Shirahama, Japan

No town nearby. No bookable town within 50 km: the nearest, Amagasaki, is 282 km away. Nearest airport: KCZ (KCZ), 76 km.

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About Shirahama

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

The spot faces SE (120°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (300°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up, because of a steep sea floor. It works in 2–9 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves steeply: 10 m deep about 100 m out (1 in 11). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 17°C in February, its coldest month (3/2 wetsuit), and 28°C in August, its warmest (no wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually April, October and November, with about 2 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. No town nearby. No bookable town within 50 km: the nearest, Amagasaki, is 282 km away. Nearest airport: KCZ (KCZ), 76 km. Within 5 km we also list 1 surf spot.

Water about 26°C: no wetsuit. 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 O'Hare International Airport (ORD) to HIJ, changing at Hong Kong International Airport (HKG).
See flights ORD → HIJ · Skyscanner from about £605 returnAd
Getting there. 3 h from the airport to Shirahama.
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Accommodation.
No town nearby
No bookable town within 50 km: the nearest, Amagasaki, is 282 km away. Nearest airport: KCZ (KCZ), 76 km.
Hire and lessons.
Surf lessons in Shirahama · GetYourGuideAd Board and wetsuit hire in Shirahama · GetYourGuideAd

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

Shirahama 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 Shirahama, each day
Day	Score for experts	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Sun 18Oct	16, too small	4 ft6 shollow	99kJ	wind from the north-east, 7 knots	24°C
Mon 19Oct	30, too small	5 ft6 shollow	177kJ	wind from the south-east, 4 knots	24°C
Tue 20Oct	25, too small	4 ft6 shollow	130kJ	wind from the south-east, 3 knots	26°C
Wed 21Oct	54, good	7 ft11 shollow	926kJ	wind from the north-west, 16 knots, offshore	27°C
Thu 22Oct	59, good	7 ft10 shollow	1,054kJ	wind from the south-south-east, 3 knots	22°C
Fri 23Oct	28, too small	5 ft10 shollow	442kJ	wind from the north-east, 9 knots	21°C
Sat 24Oct	32, too small	5 ft9 shollow	428kJ	wind from the north-north-east, 9 knots	23°C
Sun 25Oct	22, too small	4 ft7 shollow	129kJ	wind from the east-north-east, 2 knots	24°C
Mon 26Oct	17, too small	3 ft7 shollow	87kJ	wind from the south-south-east, 1 knot	25°C
Tue 27Oct	14, too small	3 ft5 shollow	38kJ	wind from the west-south-west, 5 knots	28°C
Wed 28Oct	0, poor	–	–	–	–

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
Fly ORD to HIJ, changing at HKG, then 3h by road. About 29h 45 door to door
Tue 20 Oct
Rest day
Too small: 4 ft at best.
Wed 21 Oct
Surf Shirahama
Best 18:00 to 21:00 local time: 7 ft at 11 s, offshore wind.
Thu 22 Oct
Surf Shirahama
Best 12:00 to 15:00 local time: 7 ft at 10 s, wind 3 kn (6 km/h).
Fri 23 Oct
Surf Shirahama
Best 12:00 to 15:00 local time: 5 ft at 10 s, wind 9 kn (17 km/h).
Sat 24 Oct
Rest day
Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 35 of 80.
Sun 25 Oct
Travel home
Fly ORD to HIJ, changing at HKG, then 3h by road. About 29h 45 door to door

Rough cost

About £930–£1,830 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 HIJ, estimated from distance and season, changing at HKG, full-service airlines, with a hold bag	£605–£1,255
To the UK airport	parking or the train, there and back	£35–£65
Hire car	6 days, shared	£70–£115
Food	7 days eating out	£155–£290
Board and wetsuit	5 days, or about £85 to fly your own	£65–£105
Total		£930–£1,830

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

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