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204.0, United States

Stay in San Clemente: see the trip Its beds, the way there and every spot near it.

Also within 20 km of San Clemente

All 31 on San Clemente's map

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San Clemente Beach Club
Near 204.0. Photo: Vincent R. Jackson, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

About 204.0

Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated. Facts: verified, surf details estimated.

The spot faces SW (221°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (41°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 3–10 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 500 m out (1 in 49). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 15°C in January, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 22°C in August, its warmest (2 mm shorty). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually January, March, April and May, with about 2 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is San Clemente, 1.5 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 8 surf spots and 1 wind sports spot.

Water about 20°C: 2 mm shorty. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

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From Chicago: about 7 h 10 door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.

  1. Fly. Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) to SNA, direct.

    See flights ORD → SNA · Skyscanner from about £215 returnAd
  2. Getting there. 55 min from the airport to 204.0.

  3. Accommodation.

    Stay in San ClementeAd

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

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

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    Closest towns to stay in

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

  4. Hire and lessons.

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

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Forecast

The score for intermediates, coloured as on the area pages:GoodFairPoorToo bigToo small

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at 204.0, each day
DayScore for intermediatesSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 18Oct61, good3 ft13 scrumbling358kJwind from the east-north-east, 1 knot, offshore27°C
Mon 19Oct70, good4 ft13 scrumbling418kJwind from the south, 0 knots25°C
Tue 20Oct64, good4 ft12 scrumbling345kJwind from the east, 1 knot24°C
Wed 21Oct57, good3 ft12 scrumbling264kJwind from the east-south-east, 3 knots23°C
Thu 22Oct48, good3 ft12 scrumbling243kJwind from the west-south-west, 5 knots19°C
Fri 23Oct44, fair2 ft12 scrumbling174kJwind from the north-west, 5 knots21°C
Sat 24Oct40, fair2 ft12 scrumbling135kJwind from the south-west, 2 knots23°C
Sun 25Oct33, too small2 ft12 scrumbling99kJwind from the south, 1 knot22°C
Mon 26Oct21, too small2 ft11 scrumbling70kJwind from the south-south-east, 5 knots20°C
Tue 27Oct19, too small1 ft11 scrumbling39kJwind from the north-east, 4 knots, offshore19°C

Day scores here are the conditions out of 80; a trip's score on the results is the same conditions out of 100. The journey never scores. The forecast reaches about 10 days. Energy is the swell's power in kJ per metre of wave, from its height and interval: it grows with the square of each, so a long-period swell hits far harder than a short one the same size. The word under the swell is the wave's shape, our estimate from the sea floor. Wind is in knots: 10 kn is about 19 km/h. The arrow points where the wind blows to; offshore wind, blowing from the land out to sea, is green and says so.

Your trip, day by day

6 nights from Mon 19 Oct, leaving from Chicago, for intermediate surfers. Change dates

  1. Mon 19 Oct
    Travel out

    Direct flight ORD to SNA, then 55 min by road. About 7h 10 door to door

  2. Tue 20 Oct
    Surf Trestles

    Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 4 ft at 12 s, wind 1 kn (2 km/h).

  3. Wed 21 Oct
    Surf Birdhits

    Best 17:00 to 20:00 local time: 3 ft at 12 s, offshore wind.

  4. Thu 22 Oct
    Surf Trestles

    Best 14:00 to 17:00 local time: 3 ft at 12 s, wind 5 kn (10 km/h).

  5. Fri 23 Oct
    Surf Churches Point

    Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 3 ft at 5 s, offshore wind.

  6. Sat 24 Oct
    Rest day

    Too small: 2 ft at best.

  7. Sun 25 Oct
    Travel home

    Direct flight ORD to SNA, then 55 min by road. About 7h 10 door to door

The plan picks the best of 15 spots near San Clemente each day: 204.0, Birdhits, Calafia, Church (Trestles), Churches Point, Cottons, Linda Lane Beach, Lost Winds, Riviera, San Clemente Pier, San Onofre, State park, T Street, Trestles, Upper Trestles.

The trip from San Clemente, with every spot near it

Rough cost

About £955–£1,735 each for 6 nights, 2 people sharing a room. A guide from typical prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book.

Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to SNA, estimated from distance and season, 2 airlines on the route, with a hold bag£215–£445
To the UK airportparking or the train, there and back£35–£65
Taxiairport and back, shared£60–£100
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, shared£270–£455
Food7 days eating out£260–£480
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about £85 to fly your own£115–£190
Total£955–£1,735

Prices from public sources, checked in 2026: where they come from. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra.

Places to eat near San Clemente

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

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