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Samil, Spain

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

Also within 20 km of Vigo

Watch this spot We email you when Samil is worth the trip.

Playa samil
Samil. Photo: JMSE (Jsanchezes), Public domain, Wikimedia Commons

About Samil

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

The spot faces W (280°), so it takes swell from the W. The wind blows offshore from the E (100°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 5–20 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves moderately: 10 m deep about 350 m out (1 in 37). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would crumble. The sea is about 14°C in January, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 17°C in June, its warmest (3/2 wetsuit). The town to stay in is Vigo, 5.6 km away (about 10 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 3 surf spots and 1 wind sports spot.

Water about 16°C: 3/2 wetsuit. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

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Book the trip

From Chicago: about 17 h 20 door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.

  1. Fly. Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) to VGO, changing at Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (MAD). About 7 flights a week that month.

    See flights ORD → VGO · Skyscanner from about £390 returnAd

  2. Getting there. 35 min from the airport to Samil.

    Car hire · Discover CarsAd

  3. Accommodation.

    Stay in VigoAd

    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 →

    Closest towns to stay in

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

  4. Hire and lessons.

    Surf lessons in Vigo · GetYourGuideAdBoard and wetsuit hire in Vigo · GetYourGuideAd

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

Samil on Google Maps · Directions

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Forecast

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

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

DayScoreExpertSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 18Oct173 ft10 scrumbling130kJ19°C
Mon 19Oct243 ft14 scrumbling328kJ17°C
Tue 20Oct365 ft11 scrumbling506kJ14°C
Wed 21Oct597 ft8 ssoft642kJ15°C
Thu 22Oct447 ft9 ssoft648kJ15°C
Fri 23Oct5310 ft10 ssoft1,622kJ15°C
Sat 24Oct597 ft9 ssoft623kJ15°C
Sun 25Oct368 ft8 smushy762kJ16°C
Mon 26Oct417 ft8 smushy560kJ17°C
Tue 27Oct336 ft7 smushy372kJ17°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

  1. Mon 19 Oct
    Travel out

    Fly ORD to VGO, changing at MAD, then 35 min by road. About 17h 20 door to door

  2. Tue 20 Oct
    Surf El Portillon

    Best 11:00 to 14:00 local time: 5 ft at 11 s, wind 4 kn (8 km/h).

  3. Wed 21 Oct
    Surf El Portillon

    Best 11:00 to 14:00 local time: 8 ft at 8 s, wind 2 kn (3 km/h).

  4. Thu 22 Oct
    Surf El Portillon

    Best 11:00 to 14:00 local time: 7 ft at 9 s, wind 6 kn (12 km/h).

  5. Fri 23 Oct
    Surf Samil

    Best 11:00 to 14:00 local time: 10 ft at 10 s, wind 5 kn (10 km/h).

  6. Sat 24 Oct
    Surf El Portillon

    Best 11:00 to 14:00 local time: 8 ft at 9 s, wind 0 kn (1 km/h).

  7. Sun 25 Oct
    Travel home

    Fly ORD to VGO, changing at MAD, then 35 min by road. About 17h 20 door to door

The plan picks the best of 4 spots near Vigo each day: El Portillon, La Buraca, Samil, Toraya.

The trip from Vigo, with every spot near it

Rough cost

About £880–£1,675 each for 6 nights, 2 people sharing a room. A guide from typical prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book.

WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to VGO, estimated from distance and season, changing at MAD, full-service airlines, with a hold bag£390–£810
To the UK airportparking or the train, there and back£35–£65
Taxiairport and back, shared£20–£35
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, shared£185–£310
Food7 days eating out£175–£330
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about £85 to fly your own£75–£125
Total£880–£1,675

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

Places to eat near Vigo

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

Book the trip

Getting thereAd

Flights · Skyscanner Car hire · Discover Cars

Where to stayAd

Places to stay · Booking.com

In the waterAd

Surf lessons · GetYourGuide Board and wetsuit hire · GetYourGuide

Links marked Ad may pay us a small commission if you book. You pay the same price, and it never changes a score.