Princeton Breakwater, United States

No town nearby. No stay checked for this site yet: Half Moon Bay, 3 km away, is the nearest town we list. Nearest airport: San Francisco International Airport (SFO), 16 km.

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About Princeton Breakwater

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

The spot faces SW (206°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (26°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits beginners and up. It works in 4–17 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 850 m out (1 in 85). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 12°C in January, its coldest month (4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves), and 16°C in September, its warmest (3/2 wetsuit). No town nearby. No stay checked for this site yet: Half Moon Bay, 3 km away, is the nearest town we list. Nearest airport: San Francisco International Airport (SFO), 16 km. Within 5 km we also list 5 surf spots.

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

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From Chicago: about 6 h 55 door to door, one way. An estimate; the journey never changes the score.

Fly. Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) to San Francisco International Airport (SFO), direct.
See flights MDW → SFO · Skyscanner from about £225 returnAd
Getting there. 35 min from the airport to Princeton Breakwater.
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Accommodation.
No town nearby
No stay checked for this site yet: Half Moon Bay, 3 km away, is the nearest town we list. Nearest airport: San Francisco International Airport (SFO), 16 km.
Hire and lessons.
Surf lessons in Princeton Breakwater · GetYourGuideAd Board and wetsuit hire in Princeton Breakwater · GetYourGuideAd

Everything else for the trip

Where it is

Princeton Breakwater on Google Maps · Directions

Surf spot

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Forecast

Princeton Breakwater does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.

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

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Princeton Breakwater, each day
Day	Scorefor Intermediate	Swell	Energy	Wind	Temp
Mon 19Oct	14, poor	6 ft8 smushy	358kJ	wind from the west, 8 knots	16°C
Tue 20Oct	12, poor	5 ft10 ssoft	472kJ	wind from the east, 3 knots	17°C
Wed 21Oct	49, good	4 ft8 ssoft	247kJ	wind from the south, 2 knots	19°C
Thu 22Oct	24, too small	3 ft7 smushy	91kJ	wind from the north-north-west, 2 knots, offshore	18°C
Fri 23Oct	0, too big	7 ft7 smushy	385kJ	wind from the north-west, 11 knots	18°C
Sat 24Oct	25, poor	5 ft6 smushy	214kJ	wind from the north-west, 2 knots	18°C
Sun 25Oct	43, fair	5 ft8 ssoft	249kJ	wind from the north, 5 knots, offshore	19°C
Mon 26Oct	32, too small	3 ft8 ssoft	132kJ	wind from the east-north-east, 5 knots, offshore	24°C
Tue 27Oct	11, too small	2 ft7 smushy	52kJ	wind from the south, 6 knots	22°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 Tue 20 Oct, leaving from Chicago, for intermediate surfers. Change dates

Tue 20 Oct
Travel out
Direct flight MDW to SFO, then 35 min by road. About 6h 55 door to door
Wed 21 Oct
Surf Princeton Breakwater
Best 11:00 to 14:00 local time: 4 ft at 8 s, wind 2 kn (3 km/h).
Thu 22 Oct
Rest day
Too small: 3 ft at best.
Fri 23 Oct
Rest day
Nothing worth paddling out for: the best window scores 0 of 80.
Sat 24 Oct
Surf Princeton Breakwater
Best 11:00 to 14:00 local time: 5 ft at 6 s, wind 2 kn (4 km/h).
Sun 25 Oct
Surf Princeton Breakwater
Best 14:00 to 17:00 local time: 5 ft at 8 s, offshore wind.
Mon 26 Oct
Travel home
Direct flight MDW to SFO, then 35 min by road. About 6h 55 door to door

Rough cost

About £660–£1,250 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 MDW to SFO, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bag	£225–£470
To the UK airport	parking or the train, there and back	£35–£65
Taxi	airport and back, shared	£25–£45
Food	7 days eating out	£260–£480
Board and wetsuit	5 days, or about £85 to fly your own	£115–£190
Total		£660–£1,250

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

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