Tortuga Bay (Playa Brava) surf forecast
Puerto Ayora · Galapagos · Ecuador
Today at Tortuga Bay (Playa Brava): waves 1–1.4 m, chest to head around 07:00 (13 s swell), cross-onshore wind. Fair for intermediate surfers, poor–fair for beginners, poor–fair for advanced. Updated 21 Oct, 15:51 UTC.
Tortuga Bay (Playa Brava) surf forecast, next 7 days
The best daylight hour of each day, rated for each level. No day rates Good for intermediate surfers this week.
| Day | Best | Waves | Wind | Beg. | Int. | Adv. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Today | 07:00 | 1–1.4 m | cross-onshore | Poor–Fair | Fair | Poor–Fair |
| Thu 22 | 09:00 | 0.9–1.3 m | onshore | Poor | Poor–Fair | Poor |
| Fri 23 | 09:00 | 0.8–1.2 m | onshore | Poor | Poor–Fair | Poor |
| Sat 24 | 14:00 | 0.7–1.1 m | onshore | Poor | Poor | Poor |
| Sun 25 | 16:00 | 0.6–1 m | onshore | Poor | Poor | Poor |
| Mon 26 | 06:00 | 0.6–1 m | onshore | Fair | Poor–Fair | Poor |
| Tue 27 | 17:00 | 0.7–1.1 m | onshore | Poor–Fair | Poor–Fair | Poor |
Model forecast updated 21 Oct, 15:51 UTC. Hour by hour with swell direction, tide and webcams: open the live forecast.
Playa Brava, the open beach of Tortuga Bay, is the surf beach of Santa Cruz, at the end of a 2.5 km stone park trail from Puerto Ayora. Sign in and out at the park post at the trailhead; the trail closes in the late afternoon. Swimming is banned here because of strong currents. South swells give soft peaks both ways over sand, with a north wind offshore, though the trades often blow onshore.
- Break
- beach break, peaks both ways; faces SSW
- Level
- intermediate
- Best swell
- S, SW, SE
- Best wind
- N, NE, NW (offshore)
- Best tide
- mid to high tide
- Season
- May-October (south swells)
- Typical size
- 0.5-1.8 m
- Crowd
- low
- Hazards
- strong currents: swimming is banned at Playa Brava; stingrays in the shallows; nesting turtles and marine iguanas on the sand
Nearby spots
- Tongo Reef, Puerto Baquerizo Moreno
- El Cañón, Puerto Baquerizo Moreno
- Carola, Puerto Baquerizo Moreno
- La Lobería, Puerto Baquerizo Moreno
Questions
Is Tortuga Bay (Playa Brava) good for beginners?
It is best for intermediate surfers (strong currents: swimming is banned at playa brava; stingrays in the shallows).
What swell, wind and tide work best at Tortuga Bay (Playa Brava)?
S, SW, SE swell, N, NE, NW wind (offshore), at mid to high tide. Typical size 0.5-1.8 m.
Live swell, wind, tide, a 14-day outlook, satellite pictures and webcams for Tortuga Bay (Playa Brava) are in the Surf Spoting app.