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Vista aérea de La Paloma
La Paloma, the nearest town, 3 km away. Photo: Casaseneleste, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Zanja Honda

Surf spot · Uruguay

Is it worth the trip?

25Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Mon 9: 3 ft swell at 6 s

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 4 out of 100

Swell
under 1 ft11 s
Energy
4kJ
Wind
ENE 11 kn
Temp
17°C

Wed 4 · 27 out of 100

Swell
3 ft5 smushy
Energy
46kJ
Wind
ENE 14 kn
Temp
17°C

Thu 5 · 25 out of 100

Swell
3 ft6 smushy
Energy
64kJ
Wind
WSW 9 kn
Temp
17°C

Fri 6 · 16 out of 100

Swell
2 ft6 smushy
Energy
21kJ
Wind
NNW 6 kn
Temp
20°C

Sat 7 · 3 out of 100

Swell
1 ft11 smushy
Energy
15kJ
Wind
S 23 kn
Temp
14°C

Sun 8 · 30 out of 100

Swell
5 ft6 smushy
Energy
185kJ
Wind
SW 10 kn
Temp
14°C

Mon 9 · 36 out of 100

Swell
3 ft6 smushy
Energy
45kJ
Wind
NNE 6 kn
Temp
15°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 25, too small
  2. Tue 34, too small
  3. Wed 427, poor
  4. Thu 525, poor
  5. Fri 616, too small
  6. Sat 73, too small
  7. Sun 830, poor
  8. Mon 936, too small
  9. Tue 1022, too small
  10. Wed 1125, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces Stakes swell from the S
  • Offshore: Nwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 2–9 ftof swell
  • Water 18 °C2 mm shorty

Full forecast

every day, every number
Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Zanja Honda, each day
DayScore for intermediatesSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov5, too smallunder 1 ft11 s1 ft at break (est.)5kJwind from the east-north-east, 5 knots17°C
Tue 3Nov4, too smallunder 1 ft11 s1 ft at break (est.)4kJwind from the east-north-east, 11 knots17°C
Wed 4Nov27, poor3 ft5 smushyunder 1 ft at break (est.)46kJwind from the east-north-east, 14 knots17°C
Thu 5Nov25, poor3 ft6 smushy1 ft at break (est.)64kJwind from the west-south-west, 9 knots17°C
Fri 6Nov16, too small2 ft6 smushy1 ft at break (est.)21kJwind from the north-north-west, 6 knots, offshore20°C
Sat 7Nov3, too small1 ft11 smushy2 ft at break (est.)15kJwind from the south, 23 knots14°C
Sun 8Nov30, poor5 ft6 smushy6 ft at break (est.)185kJwind from the south-west, 10 knots14°C
Mon 9Nov36, too small3 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.)45kJwind from the north-north-east, 6 knots, offshore15°C
Tue 10Nov22, too small2 ft6 smushy2 ft at break (est.)31kJwind from the north-north-east, 10 knots, offshore17°C
Wed 11Nov25, too small2 ft8 smushy2 ft at break (est.)50kJwind from the north-east, 8 knots19°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 NovHigh 00:31 +0.2 mLow 04:23 −0.1 mHigh 06:16 −0.1 mLow 08:15 −0.1 mHigh 12:37 +0.3 mLow 20:56 −0.3 m
  • Tue 3 NovHigh 01:24 +0.1 mLow 05:12 −0.1 mHigh 06:50 −0.1 mLow 09:20 −0.1 mHigh 13:34 +0.2 mLow 21:57 −0.2 m
  • Wed 4 NovHigh 02:17 +0.1 mLow 06:02 −0.1 mHigh 07:23 −0.0 mLow 10:23 −0.1 mHigh 14:32 +0.2 mLow 22:57 −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 and its town

Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for intermediates: 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 Zanja Honda

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

The spot faces S (175°), so it takes swell from the S. The wind blows offshore from the N (355°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–9 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 450 m out (1 in 43). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would crumble. The sea is about 12°C in July, its coldest month (4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves), and 23°C in February, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is La Paloma, 2.6 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 3 surf spots and 1 wind sports spot.

Water about 18°C: 2 mm shorty. 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$1,350–US$2,540 each

about US$1,350–US$2,540 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 ORD to PDP, estimated from distance and season, changing at GRU, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$604–US$1,250
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$114–US$188
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$275–US$463
Food7 days eating outabout US$248–US$463
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$107–US$174
Totalabout US$1,350–US$2,540

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

La Paloma

about 5 min by car · 55 places to stay

about US$101/nightcountry average

See 55 places to stay in La Paloma · Booking.com

About La Paloma its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$101 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 22h 30m

About 22h 30m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → PDP, changing at São Paulo/Guarulhos–Governor André Franco Montoro International Airport (GRU), then 1h 50m by road

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

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