WaveSearch

Montañita

Santa Elena · Intermediate Fair
1.2m
5/10
11s 7 km/h
Montañita - surf spot in Santa Elena

About Montañita

Montañita is the surf capital of Ecuador and one of the most vibrant, bohemian towns on the Pacific coast, located in the Santa Elena province. Its wave is a famous right-hand point break that offers long, consistent rides, ideal for intermediate surfers, and that has drawn an international surf community for decades. Beyond the waves, Montañita is synonymous with parties, music and nightlife, with streets full of restaurants, bars, surf shops and travelers from all over the world. The water is warm all year round, which allows surfing in boardshorts, and its best swell season runs from December to May. Its unique combination of quality waves and festive atmosphere makes it a must-stop of South American surfing. For those seeking good rights, energy and an international scene, Montañita is the heart of Ecuadorian surfing.

Characteristics

Level
Requires basic paddling and pop-up skills. Moderate power.
· 📅 December to May (swell season) ·
Surface
Type of seabed where the waves break.
·
Direction
Direction the wave breaks as seen from the water.

Sports, Services & Access

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-1.8285°, -80.7509° Santa Elena

Montañita — Santa Elena

Current Conditions

Updated 19/10/2026 00:03

Fair
5/10

Waves

1.2m

10.2s period

Primary Swell

1.0m

11.0s SW

Wind

7 km/h

Gusts 19 km/h SSW

Secondary Swell

0.6m

4.2s SW

Temp.

28.4°C

🩳 Boardshorts

UV

0.0

Low

Visibility

3.7 km

Poor

Sun & Moon

☀️
↑ 06:03
↓ 18:12
🌙
↑ 13:13
↓ 00:54
🌗 First Quarter

Neap tides

Tide

Falling

Low Tide 03:00 - 0.69m

Best Time to Surf Today

11:00 - 14:00

🌊 1.1m 💨 4 km/h
Good 6.3/10 avg.

Today's Tides

Low Tide

03:00

0.69m

High Tide

09:00

1.30m

Low Tide

15:23

0.54m

High Tide

22:10

1.42m

Weekly Summary

Today

1.0m-1.2m

11s

SW SW SW
7 km/h
🌗

Tomorrow

1.0m-1.2m

11s

SW SW SW
9 km/h
🌗

Wed

1.1m-1.2m

11s

SW SW SW
3 km/h
🌖

Thu

1.1m-1.2m

12s

SW SW SW
5 km/h
🌖

Fri

1.2m-1.3m

10s

SW SW SW
7 km/h
🌖

Sat

1.0m-1.1m

8s

SW SW SW
8 km/h
🌖

Sun

0.8m-1.0m

8s

SW SW SW
7 km/h
🌕

Mon

0.7m-0.8m

9s

SSW SSW SSW
7 km/h
🌕

Tue

0.7m-0.8m

12s

SSW SSW SSW
4 km/h
🌕

Wed

0.0m-0.0m

4 km/h
🌔

Thu

0.0m-0.0m

1 km/h
🌔

Day Block Forecast

Tides: 03:00 (0.69m) 09:00 (1.30m) 15:23 (0.54m) 22:10 (1.42m)
Morning Good

1.1m - 1.2m

224° SW
Period: 11s
6 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.6m 4s
⚡ 72 kJ
Midday Good

1.1m - 1.1m

223° SW
Period: 10s
4 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.5m 11s
⚡ 59 kJ
Afternoon Good

1.0m - 1.1m

223° SW
Period: 11s
8 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.5m 10s
⚡ 59 kJ
At night Good

1.1m - 1.2m

224° SW
Period: 11s
7 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.5m 6s
⚡ 72 kJ
Tides: 04:23 (0.70m) 10:30 (1.32m) 16:43 (0.59m) 23:20 (1.55m)
Morning Good

1.1m - 1.1m

222° SW
Period: 11s
8 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.2m 14s
⚡ 72 kJ
Midday Poor

1.1m - 1.1m

222° SW
Period: 11s
14 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.2m 19s
⚡ 72 kJ
Afternoon Good

1.2m - 1.2m

222° SW
Period: 11s
15 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.3m 18s
⚡ 86 kJ
At night Good

1.1m - 1.2m

223° SW
Period: 11s
6 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.3m 12s
⚡ 72 kJ
Tides: 05:42 (0.66m) 11:42 (1.46m) 17:50 (0.57m)
Morning Epic

1.1m - 1.1m

223° SW
Period: 10s
3 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.6m 15s
⚡ 59 kJ
Midday Epic

1.1m - 1.1m

223° SW
Period: 11s
6 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.7m 13s
⚡ 72 kJ
Afternoon Epic

1.1m - 1.1m

223° SW
Period: 12s
6 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.6m 12s
⚡ 86 kJ
At night Epic

1.2m - 1.2m

223° SW
Period: 11s
2 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.6m 13s
⚡ 86 kJ
Tides: 00:13 (1.69m) 06:42 (0.48m) 12:39 (1.56m) 18:39 (0.46m)
Morning Good

1.2m - 1.2m

221° SW
Period: 12s
2 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.4m 8s
⚡ 102 kJ
Midday Fair

1.2m - 1.2m

221° SW
Period: 12s
12 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.4m 8s
⚡ 102 kJ
Afternoon Fair

1.2m - 1.2m

221° SW
Period: 11s
8 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.4m 6s
⚡ 86 kJ
At night Good

1.2m - 1.2m

220° SW
Period: 12s
4 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.5m 7s
⚡ 102 kJ
Tides: 00:57 (1.83m) 07:17 (0.31m) 13:20 (1.74m) 19:23 (0.36m)
Morning Good

1.3m - 1.3m

220° SW
Period: 11s
4 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.7m 4s
⚡ 100 kJ
Midday Poor

1.3m - 1.3m

219° SW
Period: 11s
14 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.8m 5s
⚡ 100 kJ
Afternoon Fair

1.3m - 1.3m

219° SW
Period: 9s
9 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.8m 7s
⚡ 67 kJ
At night Good

1.2m - 1.3m

220° SW
Period: 11s
5 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.7m 6s
⚡ 86 kJ
Tides: 01:33 (1.95m) 07:53 (0.15m) 14:01 (1.88m) 20:02 (0.23m)
Morning Fair

1.1m - 1.1m

214° SW
Period: 8s
5 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.6m 9s
⚡ 38 kJ
Midday Poor

1.1m - 1.1m

217° SW
Period: 6s
14 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.7m 10s
⚡ 21 kJ
Afternoon Poor

1.1m - 1.1m

218° SW
Period: 7s
13 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.6m 9s
⚡ 29 kJ
At night Fair

1.1m - 1.1m

214° SW
Period: 9s
5 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.5m 7s
⚡ 48 kJ
Morning Fair

0.9m - 0.9m

213° SSW
Period: 9s
4 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.4m 5s
⚡ 32 kJ
Midday Poor

0.9m - 0.9m

211° SSW
Period: 8s
10 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.4m 7s
⚡ 25 kJ
Afternoon Fair

0.8m - 0.8m

209° SSW
Period: 8s
9 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.4m 10s
⚡ 20 kJ
At night Fair

0.9m - 1.0m

214° SW
Period: 8s
7 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.5m 7s
⚡ 25 kJ
Morning Fair

0.7m - 0.7m

211° SSW
Period: 8s
5 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.3m 14s
⚡ 15 kJ
Midday Fair

0.7m - 0.7m

211° SSW
Period: 8s
12 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.2m 16s
⚡ 15 kJ
Afternoon Fair

0.7m - 0.7m

211° SSW
Period: 9s
10 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.3m 15s
⚡ 19 kJ
At night Fair

0.7m - 0.8m

211° SSW
Period: 9s
5 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.3m 12s
⚡ 19 kJ
Morning Good

0.7m - 0.7m

224° SW
Period: 12s
3 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.4m 11s
⚡ 35 kJ
Midday Fair

0.7m - 0.7m

224° SW
Period: 13s
7 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.4m 9s
⚡ 41 kJ
Afternoon Fair

0.7m - 0.8m

223° SW
Period: 14s
6 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.4m 9s
⚡ 47 kJ
At night Good

0.7m - 0.7m

213° SSW
Period: 12s
4 km/h
Secondary Swell: 0.3m 14s
⚡ 35 kJ
Morning Poor

0.0m - 0.0m

Period: 0s
4 km/h
Midday Poor

0.0m - 0.0m

Period: 0s
8 km/h
Afternoon Poor

0.0m - 0.0m

Period: 0s
7 km/h
At night Poor

0.0m - 0.0m

Period: 0s
3 km/h
Morning
Midday
Afternoon
At night Poor

0.0m - 0.0m

Period: 0s
1 km/h

Hourly Forecast

Open-Meteo Copernicus
Showing 6 of 240 hours
Hour Waves Period Swell Dir. Wind Secondary Swell Tertiary Swell Current UV Vis. Tide Rating
Mon 19 Oct 02:00 1.2m 10s 1.0m / 11s SW 11 km/h 0.5m / 5s SW - - 0.0 5.8 km 0.73m
3
Mon 19 Oct 03:00 1.2m 10s 1.0m / 11s SW 7 km/h 0.6m / 4s SW - - 0.0 3.7 km -
5
Mon 19 Oct 04:00 1.2m 10s 1.0m / 11s SW 8 km/h 0.6m / 4s SW - - 0.0 10+ km 0.73m
5
Mon 19 Oct 05:00 1.2m 10s 1.0m / 11s SW 10 km/h 0.6m / 4s SW - - 0.0 5.8 km 0.85m
5
Mon 19 Oct 06:00 1.2m 10s 0.9m / 11s SW 7 km/h 0.6m / 4s SW - 0.10 m/s 0.0 4.3 km 0.99m
5
Mon 19 Oct 07:00 1.2m 10s 0.9m / 11s SW 5 km/h 0.7m / 4s SW - - 0.1 3.5 km 1.14m
5

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Surf information for Montañita

Montañita is a Intermediate level surf spot located in Santa Elena, Ecuador. The bottom surface is arena y roca. The best season to surf is December to May (swell season).

Today's conditions at Montañita

Right now, Montañita has waves of about 1.2m with a swell period of 11 seconds and SSW (7 km/h) wind. These conditions are updated every 3 hours with the latest forecast.

At Montañita you can practice surf, bodyboard and longboard.

Water temperature and wetsuit

The water at Montañita is around 29 °C, so boardshorts or a rash guard is recommended.

Frequently asked questions about surfing at Montañita

Is the wave at Montañita a left or a right?
The wave at Montañita breaks mainly to the right.
What level do you need to surf at Montañita?
Montañita is a spot recommended for intermediate surfers.
What is the best season to surf at Montañita?
The best season to surf at Montañita is December to May (swell season).
Where is Montañita located?
Montañita is located in Santa Elena, Peru.
What is the water temperature at Montañita?
The water is around 29 °C, so boardshorts or a rash guard is recommended.

Sports, services & how to get there

Sports

surf bodyboard longboard

Other surf spots in Santa Elena

Surf Spots in Santa Elena

Condition Scoring

Rating Algorithm 1-10

Each forecast hour receives a score from 1 to 10, calculated by adding points for different factors:

Wave Height (0-4 pts)

< 0.5m = 0 pts | 0.5-1.0m = 1 pt | 1.0-1.5m = 2 pts | 1.5-2.5m = 3 pts | > 2.5m = 4 pts

Dominant Period (-1 to 3 pts)

Uses the dominant/peak period (wave_period). < 8s = -1 pt (wind swell, messy) | 8-10s = 0 pts | 10-12s = 1 pt | 12-16s = 2 pts | > 16s = 3 pts

Wind (-2 to +2 pts)

Glassy (< 5 km/h): +2. Light wind (5-10 km/h): +1. Moderate wind (10-20 km/h): offshore +1, onshore -1. Strong wind (> 20 km/h): onshore -2, offshore -1. Wind data covers the full 15-day forecast window.

Secondary Swell (-1 to +1 pt)

If a secondary swell with height ≥ 0.3m and long period (≥ 10s) exists, +1 point is added. If the period is short (< 10s) and direction differs > 45° from the primary swell, -1 point penalty for crossed seas. If directions are similar (≤ 45°), no penalty is applied.

Rating by score:

Flat (1) Poor (2-3) Fair (4-5) Good (6-7) Epic (8-10)
View full methodology
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