Staying Home Sucks, home
Porthcawl Beach
Near The Point. Photo: Stephen McKay, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

The Point

Surf spot · UK

Is it worth the trip?

19Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Wed 4: too small (1 ft swell at 12 s), 3 hours of offshore wind

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 22 out of 100

Swell
1 ft9 ssoft
Energy
25kJ
Wind
NE 9 kn
Temp
12°C

Tue 3 · 10 out of 100

Swell
1 ft15 s
Energy
15kJ
Wind
ENE 13 kn
Temp
12°C

Wed 4 · 28 out of 100

Swell
1 ft12 scrumbling
Energy
47kJ
Wind
E 19 kn
Temp
11°C

Thu 5 · 22 out of 100

Swell
1 ft10 scrumbling
Energy
27kJ
Wind
ENE 17 kn
Temp
10°C

Fri 6 · 12 out of 100

Swell
1 ft9 scrumbling
Energy
10kJ
Wind
E 12 kn
Temp
11°C

Sat 7 · 10 out of 100

Swell
1 ft8 scrumbling
Energy
7kJ
Wind
E 9 kn
Temp
10°C

Sun 8 · 8 out of 100

Swell
1 ft8 s
Energy
4kJ
Wind
NNE 1 kn
Temp
10°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 141, too small
  2. Mon 222, too small
  3. Tue 310, too small
  4. Wed 428, too small
  5. Thu 522, too small
  6. Fri 612, too small
  7. Sat 710, too small
  8. Sun 88, too small
  9. Mon 94, too small
  10. Tue 102, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces SWtakes swell from the SW
  • Offshore: NEwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 2–10 ftof swell
  • Water 13 °C4/3 wetsuit and boots

Full forecast

every day, every number

The Point does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at The Point, each day
DayScorefor Inter­mediateSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 1Nov41, too small2 ft9 ssoft4 ft at break (est.)74kJwind from the east-south-east, 3 knots13°C
Mon 2Nov22, too small1 ft9 ssoft2 ft at break (est.)25kJwind from the north-east, 9 knots, offshore12°C
Tue 3Nov10, too small1 ft15 s1 ft at break (est.)15kJwind from the east-north-east, 13 knots, offshore12°C
Wed 4Nov28, too small1 ft12 scrumbling3 ft at break (est.)47kJwind from the east, 19 knots, offshore11°C
Thu 5Nov22, too small1 ft10 scrumbling2 ft at break (est.)27kJwind from the east-north-east, 17 knots, offshore10°C
Fri 6Nov12, too small1 ft9 scrumbling2 ft at break (est.)10kJwind from the east, 12 knots, offshore11°C
Sat 7Nov10, too small1 ft8 scrumbling1 ft at break (est.)7kJwind from the east, 9 knots, offshore10°C
Sun 8Nov8, too small1 ft8 s1 ft at break (est.)4kJwind from the north-north-east, 1 knot, offshore10°C
Mon 9Nov4, too smallunder 1 ft7 s1 ft at break (est.)2kJwind from the east, 15 knots, offshore8°C
Tue 10Nov2, too smallunder 1 ft8 sunder 1 ft at break (est.)0kJwind from the east-south-east, 6 knots12°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 04:05 −3.1 mHigh 10:33 +3.3 mLow 16:44 −3.0 mHigh 23:10 +2.8 m
  • Mon 2 NovLow 05:15 −2.5 mHigh 11:44 +2.9 mLow 18:04 −2.6 m
  • Tue 3 NovHigh 00:27 +2.4 mLow 06:40 −2.3 mHigh 13:03 +2.7 mLow 19:33 −2.5 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 The Point

Gathering clouds over Porthcawl Bay
Near The Point. Photo: Alan Hughes, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Porthcawl - Sunrise @ High Tide
Near The Point. Photo: Gareth Thompson, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Porthcawl Storm
Near The Point. Photo: EVO GT, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

More surf near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About The Point

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

The spot faces SW (223°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (43°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–10 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 700 m out (1 in 70). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 8°C in February, its coldest month (5/4 or 6/5, hood, boots and gloves), and 18°C in August, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Porthcawl, 1 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 5 surf spots and 1 climbing area.

Water about 13°C: 4/3 wetsuit and boots. 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$1,230–US$2,280 each

about US$1,230–US$2,280 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 CWL, estimated from distance and season, changing at DUB, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$435–US$904
Taxiairport and back, sharedabout US$60–US$100
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$281–US$469
Food7 days eating outabout US$315–US$583
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$134–US$228
Totalabout US$1,230–US$2,280

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

Closest

Porthcawl

2 min by car · 51 places to stay

about US$107/nightcountry average

See 51 places to stay in Porthcawl · Booking.com

About Porthcawl 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 30 October 2026.

Getting there: about 16h 15m

About 16h 15m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → CWL, changing at Dublin Airport (DUB), then 45 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.