Lefts and Rights, United States

No town nearby. No bookable town within 50 km: the nearest, Goleta, is 51 km away. Nearest airport: SMX (SMX), 50 km.

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About Lefts and Rights

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

The spot faces S (173°), so it takes swell from the S. The wind blows offshore from the N (353°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits beginners and up. It works in 4–16 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves moderately: 10 m deep about 200 m out (1 in 20). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 12°C in April, its coldest month (4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves), and 17°C in September, its warmest (3/2 wetsuit). No town nearby. No bookable town within 50 km: the nearest, Goleta, is 51 km away. Nearest airport: SMX (SMX), 50 km. Within 5 km we also list 2 surf spots.

Water about 17°C: 3/2 wetsuit. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

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From Chicago: about 7 h 35 door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.

Fly. Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) to SBA, direct.
See flights ORD → SBA · Skyscanner from about £220 returnAd
Getting there. 1 h 10 from the airport to Lefts and Rights.
Car hire · Discover CarsAd
Accommodation.
No town nearby
No bookable town within 50 km: the nearest, Goleta, is 51 km away. Nearest airport: SMX (SMX), 50 km.
Hire and lessons.
Surf lessons in Lefts and Rights · GetYourGuideAd Board and wetsuit hire in Lefts and Rights · GetYourGuideAd

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

Lefts and Rights on Google Maps · Directions

Surf spot

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Forecast

Lefts and Rights 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 Lefts and Rights, each day
Day	Scorefor Intermediate	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	44, fair	4 ft9 shollow	261kJ	wind from the north-west, 8 knots	26°C
Mon 19Oct	55, good	4 ft10 shollow	359kJ	wind from the north, 6 knots, offshore	24°C
Tue 20Oct	49, good	4 ft8 scrumbling	228kJ	wind from the north, 6 knots, offshore	22°C
Wed 21Oct	34, poor	5 ft10 scrumbling	538kJ	wind from the east-north-east, 4 knots	19°C
Thu 22Oct	34, too small	2 ft12 shollow	174kJ	wind from the north-west, 12 knots, offshore	20°C
Fri 23Oct	40, fair	4 ft6 smushy	144kJ	wind from the north-north-west, 10 knots, offshore	21°C
Sat 24Oct	50, good	4 ft7 smushy	172kJ	wind from the south-west, 3 knots	23°C
Sun 25Oct	32, too small	3 ft7 smushy	94kJ	wind from the north, 4 knots, offshore	21°C
Mon 26Oct	37, fair	3 ft7 smushy	108kJ	wind from the north-west, 5 knots, offshore	17°C
Tue 27Oct	49, good	4 ft7 smushy	173kJ	wind from the north-west, 12 knots, offshore	18°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

Mon 19 Oct
Travel out
Direct flight ORD to SBA, then 1h 10 by road. About 7h 35 door to door
Tue 20 Oct
Surf Lefts and Rights
Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 4 ft at 8 s, offshore wind.
Wed 21 Oct
Surf Lefts and Rights
Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 5 ft at 10 s, wind 4 kn (8 km/h).
Thu 22 Oct
Rest day
Too small: 2 ft at best.
Fri 23 Oct
Surf Lefts and Rights
Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 4 ft at 6 s, offshore wind.
Sat 24 Oct
Surf Lefts and Rights
Best 17:00 to 20:00 local time: 4 ft at 7 s, wind 3 kn (5 km/h).
Sun 25 Oct
Travel home
Direct flight ORD to SBA, then 1h 10 by road. About 7h 35 door to door

Rough cost

About £745–£1,385 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 ORD to SBA, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bag	£220–£460
To the UK airport	parking or the train, there and back	£35–£65
Hire car	6 days, shared	£115–£190
Food	7 days eating out	£260–£480
Board and wetsuit	5 days, or about £85 to fly your own	£115–£190
Total		£745–£1,385

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

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