Kekerengu, New Zealand

No town nearby. No bookable town within 50 km: the nearest, Nelson, is 96 km away. Nearest airport: BHE (BHE), 55 km.

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About Kekerengu

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

The spot faces SE (123°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (303°). 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 650 m out (1 in 64). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 11°C in July, its coldest month (4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves), and 17°C in February, its warmest (3/2 wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually January, February, March and April, with about 2 good days in 7; in November and December, about 1. From the weather of past years. No town nearby. No bookable town within 50 km: the nearest, Nelson, is 96 km away. Nearest airport: BHE (BHE), 55 km.

Water about 12°C: 4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

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From Chicago: about 29 h 45 door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.

Fly. Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) to CHC, changing at San Francisco International Airport (SFO).
See flights MDW → CHC · Skyscanner from about £765 returnAd
Getting there. 3 h 50 from the airport to Kekerengu.
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Accommodation.
No town nearby
No bookable town within 50 km: the nearest, Nelson, is 96 km away. Nearest airport: BHE (BHE), 55 km.
Hire and lessons.
Surf lessons in Kekerengu · GetYourGuideAd Board and wetsuit hire in Kekerengu · GetYourGuideAd

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

Kekerengu on Google Maps · Directions

Surf spot

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Forecast

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

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

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Kekerengu, each day
Day	Scorefor Intermediate	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Mon 19Oct	0, too big	6 ft10 ssoft	694kJ	wind from the east-south-east, 2 knots	14°C
Tue 20Oct	44, fair	5 ft9 ssoft	367kJ	wind from the south-south-east, 3 knots	14°C
Wed 21Oct	58, good	4 ft9 ssoft	235kJ	wind from the east-north-east, 4 knots	15°C
Thu 22Oct	55, good	3 ft9 ssoft	159kJ	wind from the east-south-east, 3 knots	17°C
Fri 23Oct	45, fair	3 ft7 smushy	99kJ	wind from the south-east, 2 knots	19°C
Sat 24Oct	58, good	4 ft9 ssoft	269kJ	wind from the north-east, 2 knots	22°C
Sun 25Oct	38, fair	3 ft10 ssoft	159kJ	wind from the south-south-east, 3 knots	17°C
Mon 26Oct	24, too small	2 ft5 smushy	29kJ	wind from the north-west, 6 knots, offshore	23°C
Tue 27Oct	22, poor	3 ft5 smushy	51kJ	wind from the west, 9 knots, offshore	25°C
Wed 28Oct	11, too small	1 ft7 smushy	12kJ	wind from the east, 3 knots	19°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 Tue 20 Oct, leaving from Chicago, for intermediate surfers. Change dates

Tue 20 Oct
Travel out
Fly MDW to CHC, changing at SFO, then 3h 50 by road. About 29h 45 door to door
Wed 21 Oct
Surf Kekerengu
Best 19:00 to 22:00 local time: 4 ft at 9 s, wind 4 kn (8 km/h).
Thu 22 Oct
Surf Kekerengu
Best 10:00 to 13:00 local time: 3 ft at 9 s, wind 3 kn (5 km/h).
Fri 23 Oct
Surf Kekerengu
Best 16:00 to 19:00 local time: 3 ft at 7 s, wind 2 kn (4 km/h).
Sat 24 Oct
Surf Kekerengu
Best 19:00 to 22:00 local time: 4 ft at 9 s, wind 2 kn (4 km/h).
Sun 25 Oct
Surf Kekerengu
Best 16:00 to 19:00 local time: 3 ft at 10 s, wind 3 kn (6 km/h).
Mon 26 Oct
Travel home
Fly MDW to CHC, changing at SFO, then 3h 50 by road. About 29h 45 door to door

Rough cost

About £1,230–£2,415 each for 6 nights, 2 people sharing a room. A guide from typical prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book. No town nearby, so no stay is in it.

Rough cost per person for this trip
What	How we worked it out	Each
Flights	return MDW to CHC, estimated from distance and season, changing at SFO, full-service airlines, with a hold bag	£765–£1,585
To the UK airport	parking or the train, there and back	£35–£65
Hire car	6 days, shared	£100–£170
Food	7 days eating out	£230–£430
Board and wetsuit	5 days, or about £85 to fly your own	£100–£165
Total		£1,230–£2,415

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

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