Reef
both
Level 6/10

Popoyo

Rivas, Nicaragua
🪸Sharp reef🦔Urchins

Popoyo is Nicaragua's flagship surf destination—a reef break that catches virtually every SW swell and offers multiple peaks to choose from. The setup is perfect for a surf trip: consistent waves, warm water, offshore morning winds, and a growing infrastructure of surf camps and restaurants. The reef produces both left and right options, with the outer reef getting heavier and hollower. This is where Central American surf trips often begin and end.

10-Day Forecast
Today
21
58
Fair
1.3m
@13s
20km/h
Mon
22
47
Fair
1.3m
@13s
20km/h
Tue
23
67
Good
1.3m
@15s
27km/h
Wed
24
52
Fair
1.3m
@14s
27km/h
Thu
25
56
Fair
1.2m
@14s
25km/h
Fri
26
61
Fair
1.1m
@14s
22km/h
Sat
27
62
Fair
1.2m
@14s
22km/h
Sun
28
61
Fair
1.1m
@14s
24km/h
Mon
29
43
Poor
0.9m
@13s
22km/h
Tue
30
40
Poor
0.7m
@13s
24km/h

Today's Conditions

Find Flights
Groomed
Clean faces from offshore winds
Swell
1.3m
SW(221°)
Score: 9/25
Period
13s
Medium period swell
Score: 8/25
Wind
20km/h
ENE(68°)
Score: 19/25
Weather
29°C
0.3mm66%
Windswell Component
0.4mENE@2s
Secondary Swell
0.1mESE
Forecast Confidence
100%
Sources: open-meteo-marine, open-meteo-weather
Best Session
morning
AM: 18 km/h ENE|PM: 21 km/h ENE
Lighter winds early (18 km/h)
Tide at 7am (1.5m)

Location & Conditions

Loading map...
0°45°90°135°180°225°270°315°NESW
Swell
Wind
View in OpenStreetMap
Showing forecast for today

Tide Times

12:43 am
Low tide - -0.57m
7:09 am
High tide - 1.54m
1:17 pm
Low tide - -0.32m
7:24 pm
High tide - 1.36m
Times shown in spot-local time.

Strike Score Breakdown

58
Fair
Components
Swell Direction17/25
Swell Size9/25
Swell Period8/25
Wind19/25
Raw Score53/100
Adjustments
Wind History+6
🌊 Tide+5
📉 Undersized Swell-6
Adjusted Score58/100
Confidence
Multiplier×1.00
Final Score58
✨ Groomed🌊 Optimal tide window
For real surf travel

Get the full Popoyo trip window

Pro unlocks the 10-day forecast window, unlimited alerts, and custom spot tracking that help turn a good-looking surf report into a better travel decision.

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.

Spot Details

Swell Requirements

Optimal direction
SSW (210°)
Direction range
180° - 250°
Size range
1m - 3.5m
Ideal size
2.9m
Height multiplier
0.97×
Ideal period
16s+

Wind Requirements

Optimal direction
NE (45°)
Offshore range
0° - 90°

Tide Requirements

Optimal tide
mid
Optimal range
0.5m - 1.8m

Water temp

28°C

Wetsuit

Boardshorts / Rashguard

Difficulty

6/10

Crowd level

5/10

Best Season

Peak: Apr-Oct

SW swell season. Offshore winds most mornings.

Getting There

Airport
MGA
Drive time
120 min
Data quality
verified

🤙 Strike Specialist

The Strike Specialist in Nicaragua is Sea Nicaragua Travel. Get in touch with them for the best chance of scoring the best waves in Nicaragua — and don't forget to tell 'em Barrel D sent ya.

Strike Log

Community Discussion