Point Sur, United States

No town nearby. No stay checked for this site yet: Big Sur, 9 km away, is the nearest town we list. Nearest airport: MRY (MRY), 32 km.

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About Point Sur

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

The spot faces SW (242°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (62°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up, because of a steep sea floor. It works in 2–8 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves very steeply: 10 m deep about 100 m out (1 in 8). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 12°C in May, its coldest month (4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves), and 15°C in August, its warmest (4/3 wetsuit and boots). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually August, September, October and November, with about 2 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. No town nearby. No stay checked for this site yet: Big Sur, 9 km away, is the nearest town we list. Nearest airport: MRY (MRY), 32 km. Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot.

Water about 15°C: 4/3 wetsuit and boots. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

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From Chicago: about 7 h 20 door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.

Fly. Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) to MRY, direct.
See flights ORD → MRY · Skyscanner from about £225 returnAd
Getting there. 55 min from the airport to Point Sur.
Car hire · Discover CarsAd
Accommodation.
No town nearby
No stay checked for this site yet: Big Sur, 9 km away, is the nearest town we list. Nearest airport: MRY (MRY), 32 km.
Hire and lessons.
Surf lessons in Point Sur · GetYourGuideAd Board and wetsuit hire in Point Sur · GetYourGuideAd

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

Point Sur on Google Maps · Directions

Surf spot

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Forecast

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

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Point Sur, each day
Day	Score for experts	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	28, too small	5 ft10 shollow	464kJ	wind from the north-north-west, 11 knots	21°C
Mon 19Oct	37, fair	6 ft9 shollow	603kJ	wind from the north, 12 knots	16°C
Tue 20Oct	55, good	7 ft11 shollow	962kJ	wind from the west-south-west, 3 knots	16°C
Wed 21Oct	41, fair	6 ft9 shollow	544kJ	wind from the east-south-east, 5 knots	15°C
Thu 22Oct	17, too small	4 ft7 shollow	132kJ	wind from the north, 5 knots	17°C
Fri 23Oct	22, too small	5 ft6 shollow	157kJ	wind from the north-north-west, 10 knots	18°C
Sat 24Oct	39, fair	6 ft7 shollow	413kJ	wind from the north-west, 3 knots	19°C
Sun 25Oct	18, too small	4 ft7 shollow	127kJ	wind from the north-north-west, 8 knots	22°C
Mon 26Oct	44, fair	6 ft7 shollow	357kJ	wind from the south-south-west, 2 knots	23°C
Tue 27Oct	30, too small	5 ft7 shollow	269kJ	wind from the south-south-east, 7 knots	21°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 expert surfers. Change dates

Mon 19 Oct
Travel out
Direct flight ORD to MRY, then 55 min by road. About 7h 20 door to door
Tue 20 Oct
Surf Point Sur
Best 11:00 to 14:00 local time: 7 ft at 11 s, wind 3 kn (5 km/h).
Wed 21 Oct
Surf Point Sur
Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 6 ft at 9 s, wind 5 kn (9 km/h).
Thu 22 Oct
Rest day
Too small: 4 ft at best.
Fri 23 Oct
Rest day
Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 26 of 80.
Sat 24 Oct
Surf Point Sur
Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 6 ft at 7 s, wind 3 kn (6 km/h).
Sun 25 Oct
Travel home
Direct flight ORD to MRY, then 55 min by road. About 7h 20 door to door

Rough cost

About £690–£1,290 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 MRY, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bag	£225–£465
To the UK airport	parking or the train, there and back	£35–£65
Taxi	airport and back, shared	£55–£90
Food	7 days eating out	£260–£480
Board and wetsuit	5 days, or about £85 to fly your own	£115–£190
Total		£690–£1,290

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

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Flights · Skyscanner Car hire · Discover Cars

In the waterAd

Surf lessons · GetYourGuide Board and wetsuit hire · GetYourGuide

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