Best Surf Trips from Reno
Tahoe skiers and Reno travelers can use RNO, SFO, and the forecast to chase better surf.
15 spots featured
Reno and Tahoe are packed with people who already live around conditions: storm cycles, wind holds, road windows, and last-minute calls. Surf travel rewards the same kind of patience.
California is the closest option, but it is not always the best one. Mexico can be a stronger value play, Hawaii becomes attractive when the North Pacific lights up, and Costa Rica is the warm-water consistency option when a full week is available.
The move from Reno is to avoid overcommitting to one coast. Let the forecast decide whether this is a California strike, a Mexico run, or a longer tropical mission.
Know when it’s about to fire
Get the best 2-day & 5-day strike windows worldwide in your inbox every Monday & Thursday. Live Strike Scores, the swell behind them, zero fluff.
USA(5 spots)
Pipeline
North Shore, Oahu, USA
Pipeline is the proving ground of professional surfing—a shallow, left-breaking barrel that has defined generations of surfers. The wave breaks just 75 yards from the beach over a...
Sunset Beach
North Shore, Oahu, USA
Sunset Beach is one of surfing's most revered and challenging waves—a football-field-sized playing field of shifting peaks and deep-water power. West Peak is the classic heavy...
Makaha
West Shore, Oahu, USA
Makaha is Hawaii's original big wave spot—the place where big wave surfing was pioneered before Waimea Bay. Multiple sections (Point, Bowl, Blowhole, Inside Reef) offer different...
Lower Trestles
San Clemente, USA
Lower Trestles is the world standard for high-performance surfing—a cobblestone point break in San Clemente that produces perfect, rippable waves with mechanical consistency. The...
The Wedge
Newport Beach, USA
The Wedge is one of surfing's most terrifying freaks of nature—a shore break in Newport Beach where swell reflects off a jetty, doubling in size and creating massive, violent...
Don't watch 15 spots yourself — get the winners by email
Get the best 2-day & 5-day strike windows worldwide in your inbox every Monday & Thursday. Live Strike Scores, the swell behind them, zero fluff.
Mexico(5 spots)
Zicatela (Puerto Escondido)
Zicatela Beach, Oaxaca, Mexico
Puerto Escondido is the "Mexican Pipeline"—a brutally powerful beach break on Oaxaca's Pacific coast that produces some of the heaviest closeout tubes outside of Pipeline itself....
Killers (Isla Todos Santos)
Isla Todos Santos, Mexico
Killers at Isla Todos Santos is the West Coast's answer to Mavericks and Jaws—a world-class big wave spot where underwater canyons focus and amplify winter swells to terrifying...
Todos Santos (Killers)
8mi off Ensenada, Mexico
Todos Santos (Killers) is Mexico's answer to Jaws—a powerful right-hand point break on an island 8 miles off Ensenada that's been designated a World Surfing Reserve. An underwater...
La Punta
Puerto Escondido, Mexico
La Punta is Puerto Escondido's friendly alternative—a mellow left-hand point break at the southern end of the beach, offering an escape from the Mexican Pipeline's terrifying...
Sayulita
Nayarit, Mexico
Sayulita is Mexico's surf town sensation—a once-sleepy fishing village that has transformed into the country's most popular beginner surf destination. The right-hand point break...
Costa Rica(5 spots)
Witch's Rock
Guanacaste, Costa Rica
Witch's Rock is Costa Rica's most famous wave—a perfect A-frame beach break inside Santa Rosa National Park that gained worldwide fame in Endless Summer II. Getting here requires...
Pavones
Puntarenas, Costa Rica
Pavones is one of the longest left-hand point breaks in the world—a legendary wave in remote southern Costa Rica that can run for 800+ meters when conditions align. Getting here...
Salsa Brava
Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica
Salsa Brava translates to "angry sauce," and this Caribbean reef break lives up to its name - the heaviest wave in Costa Rica. When E-NE Caribbean swells hit during winter, Salsa...
Playa Negra
Guanacaste, Costa Rica
Playa Negra is Guanacaste's reef break crown jewel—a long, peeling left that offers some of the most consistent quality surf on Costa Rica's Pacific coast. The wave breaks over a...
Santa Teresa
Puntarenas, Costa Rica
Santa Teresa is Costa Rica's open secret that's no longer much of a secret—a once-remote beach town that has blossomed into a world-class surf destination with the yoga studios...
Use the full 10-day window before you book
Strike Mission Pro unlocks the longer forecast window, unlimited alerts, and custom spots that matter most when this guide turns into a paid surf trip.
10-day window
See the trip window before flights get expensive.
Unlimited alerts
Let the app watch your score threshold for you.
Custom spots
Track the breaks that actually matter to your travel plans.
Related Guides
Best Surf Trips from San Francisco
From cold Ocean Beach sessions to tropical perfection. The best surf trips out of SFO.
Best Surf Trips from Sacramento
Sacramento sits between Tahoe culture and SMF flight access, which is a strong surf-trip base.
Where to Surf in the Next 10 Days
The forecast-led way to choose a surf destination before the flight window closes.
See live forecasts for these spots
Open the Strike Mission dashboard for real-time conditions, 10-day forecasts, and Strike Scores across 1,100+ spots worldwide.