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Golf, UK

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

Also within 20 km of Porthcawl

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

Beach below West Drive, Porthcawl
Golf. Photo: Eirian Evans, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

About Golf

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

The spot faces SW (224°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (44°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–10 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 900 m out (1 in 90). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 8°C in February, its coldest month (5/4 or 6/5, hood, boots and gloves), and 18°C in August, its warmest (2 mm shorty). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually January, February, March and November, with about 1 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Porthcawl, 0.8 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 5 surf spots.

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 16 h 15 door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.

  1. Fly. Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) to CWL, changing at Dublin Airport (DUB). About 7 flights a week that month.

    See flights ORD → CWL · Skyscanner from about £385 returnAd

  2. Getting there. 50 min from the airport to Golf.

    Car hire · Discover CarsAd

  3. Accommodation.

    Stay in PorthcawlAd

    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 Porthcawl · GetYourGuideAdBoard and wetsuit hire in Porthcawl · GetYourGuideAd

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

Golf on Google Maps · Directions

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 intermediates, coloured as on the area pages:GoodFairPoorToo bigToo small

DayScoreSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 18Oct202 ft8 smushy28kJ13°C
Mon 19Oct101 ft13 scrumbling51kJ14°C
Tue 20Oct322 ft10 ssoft86kJ12°C
Wed 21Oct106 ft9 smushy419kJ12°C
Thu 22Oct125 ft7 smushy300kJ13°C
Fri 23Oct175 ft11 ssoft416kJ10°C
Sat 24Oct216 ft8 smushy319kJ14°C
Sun 25Oct52 ft10 smushy57kJ12°C
Mon 26Oct114 ft10 smushy266kJ12°C
Tue 27Oct42 ft12 smushy65kJ13°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

  1. Mon 19 Oct
    Travel out

    Fly ORD to CWL, changing at DUB, then 50 min by road. About 16h 15 door to door

  2. Tue 20 Oct
    Rest day

    Too small: 2 ft at best.

  3. Wed 21 Oct
    Rest day

    Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 14 of 80.

  4. Thu 22 Oct
    Surf Southerndown

    Best 16:00 to 19:00 local time: 5 ft at 7 s, wind 7 kn (12 km/h).

  5. Fri 23 Oct
    Rest day

    Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 32 of 80.

  6. Sat 24 Oct
    Surf Southerndown

    Best 10:00 to 13:00 local time: 5 ft at 7 s, wind 6 kn (12 km/h).

  7. Sun 25 Oct
    Travel home

    Fly ORD to CWL, changing at DUB, then 50 min by road. About 16h 15 door to door

The plan picks the best of 7 spots near Porthcawl each day: Coney Beach, Golf, Rest Bay, Sker, Southerndown, The Esp, The Point.

The trip from Porthcawl, with every spot near it

Rough cost

About £1,055–£1,980 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 CWL, estimated from distance and season, changing at DUB, full-service airlines, with a hold bag£385–£800
To the UK airportparking or the train, there and back£35–£65
Taxiairport and back, shared£45–£80
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, shared£250–£420
Food7 days eating out£240–£445
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about £85 to fly your own£100–£170
Total£1,055–£1,980

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

Places to eat near Porthcawl

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; food hygiene ratings from the Food Standards Agency (Open Government Licence). 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.