Back to results

Wells Beach, United States

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

Also within 20 km of Wells

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

Cottages and bathing beach, looking east from casino, Wells Beach, Maine (66127)
Wells Beach. Photo: Tichnor Brothers, Publisher, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons

About Wells Beach

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

The spot faces SE (121°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (301°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 3–10 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 800 m out (1 in 81). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 5°C in February, its coldest month (5/4 or 6/5, hood, boots and gloves), and 19°C in August, its warmest (2 mm shorty). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually January, February, March and April, with about 1 good days in 7; in June and July, about 0. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Wells, 2.2 km away (about 5 min by car).

Water about 14°C: 4/3 wetsuit and boots. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.

Save this trip A link to come back to, or to send to the group.

Book the trip

From Chicago: about 5 h 20 door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.

  1. Fly. Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) to PWM, direct.

    See flights MDW → PWM · Skyscanner from about £150 returnAd
  2. Getting there. 1 h 05 from the airport to Wells Beach.

  3. Accommodation.

    Stay in WellsAd

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

    Room photos are examples, not these hotels (credits).

    See all places to stay in Wells (ad) 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.

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Forecast

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

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Wells Beach, each day
DayScore for expertsSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 18Oct4, too small1 ft8 scrumbling7kJwind from the west, 4 knots, offshore11°C
Mon 19Oct8, too small2 ft7 smushy42kJwind from the east-south-east, 3 knots12°C
Tue 20Oct34, too small5 ft7 smushy214kJwind from the north-north-east, 5 knots16°C
Wed 21Oct34, too small5 ft6 smushy202kJwind from the north-east, 6 knots13°C
Thu 22Oct47, fair6 ft7 smushy334kJwind from the north-north-west, 5 knots, offshore17°C
Fri 23Oct13, too small2 ft7 smushy61kJwind from the north-west, 9 knots, offshore11°C
Sat 24Oct15, too small3 ft6 smushy57kJwind from the north, 7 knots10°C
Sun 25Oct4, too small1 ft4 smushy4kJwind from the west, 5 knots, offshore16°C
Mon 26Oct4, too small1 ft7 smushy5kJwind from the south, 1 knot20°C
Tue 27Oct3, too small1 ft6 smushy4kJwind from the north, 7 knots12°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

    Direct flight MDW to PWM, then 1h 05 by road. About 5h 20 door to door

  2. Tue 20 Oct
    Surf Wells Beach

    Best 17:00 to 20:00 local time: 5 ft at 7 s, wind 5 kn (10 km/h).

  3. Wed 21 Oct
    Surf Wells Beach

    Best 17:00 to 20:00 local time: 5 ft at 6 s, wind 6 kn (10 km/h).

  4. Thu 22 Oct
    Surf Wells Beach

    Best 08:00 to 11:00 local time: 6 ft at 7 s, offshore wind.

  5. Fri 23 Oct
    Rest day

    Too small: 2 ft at best.

  6. Sat 24 Oct
    Rest day

    Too small: 3 ft at best.

  7. Sun 25 Oct
    Travel home

    Direct flight MDW to PWM, then 1h 05 by road. About 5h 20 door to door

The trip from Wells, with every spot near it

Rough cost

About £905–£1,620 each for 6 nights, 2 people sharing a room. A guide from typical prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book.

Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn MDW to PWM, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bag£150–£305
To the UK airportparking or the train, there and back£35–£65
Taxiairport and back, shared£75–£125
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, shared£270–£455
Food7 days eating out£260–£480
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about £85 to fly your own£115–£190
Total£905–£1,620

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

Places to eat near Wells

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

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