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Porthtowan, UK

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

Also within 20 km of Porthtowan

All 20 on Porthtowan's map

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Lands End, Cape Cornwall, Brisons - aerial photo
Cornwall, the wider area. Photo: Tom Corser, CC BY-SA 2.0 uk, Wikimedia Commons

About Porthtowan

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

The spot faces NW (311°), so it takes swell from the NW. The wind blows offshore from the SE (131°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–9 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves steeply: 10 m deep about 150 m out (1 in 17). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 10°C in February, its coldest month (4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves), and 17°C in August, its warmest (3/2 wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best month is usually April, with about 2 good days in 7; in July, about 0. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Porthtowan, 0.6 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 2 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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Book the trip

From Chicago: about 16 h 20 door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.

  1. Fly. Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) to NQY, changing at Dublin Airport (DUB).

    See flights ORD → NQY · Skyscanner from about £380 returnAd

  2. Getting there. 45 min from the airport to Porthtowan.

    Car hire · Discover CarsAd

  3. Accommodation.

    Stay in PorthtowanAd

    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 Porthtowan · GetYourGuideAdBoard and wetsuit hire in Porthtowan · GetYourGuideAd

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

Porthtowan on Google Maps · Directions

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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

DayScoreSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 18Oct102 ft8 shollow64kJ12°C
Mon 19Oct274 ft12 shollow340kJ12°C
Tue 20Oct314 ft10 shollow349kJ14°C
Wed 21Oct187 ft10 smushy982kJ12°C
Thu 22Oct527 ft8 scrumbling690kJ13°C
Fri 23Oct178 ft11 smushy1,220kJ12°C
Sat 24Oct318 ft8 scrumbling676kJ14°C
Sun 25Oct104 ft10 shollow250kJ14°C
Mon 26Oct228 ft8 smushy673kJ16°C
Tue 27Oct144 ft10 shollow254kJ15°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 NQY, changing at DUB, then 45 min by road. About 16h 20 door to door

  2. Tue 20 Oct
    Rest day

    Too small: 4 ft at best.

  3. Wed 21 Oct
    Rest day

    Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 18 of 80.

  4. Thu 22 Oct
    Surf Porthtowan

    Best 16:00 to 19:00 local time: 7 ft at 8 s, offshore wind.

  5. Fri 23 Oct
    Rest day

    Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 19 of 80.

  6. Sat 24 Oct
    Surf Porthtowan

    Best 13:00 to 16:00 local time: 8 ft at 8 s, wind 12 kn (22 km/h).

  7. Sun 25 Oct
    Travel home

    Fly ORD to NQY, changing at DUB, then 45 min by road. About 16h 20 door to door

The plan picks the best of 2 spots near Porthtowan each day: Chapel Porth, Porthtowan.

The trip from Porthtowan, with every spot near it

Rough cost

About £1,050–£1,970 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 NQY, estimated from distance and season, changing at DUB, full-service airlines, with a hold bag£380–£795
To the UK airportparking or the train, there and back£35–£65
Taxiairport and back, shared£45–£75
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£1,050–£1,970

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

Places to eat near Porthtowan

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

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