Costa Banderas Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright folks, Rusty here. Costa Banderas is a reef setup, and it loves a good WNW swell direction, but we’re looking at a bit of a slow start this week. The water is sitting at a toasty 88.5°F, which is a good 4.7°F warmer than usual for this time of year, so you’ll be surfing in a warm bath.

This first stretch is a bit of a struggle. The swell is tiny, just 1.3ft to 2.3ft from the SSW, which is way off the preferred direction. The energy is weak to moderate, hovering around the 100 to 200 mark (196). It’s surfable but very ordinary. The best of the early action is Sunday morning, July 12th, with a light offshore breeze and clean 2.0ft waves. It’s not going to get your heart racing, but it’s a paddle.

The mid-week gets even smaller, dropping to 1.0ft and 1.3ft. Wednesday morning, July 15th, is glassy with a long-period 18-second groundswell, but it’s barely a ripple. The break is consistent, so it won’t stay this flat for long, but it's a quiet spell.

Now, hold on. The real story starts on the weekend of July 18th. Saturday morning, the combined energy jumps to 405 (moderate), and the swell bumps up to 1.6ft from the SW. The wind is light and cross-off, keeping things clean. It’s still small, but the energy is building. Sunday morning, July 19th, is a standout early call: glassy conditions, long-period 17-second swell at 2.3ft, and the energy is cranking at 428. That’s a super clean session for the patient surfer.

But the big one is coming. Tuesday, July 21st, is the pick of the entire outlook. The morning brings a solid 5.6ft SSW swell with a 12-second period and 988 energy. By the afternoon, it’s a powerful 7.9ft SW swell with 2040 energy. The wind is cross-off and light. This is proper, clean surf. The wave direction is matching the optimum swell direction, and the reef will handle the long-period groundswell beautifully. This is the day to clear your schedule.

Wednesday, July 22nd, sees the swell surge to 11.5ft and 13.1ft. That’s too big for this break, even for the experts. The energy is 5438, which is extreme. The conditions are clean, but the size is a serious hazard. Only the most experienced chargers should even look at it.

The follow-up on Thursday, July 23rd, is still big and powerful at 8.2ft, but it’s clean and excellent for experienced surfers. The energy is still huge at 1816. The swell direction shifts to WSW, which is a bit off the mark, but the quality is undeniable.

The final run from July 24th to the 25th drops back to a much more manageable 3.6ft to 5.2ft. The energy is still moderate to strong (695 to 315), and the winds stay cross-off. It’s a solid, fun end to the run.

The big winner here is Tuesday, July 21st, with the afternoon pushing into expert territory. The glassy Sunday morning of July 19th is a close second for a clean, long-period session.

Read more