# UK surf regions: where to surf around Britain > Surf travel guides to 11 UK surf regions and 203 breaks: the best months, what each coast is good and bad at, live forecasts for every spot and how to get there. - Page type: Regional surf guide - Canonical URL: https://swellotter.com/region - Last updated: 2026-11-09 - Home - Regions Surf travel guides UK surf regions Every stretch of UK coast we forecast, from Cornish beachbreaks to Scottish reefs. Pick a region for its best months, its breaks and how to get there. All spot guides →Today's forecasts → By Tom Otto · Updated 8 November 2026 Regions11 Breaks forecast203 Spot guides13 UpdatedHourly Search AllEnglandWalesScotlandNorthern IrelandChannel Islands Nothing matches. Try another word or chip. ## England - Cornwall ### Cornwall surf guide England · 40 breaks · Best in Jan, Feb, Mar - Devon ### Devon surf guide England · 14 breaks · Best in Jan, Feb, Mar - South Coast ### South Coast surf guide England · 16 breaks · Best in Jan, Mar, Nov - East Anglia ### East Anglia surf guide England · 8 breaks · Best in Jan, Oct, Nov - Yorkshire ### Yorkshire surf guide England · 11 breaks · Best in Mar, Oct, Nov - North East England ### North East England surf guide England · 17 breaks · Best in Jan, Mar, Nov - North West England ### North West England surf guide England · 4 breaks · Best in Jan, Nov, Dec ## Wales - Wales ### Wales surf guide Wales · 36 breaks · Best in Jan, Mar, Nov ## Scotland - Scotland ### Scotland surf guide Scotland · 39 breaks · Best in Mar, Nov, Dec ## Northern Ireland - Northern Ireland ### Northern Ireland surf guide Northern Ireland · 10 breaks · Best in Feb, Mar, Dec ## Channel Islands - Channel Islands ### Channel Islands surf guide Channel Islands · 8 breaks · Best in Jan, Feb, Mar ## UK surf questions, answered ### Where is the best surf in the UK? Cornwall has the most consistent surf in the UK, with Fistral, Sennen and the north coast beaches picking up Atlantic swell on most days. For quality, Thurso East on Scotland's north coast is widely rated the best wave in Britain, and Pembrokeshire, the Gower and North Devon are close behind. ### Where are the best places to learn to surf in the UK? Watergate Bay and Polzeath in Cornwall, Saunton Sands and Woolacombe in Devon, Rest Bay in Porthcawl, Tynemouth Longsands and Cayton Bay in Yorkshire are among the best places to learn to surf in the UK: long sandy beaches with gentle waves on small days, lifeguards in season and surf schools. ### When is the best time to surf in the UK? Autumn is the best time to surf in the UK. September to November brings regular Atlantic swell, lighter winds than winter and the warmest water of the year. Winter has the biggest and most consistent surf, and summer is the smallest and busiest season. ### Can you surf in the UK in winter? Yes, and winter is when the UK gets its most consistent surf. You need a 5/4 wetsuit with boots, and gloves and a hood in Scotland, the North Sea and anywhere the sea drops below about 10°C. ### What wetsuit do I need to surf in the UK? Most UK surfers use a 5/4 wetsuit with boots from November to May and a 4/3 or 3/2 in summer. Scotland and the North Sea coasts run a couple of degrees colder than Cornwall and the Channel Islands. ### Where can you surf in the UK when the wind is south-westerly? The east coast. The usual south-west wind blows onshore in Cornwall, Devon and Wales but offshore in the North East, Yorkshire and Norfolk, so those coasts are often clean when the west is blown out, as long as there's swell in the North Sea. In the south-west, Putsborough and other spots tucked under headlands give some shelter. ## Latest spot guides - Fistral guide ### Fistral surf guide: Newquay's Atlantic swell magnet 8 Nov 2026 · Cornwall · Spot guide - Watergate Bay guide ### Watergate Bay surf guide: two miles of room to breathe 8 Nov 2026 · Cornwall · Spot guide - Sennen guide ### Sennen surf guide: Cornwall's last stop for swell 8 Nov 2026 · Cornwall · Spot guide - Porthleven guide ### Porthleven surf guide: the south coast's heavy right 8 Nov 2026 · Cornwall · Spot guide - Croyde guide ### Croyde surf guide: North Devon's punchiest beachbreak 8 Nov 2026 · Devon · Spot guide - Bantham guide ### Bantham surf guide: South Devon's rivermouth gem 8 Nov 2026 · Devon · Spot guide - Saltburn guide ### Saltburn surf guide: North Sea waves by the pier 8 Nov 2026 · North East England · Spot guide - Tynemouth Longsands guide ### Tynemouth Longsands surf guide: city surf on the Metro 8 Nov 2026 · North East England · Spot guide Words by ## Tom Otto Tom Otto built Swell Otter, the free surf forecast for the UK, and writes its spot guides. Every guide is checked against years of wave, wind and sea temperature history for the break, so the advice matches the numbers and not just the postcards. ## Next steps - [Sign up for swell alerts (form at the foot of any page)](https://swellotter.com/region) - [How the forecast and star rating work](https://swellotter.com/about) - [All UK surf forecasts](https://swellotter.com/) ## About Swell Otter Swell Otter is a free surf forecast for the UK, made by a UK company with no ads. Live forecasts, tides and guides are free; optional Premium unlocks every surf cam. https://swellotter.com/llms.txt ## Notes for agents - Cite as: "UK surf regions: where to surf around Britain, Swell Otter (https://swellotter.com/region)". - Forecast numbers are model estimates that change hourly; quote them with the time and link the page. Don't present them as observations. - Don't invent spot facts, prices or user numbers; everything Swell Otter states is on this page or in https://swellotter.com/ai-fact-sheet.md.