°C

Sun 8 · 4 out of 100

Swell
1 ft8 s
Energy
24kJ
Wind
NE 9 kn
Temp
32°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 124, too small
  2. Mon 242, too small
  3. Tue 318, too small
  4. Wed 44, too small
  5. Thu 56, too small
  6. Fri 65, too small
  7. Sat 78, too small
  8. Sun 84, too small
  9. Mon 911, too small
  10. Tue 1017, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces Stakes swell from the S
  • Offshore: Nwind from the land
  • Beginner +who it suits
  • Works 5–20 ftof swell
  • Water 26 °Cno wetsuit

Full forecast

every day, every number

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

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Santa Maria, each day
DayScorefor ExpertSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 1Nov24, too small3 ft12 sunder 1 ft at break (est.)300kJwind from the west-north-west, 5 knots30°C
Mon 2Nov42, too small5 ft11 sunder 1 ft at break (est.)428kJwind from the north-north-west, 7 knots, offshore30°C
Tue 3Nov18, too small4 ft10 sunder 1 ft at break (est.)223kJwind from the north, 7 knots, offshore29°C
Wed 4Nov4, too small1 ft8 s1 ft at break (est.)7kJwind from the east-north-east, 5 knots29°C
Thu 5Nov6, too small1 ft10 sunder 1 ft at break (est.)37kJwind from the east, 9 knots29°C
Fri 6Nov5, too small2 ft9 sunder 1 ft at break (est.)49kJwind from the north-east, 13 knots30°C
Sat 7Nov8, too small2 ft7 sunder 1 ft at break (est.)57kJwind from the north-north-east, 14 knots, offshore31°C
Sun 8Nov4, too small1 ft8 sunder 1 ft at break (est.)24kJwind from the north-east, 9 knots32°C
Mon 9Nov11, too small3 ft10 sunder 1 ft at break (est.)202kJwind from the north-east, 13 knots31°C
Tue 10Nov17, too small4 ft9 sunder 1 ft at break (est.)223kJwind from the north-east, 11 knots31°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

  • Sun 1 NovLow 05:45 −0.3 mHigh 11:51 +0.1 mLow 17:31 −0.3 m
  • Mon 2 NovHigh 00:19 +0.4 mLow 07:00 −0.3 mHigh 13:17 +0.1 mLow 18:45 −0.2 m
  • Tue 3 NovHigh 01:41 +0.3 mLow 08:22 −0.3 mHigh 14:47 +0.1 mLow 20:13 −0.2 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, its town, photos

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.

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.

Photos of Santa Maria

20240102 102539 beach Praia António Sousa in Santa Maria, Sal, Cabo Verde
Photo: Tbo47, CC0, Wikimedia Commons
Sea point, Santa Maria, Sal Island, Cabo Verde
Photo: r_dfawn, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Capo verde isola di sal - panoramio - brunobarbato (8)
Near Santa Maria. Photo: brunobarbato, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

More surf near here

2 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Santa Maria

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

The spot faces S (169°), so it takes swell from the S. The wind blows offshore from the N (349°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits beginners and up. It works in 5–20 ft of swell. The sea is about 22°C in February, its coldest month (2 mm shorty), and 27°C in September, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is Santa Maria, 0.1 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot, 2 wind sports spots and 4 dive sites.

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$945–US$1,790 each

about US$945–US$1,790 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 30 October 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to SID, estimated from distance and season, changing at LIS, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$469–US$971
Taxiairport and back, sharedabout US$40–US$60
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$167–US$275
Food7 days eating outabout US$181–US$342
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$87–US$141
Totalabout US$945–US$1,790

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

Where to stay: Santa Maria

Closest

Santa Maria

1 min by car · 56 places to stay

about US$60/nightcountry average

See 56 places to stay in Santa Maria · Booking.com

About Santa Maria its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$60 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 30 October 2026.

Getting there: about 20h 05m

About 20h 05m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → SID, changing at Lisbon Humberto Delgado Airport (LIS), then 35 min by road

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

Saved: this link opens the same trip

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