Santa Elena, Ecuador

In Santa Elena Province · Ecuador · Santa Elena on Google Maps · Map of the spots

Colores en la Playa - panoramio — Near Coito, 2 km away. Photo: Manuel Rivas Coronel, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

About Santa Elena

Santa Elena is a town in Santa Elena Province, Ecuador. From Santa Elena you can reach 14 surf spots. The nearest is Capaes, a surf spot 3.5 km from the centre. Overture lists 35 places to stay within 2 km of the centre. The nearest airport is SNC, 14 km away.

Pick your dates and start point to see a trip here scored, planned and costed: plan a surf trip to Ecuador.

Staying in Santa Elena

35 places to stay within 2 km of the centre (Overture places)
Nearest airports: SNC, 14 km, GYE, 109 km, MEC, 144 km

Stay in Santa ElenaAd

Typical prices for a double room that month, not a quote.

Room photos are examples, not these hotels (credits).

See all places to stay on Booking.com →

Where it is

Each place is ringed by its best day this week, a surf spot for intermediates: green on a good day. The dashed circle is 20 km from Santa Elena.

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Surf within 20 km

The next 7 days. Each day's wave height, green on a good day for the level each spot suits. Pick your level for the days that suit you. The best of the spots that stay in Santa Elena each day wears a ★ Best badge, only on a Good day. 10 spots stay in another town: within your drive, they count for Santa Elena too.

Wave height in feet, the wave energy in kJ under it.GoodUnder each day, the wind in knots: the arrow points where it blows to.A tag under a spot's name is the level its colours are for: Expert

Spot

Sun 18

Mon 19

Tue 20

Wed 21

Thu 22

Fri 23

Sat 24

La Diablica11.4 kmabout 20 min by carStays in La Libertad, 11 km

5 ft699 kJ

4 ft450 kJ

4 ft484 kJ

4 ft516 kJ

5 ft687 kJ

4 ft288 kJ

4 ft314 kJ

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at La Diablica, each day
Day	Score for intermediates	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	42, fair	5 ft12 smushy	699kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 6 knots	30°C
Mon 19Oct	58, good	4 ft11 ssoft	450kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots	28°C
Tue 20Oct	50, good	4 ft12 smushy	484kJ	wind from the south-west, 6 knots	29°C
Wed 21Oct	57, good	4 ft15 ssoft	516kJ	wind from the south-west, 4 knots	30°C
Thu 22Oct	48, good	5 ft12 ssoft	687kJ	wind from the south-south-east, 4 knots	28°C
Fri 23Oct	47, fair	4 ft10 ssoft	288kJ	wind from the south, 5 knots	30°C
Sat 24Oct	57, good	4 ft11 ssoft	314kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 1 knot	30°C

Punta Carnero9.4 kmabout 20 min by carStays in La Libertad, 8 km

5 ft711 kJ

4 ft337 kJ

4 ft355 kJ

4 ft612 kJ

5 ft648 kJ

4 ft288 kJ

4 ft317 kJ

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Punta Carnero, each day
Day	Score for intermediates	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	38, fair	5 ft12 smushy	711kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 8 knots	27°C
Mon 19Oct	53, good	4 ft11 smushy	337kJ	wind from the south, 8 knots	27°C
Tue 20Oct	41, fair	4 ft11 smushy	355kJ	wind from the south-west, 10 knots	27°C
Wed 21Oct	54, good	4 ft14 smushy	612kJ	wind from the south-west, 6 knots	27°C
Thu 22Oct	44, fair	5 ft12 smushy	648kJ	wind from the south, 7 knots	27°C
Fri 23Oct	40, fair	4 ft10 smushy	288kJ	wind from the south, 8 knots	27°C
Sat 24Oct	54, good	4 ft11 ssoft	317kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 4 knots	28°C

Ecuasal9.2 kmabout 20 min by carStays in La Libertad, 6 km

6 ft751 kJ

4 ft284 kJ

4 ft390 kJ

4 ft562 kJ

5 ft772 kJ

4 ft325 kJ

4 ft358 kJ

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Ecuasal, each day
Day	Score for intermediates	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	38, fair	6 ft12 shollow	751kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 8 knots	27°C
Mon 19Oct	50, good	4 ft10 shollow	284kJ	wind from the south, 8 knots	27°C
Tue 20Oct	39, fair	4 ft11 shollow	390kJ	wind from the south-west, 10 knots	27°C
Wed 21Oct	53, good	4 ft15 shollow	562kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 7 knots	27°C
Thu 22Oct	43, fair	5 ft12 shollow	772kJ	wind from the south, 6 knots	27°C
Fri 23Oct	38, fair	4 ft10 shollow	325kJ	wind from the south, 8 knots	27°C
Sat 24Oct	54, good	4 ft11 shollow	358kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 4 knots	28°C

FAE15.8 kmabout 30 min by carStays in La Libertad, 10 km

5 ft699 kJ

4 ft497 kJ

4 ft390 kJ

4 ft562 kJ

5 ft760 kJ

4 ft325 kJ

4 ft358 kJ

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at FAE, each day
Day	Score for intermediates	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	36, fair	5 ft12 smushy	699kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 8 knots	27°C
Mon 19Oct	48, good	4 ft12 smushy	497kJ	wind from the west-south-west, 7 knots	27°C
Tue 20Oct	34, poor	4 ft11 smushy	390kJ	wind from the south-west, 11 knots	27°C
Wed 21Oct	51, good	4 ft15 smushy	562kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 7 knots	27°C
Thu 22Oct	39, fair	5 ft12 smushy	760kJ	wind from the south-west, 7 knots	27°C
Fri 23Oct	32, poor	4 ft10 smushy	325kJ	wind from the south, 9 knots	27°C
Sat 24Oct	47, fair	4 ft11 smushy	358kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 6 knots	27°C

FAE - 3 cruzes17 kmabout 30 min by carStays in La Libertad, 11 km

5 ft699 kJ

4 ft497 kJ

4 ft390 kJ

4 ft562 kJ

5 ft760 kJ

4 ft325 kJ

4 ft358 kJ

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at FAE - 3 cruzes, each day
Day	Score for intermediates	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	36, fair	5 ft12 shollow	699kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 8 knots	27°C
Mon 19Oct	48, good	4 ft12 shollow	497kJ	wind from the west-south-west, 7 knots	27°C
Tue 20Oct	34, poor	4 ft11 smushy	390kJ	wind from the south-west, 11 knots	27°C
Wed 21Oct	51, good	4 ft15 shollow	562kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 7 knots	27°C
Thu 22Oct	39, fair	5 ft12 shollow	760kJ	wind from the south-west, 7 knots	27°C
Fri 23Oct	32, poor	4 ft10 shollow	325kJ	wind from the south, 9 knots	27°C
Sat 24Oct	47, fair	4 ft11 shollow	358kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 6 knots	27°C

Coito8.2 kmabout 15 min by car

3 ft236 kJ

3 ft169 kJ

3 ft170 kJ

2 ft149 kJ

3 ft229 kJ

3 ft76 kJ

3 ft62 kJ

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Coito, each day
Day	Score for intermediates	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	21, too small	3 ft11 scrumbling	236kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 6 knots	28°C
Mon 19Oct	18, too small	3 ft11 shollow	169kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots	28°C
Tue 20Oct	21, too small	3 ft11 shollow	170kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots	28°C
Wed 21Oct	16, too small	2 ft12 shollow	149kJ	wind from the south-south-east, 3 knots, offshore	28°C
Thu 22Oct	25, too small	3 ft12 scrumbling	229kJ	wind from the south-west, 4 knots	27°C
Fri 23Oct	14, too small	3 ft8 scrumbling	76kJ	wind from the south-south-east, 3 knots, offshore	29°C
Sat 24Oct	12, too small	3 ft7 smushy	62kJ	wind from the west-south-west, 0 knots	28°C

Capaes3.5 kmabout 10 min by carNeeds 5 ft+

3 ft236 kJ

3 ft169 kJ

3 ft170 kJ

2 ft150 kJ

3 ft220 kJ

3 ft76 kJ

3 ft62 kJ

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Capaes, each day
Day	Scorefor Expert	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	18, too small	3 ft11 ssoft	236kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots, offshore	30°C
Mon 19Oct	15, too small	3 ft11 ssoft	169kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots, offshore	29°C
Tue 20Oct	15, too small	3 ft11 ssoft	170kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 6 knots	28°C
Wed 21Oct	14, too small	2 ft12 scrumbling	150kJ	wind from the west-south-west, 4 knots	29°C
Thu 22Oct	19, too small	3 ft12 ssoft	220kJ	wind from the south-south-east, 4 knots, offshore	28°C
Fri 23Oct	12, too small	3 ft8 ssoft	76kJ	wind from the south-south-east, 4 knots, offshore	30°C
Sat 24Oct	11, too small	3 ft7 smushy	62kJ	wind from the south-west, 2 knots	29°C

Cautivo3.9 kmabout 10 min by carStays in La Libertad, 2 kmNeeds 5 ft+

5 ft537 kJ

4 ft339 kJ

4 ft349 kJ

4 ft474 kJ

4 ft527 kJ

4 ft249 kJ

4 ft219 kJ

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Cautivo, each day
Day	Scorefor Expert	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	31, too small	5 ft12 ssoft	537kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots, offshore	30°C
Mon 19Oct	25, too small	4 ft11 ssoft	339kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots, offshore	29°C
Tue 20Oct	23, too small	4 ft11 ssoft	349kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 6 knots	28°C
Wed 21Oct	24, too small	4 ft13 ssoft	474kJ	wind from the west-south-west, 7 knots	29°C
Thu 22Oct	32, too small	4 ft12 ssoft	527kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots, offshore	28°C
Fri 23Oct	22, too small	4 ft10 ssoft	249kJ	wind from the south-south-east, 4 knots, offshore	30°C
Sat 24Oct	20, too small	4 ft10 ssoft	219kJ	wind from the south-west, 2 knots	29°C

Chulluipe3.8 kmabout 10 min by carNeeds 5 ft+

5 ft537 kJ

4 ft339 kJ

4 ft349 kJ

4 ft474 kJ

4 ft527 kJ

4 ft249 kJ

4 ft219 kJ

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Chulluipe, each day
Day	Scorefor Expert	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	30, too small	5 ft12 ssoft	537kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots, offshore	30°C
Mon 19Oct	25, too small	4 ft11 ssoft	339kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots, offshore	29°C
Tue 20Oct	23, too small	4 ft11 ssoft	349kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 6 knots	28°C
Wed 21Oct	24, too small	4 ft13 ssoft	474kJ	wind from the west-south-west, 7 knots	29°C
Thu 22Oct	32, too small	4 ft12 ssoft	527kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots, offshore	28°C
Fri 23Oct	22, too small	4 ft10 ssoft	249kJ	wind from the south-south-east, 4 knots, offshore	30°C
Sat 24Oct	20, too small	4 ft10 ssoft	219kJ	wind from the south-west, 2 knots	29°C

El Castillo3.9 kmabout 10 min by carNeeds 5 ft+

3 ft236 kJ

3 ft169 kJ

3 ft170 kJ

2 ft150 kJ

3 ft229 kJ

3 ft76 kJ

3 ft62 kJ

Forecast and score for expert surfers at El Castillo, each day
Day	Scorefor Expert	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	18, too small	3 ft11 ssoft	236kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots, offshore	30°C
Mon 19Oct	16, too small	3 ft11 ssoft	169kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots, offshore	29°C
Tue 20Oct	15, too small	3 ft11 ssoft	170kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 6 knots	28°C
Wed 21Oct	14, too small	2 ft12 ssoft	150kJ	wind from the west-south-west, 4 knots	29°C
Thu 22Oct	19, too small	3 ft12 ssoft	229kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 5 knots, offshore	28°C
Fri 23Oct	12, too small	3 ft8 ssoft	76kJ	wind from the south-south-east, 4 knots, offshore	30°C
Sat 24Oct	11, too small	3 ft7 smushy	62kJ	wind from the south-west, 2 knots	29°C

La Chocolatera15.1 kmabout 30 min by carStays in La Libertad, 10 kmNeeds 5 ft+

5 ft537 kJ

4 ft339 kJ

4 ft349 kJ

4 ft427 kJ

5 ft524 kJ

4 ft323 kJ

4 ft219 kJ

Forecast and score for expert surfers at La Chocolatera, each day
Day	Scorefor Expert	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	31, too small	5 ft12 shollow	537kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 10 knots, offshore	27°C
Mon 19Oct	25, too small	4 ft11 shollow	339kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 9 knots, offshore	27°C
Tue 20Oct	28, too small	4 ft11 shollow	349kJ	wind from the south-west, 14 knots, offshore	27°C
Wed 21Oct	24, too small	4 ft13 shollow	427kJ	wind from the west-south-west, 7 knots	27°C
Thu 22Oct	36, fair	5 ft12 shollow	524kJ	wind from the south-west, 7 knots, offshore	27°C
Fri 23Oct	26, too small	4 ft11 shollow	323kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 14 knots, offshore	27°C
Sat 24Oct	22, too small	4 ft10 shollow	219kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 6 knots, offshore	27°C

Paco illescas11.4 kmabout 20 min by carStays in La Libertad, 6 kmNeeds 5 ft+

5 ft537 kJ

4 ft339 kJ

4 ft349 kJ

4 ft427 kJ

5 ft524 kJ

4 ft323 kJ

4 ft219 kJ

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Paco illescas, each day
Day	Scorefor Expert	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	31, too small	5 ft12 ssoft	537kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 8 knots, offshore	27°C
Mon 19Oct	25, too small	4 ft11 ssoft	339kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 7 knots, offshore	27°C
Tue 20Oct	28, too small	4 ft11 ssoft	349kJ	wind from the south-west, 11 knots, offshore	27°C
Wed 21Oct	24, too small	4 ft13 ssoft	427kJ	wind from the west-south-west, 6 knots	27°C
Thu 22Oct	36, fair	5 ft12 ssoft	524kJ	wind from the south-west, 7 knots, offshore	27°C
Fri 23Oct	26, too small	4 ft11 ssoft	323kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 11 knots, offshore	28°C
Sat 24Oct	20, too small	4 ft10 ssoft	219kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 4 knots, offshore	28°C

Pico nerd11.2 kmabout 20 min by carStays in La Libertad, 6 kmNeeds 5 ft+

5 ft537 kJ

4 ft339 kJ

4 ft349 kJ

4 ft427 kJ

5 ft524 kJ

4 ft323 kJ

4 ft219 kJ

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Pico nerd, each day
Day	Scorefor Expert	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	31, too small	5 ft12 ssoft	537kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 8 knots, offshore	27°C
Mon 19Oct	25, too small	4 ft11 ssoft	339kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 7 knots, offshore	27°C
Tue 20Oct	28, too small	4 ft11 ssoft	349kJ	wind from the south-west, 11 knots, offshore	27°C
Wed 21Oct	24, too small	4 ft13 ssoft	427kJ	wind from the west-south-west, 6 knots	27°C
Thu 22Oct	36, fair	5 ft12 ssoft	524kJ	wind from the south-west, 7 knots, offshore	27°C
Fri 23Oct	26, too small	4 ft11 ssoft	323kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 11 knots, offshore	28°C
Sat 24Oct	20, too small	4 ft10 ssoft	219kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 4 knots, offshore	28°C

Playero de miramar12 kmabout 25 min by carStays in La Libertad, 6 kmNeeds 5 ft+

5 ft537 kJ

4 ft339 kJ

4 ft349 kJ

4 ft427 kJ

5 ft524 kJ

4 ft323 kJ

3 ft199 kJ

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Playero de miramar, each day
Day	Scorefor Expert	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	31, too small	5 ft12 ssoft	537kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 8 knots, offshore	27°C
Mon 19Oct	25, too small	4 ft11 ssoft	339kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 7 knots, offshore	27°C
Tue 20Oct	28, too small	4 ft11 ssoft	349kJ	wind from the south-west, 11 knots, offshore	27°C
Wed 21Oct	24, too small	4 ft13 scrumbling	427kJ	wind from the west-south-west, 6 knots	27°C
Thu 22Oct	36, fair	5 ft12 ssoft	524kJ	wind from the south-west, 7 knots, offshore	27°C
Fri 23Oct	26, too small	4 ft11 ssoft	323kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 11 knots, offshore	28°C
Sat 24Oct	21, too small	3 ft10 ssoft	199kJ	wind from the south-west, 5 knots, offshore	28°C

Distances are in a straight line from the middle of Santa Elena, to spots that land joins: none across a bay or on another island. A drive marked "about" is our estimate: the straight line times 1.8 minutes a km, measured on the drives we have routed (half of those come within 21% of the routed time).

Places to eat near Santa Elena

Luis Daniel PizzaPizza · 0.3 km from the centre
Food TruckBurger · 0.1 km from the centre
Picantería y cevichería MargaritaSeafood · 0.1 km from the centre
The Pepper's RestaurantBarbecue · 0.2 km from the centre
Las Delicias De FlorBreakfast and brunch · 0.4 km from the centre
Zaruco RestaurantLatin american · 0.4 km from the centre

Within 2 km of the town centre, listed by how complete the listing is (website, opening hours, cuisine) and whether two sources name it. Not a judgement of the food: we have no reviews. Listings © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) and Overture Maps Foundation. Credits