Waves in Punta del Este

Hourly wave forecast for 7 days · updated today, Thursday, October 29, at 1:41 am (GMT-3)

Now · significant height 2.1 ft

Sea state: Slight · Douglas 3
Period: 7.6 s · SE
Swell: 1.9 ft · 7 s
Highest expected: 4.3 ft

Today the sea at Punta del Este is slight: 2.1 ft waves with a period of 7.6 s from the southeast. The swell, 1.9 ft at 7 s, comes from the south-southeast. Biggest waves: Friday 30, with waves up to 4.1 ft (slight).

Wave height, next 7 days

1.02.03.04.0 ft 4.1 ft Now

Significant height: the average of the highest third of the waves, what an observer would estimate by eye. Swell: waves arriving from far away, longer.

The waves you may find today

Most common1.1 ft
Significant2.1 ft
Highest expected4.3 ft

One wave in seven is higher than the significant height, and about 3 times a day one reaches 4.3 ft. Before heading out, expect waves of up to 4.3 ft.

The Douglas sea state scale

Degree	Name	Wave height
0	Calm (glassy)	0
1	Calm (rippled)	0.0 ft–0.3 ft
2	Smooth	0.3 ft–1.6 ft
3	Slight · today	1.6 ft–4.1 ft
4	Moderate	4.1 ft–8.2 ft
5	Rough	8.2 ft–13.1 ft
6	Very rough	13.1 ft–19.7 ft

Waves day by day

Day	Max wave	Sea state	Direction	Max period	Swell	Max wind
Today	2.9 ft	Slight	SE	8 s	1.9 ft SSE	10 mph ENE
Fri 30	4.1 ft	Slight	E	6 s	1.8 ft SE	11 mph ENE
Sat 31	3.6 ft	Slight	E	5 s	2.4 ft ESE	11 mph ENE
Sun 1	3.9 ft	Slight	E	5 s	2.6 ft ESE	10 mph NE
Mon 2	3.2 ft	Slight	E	6 s	2.8 ft E	10 mph WNW
Tue 3	2.2 ft	Slight	SE	6 s	1.6 ft SSE	10 mph E
Wed 4	3.4 ft	Slight	ESE	5 s	1.8 ft ESE	11 mph E

Today, every 3 hours

Time	12:00 am	3:00 am	6:00 am	9:00 am	12:00 pm	3:00 pm	6:00 pm	9:00 pm
Waves	2.2 ft	2.1 ft	2.1 ft	2.1 ft	2.2 ft	2.7 ft	2.9 ft	2.9 ft
Period	7.5 s	7.7 s	7.9 s	7.8 s	6.9 s	5.5 s	5.3 s	5.2 s
Direction	SE	SE	SE	SE	SE	ESE	ESE	ESE
Swell	1.9 ft · 7 s	1.9 ft · 7 s	1.9 ft · 7 s	1.9 ft · 7 s	1.8 ft · 7 s	1.7 ft · 7 s	1.6 ft · 7 s	1.6 ft · 7 s
Wind (mph)	5 NE	4 NE	5 ENE	4 NE	2 NE	9 E	10 E	10 ENE

Previous days

The waves over the last 14 days. Tap a day to see it hour by hour.

Day	Max wave	Period	Swell
Wed 28	3.0 ft SE	8 s	2.3 ft SSE
Tue 27	3.6 ft SSE	8 s	3.6 ft SSE
Mon 26	5.2 ft SSE	7 s	4.9 ft SSE
Sun 25	6.6 ft SSE	7 s	5.2 ft SE
Sat 24	6.9 ft SSE	7 s	3.9 ft SSE
Fri 23	4.6 ft E	7 s	3.3 ft E
Thu 22	5.2 ft E	7 s	3.0 ft ESE

Show all 14 days

Day	Max wave	Period	Swell
Wed 21	5.6 ft ESE	9 s	3.9 ft SE
Tue 20	5.2 ft ESE	9 s	4.9 ft SE
Mon 19	5.9 ft SE	9 s	5.6 ft SE
Sun 18	8.2 ft SE	8 s	5.9 ft SE
Sat 17	7.9 ft SSE	7 s	5.6 ft SE
Fri 16	7.2 ft SSE	7 s	3.9 ft ESE
Thu 15	4.9 ft SE	7 s	4.3 ft SE

These are the models at the start of each day (ECMWF and GFS; waves from Météo-France), not readings from a weather station: there can be differences at specific spots.

Questions about the waves in Punta del EsteQuestions

How are the waves today in Punta del Este?

Slight (2.1 ft with a period of 7.6 s from the southeast). The highest wave to expect is around 4.3 ft.

Which day will have the biggest waves this week?

Friday 30, with waves up to 4.1 ft (slight).

What is the wave period?

The time, in seconds, between two crests. With long periods (over 10 s) waves come from far away, are cleaner and break harder; with short periods they are wind waves, choppier.

What is significant wave height?

The average of the highest third of the waves. One in seven is higher and, a few times a day, one comes in at almost double: today, about 4.3 ft.

More about Punta del Este today

Waves near Punta del Este

Only places with a different forecast: spots a few miles apart share the same model cell and wouldn't add anything.

Learn more

Waves: Open-Meteo with Météo-France (MFWAM, up to 10 days) and ECMWF WAM, CC BY 4.0; wave grid point 1.6 mi away. Near the shore, the seabed and the shape of the coast change the waves.

Forecast from Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0) with models from ECMWF, NOAA, Météo-France, DWD, Copernicus Marine and CAMS. Updated at 1:41 am (local time).

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