Surf-Forecast | La Puntilla Surf Guide

La Puntilla Surf Guide

La Puntilla in Atacama is a fairly exposed point break that only works when conditions are just right. Winter is the best time of year for surfing here. Offshore winds blow from the southeast. Most of the surf here comes from groundswells and the best swell direction is from the southwest.Surfers ride left hand point. Best around low tide. Sometimes crowded. Be wary of rips - they make surfing here dangerous.

La Puntilla Spot Info

Type:	Rating:	Reliability:	Todays Sea Temp*:
Point	3	inconsistent	18.4°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite

Surfing La Puntilla:

The best conditions reported for surf at La Puntilla occur when a Southwest swell combines with an offshore wind direction from the Southeast.

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

What's the best time of year to surf La Puntilla (for consistent clean waves)?

februaryBest Season: summer

The best time of year for surfing La Puntilla with consistent clean waves (rideable swell with light / offshore winds) is during Summer and most often the month of February. Clean surfable waves are typically found 53% of the time in February while 41% of the time it tends to be blown out. For the remaining 6% of the time it is considered too small by most surfers but may still be OK for beginners and groms at times.

clean

53%

Surfable waves that hold up well for longer rides in prevailing cross-offshore, offshore or light wind conditions.

blown out

41%

Surfable sized waves that are of poorer quality due to prevailing onshore, cross-onshore or windy conditions (may be preferable for kitesurfing).

too small

Waves usually considered too small for good surf. Some wave-magnet breaks may still work though if conditions are right (on occasion).

Explore La Puntilla Location Map

Interactive La Puntilla surf break location map. View information about nearby surf breaks, their wave consistency and rating compared to other spots in the region. Current swell conditions from local buoys are shown along with live wind speed and direction from nearby weather stations. Click icons on the map for more detail. The nearest passenger airport to La Puntilla is Chacalluta (Arica) Airport (ARI) in Chile, which is 13 km (8 miles) away (directly). The second closest airport to La Puntilla is Coronel Fap Carlos Ciriani Santa Rosa (Tacna) Airport (TCQ) in Peru, 46 km (29 miles) away.

Map Icons:
Break
Live Wave Height (m)
Live Wind Speed (km/h)
Surf Rating (10 Max)
Ocean Swells (m)
Wind Speed (km/h)

Please note that some surf spot locations are approximate to protect their exact location while others are not shown at close zoom level.

La Puntilla Surf Forecasts:

Hourly Forecast

16 Day Forecast

Todays Surf Summary
Monday, 8 June 2026, 23:11 Local Time

m, °C	Mon	Tuesday 09
ft, °F	11PM	2AM	5AM	8AM
Wave (m)	SW	SW	SW	SW
Period (s)	15	15	14	14
Wind (km/h)
Wind State	cross- off	glass	glass	glass

Tides at La Puntilla

Current tide and informaton

For Arica, Chile, 2 km from La Puntilla.

Next High Water: 04:05am | 0.81m

Next Low Water: 09:27am | 0.5m

NEXT	IS AT (local time)	remaining
high tide
low tide

La Puntilla Sea Temperature

The La Puntilla water temperature is reasonably warm (18.4 °C) and the air temperature will similar (windchill forecast 17.0 °C). A good quality summer wetsuit would be ideal.

Today, many surfers would wear a summer wetsuit.

Current Temp*: 18.4°C*ocean temperature recorded from satellite