Finding the best surf spots: Phrases and vocab

💬 The describing word comes after the noun and matches its ending: marea ends in -a, so alto becomes alta. Same with ola alta "high wave".

💬 grande stays the same for masculine and feminine words: un spot grande, una ola grande. It only changes for plurals: olas grandes.

💬 Literally "full of people". Swap the ending to match what you're describing: la playa está llena de gente.

💬 Spanish makes "the best" just by putting el or la in front of mejor "better". For a feminine word it's la mejor playa "the best beach".

💬 Use estar (here está) for where something is, never ser. ¿Dónde está? works for any place: just add the thing after it.

🇪🇸 Locals can be protective of their best breaks and may steer visitors to the busier, easier beaches. Asking at a surf school or rental shop usually gets you a friendlier answer.

💬 The h in hoy is silent, as in every Spanish word: (oy).

💬 hay means both "there is" and "there are", so it never changes for plurals. ¿Hay olas?, ¿Hay una escuela? "Is there a school?".

💬 Pequeñas takes -as to match las olas. Describing one wave, it would be es pequeña.

💬 Spanish doesn't need a word for "it" here; es alone already means "it is". A question is just the same words with a rising voice.

💬 Spanish says "Is there much current?" with mucha rather than "strong". mucho changes ending to match the noun: mucho viento, mucha corriente.

💬 For when an event happens, Spanish uses es, not está: ¿Cuándo es la clase? "When is the lesson?".

💬 Spanish keeps the la where English drops "the": la marea alta, not just marea alta, when talking about a specific high tide.

🇪🇸 Tide times are posted in surf shops and often in Spanish surf apps. On the Atlantic and Cantabrian coasts the tide matters a lot, while the Mediterranean barely has any.

💬 Weather uses hace "it makes", not "there is": hace viento, hace frío "it's cold", hace sol "it's sunny".

💬 bueno changes to buena to match playa. Swap the ending for other words: ¿Este spot es bueno?.

💬 Spanish uses gente "people" as a single word, so it takes mucha, not a plural. Same idea: hay poca gente "there are few people".

🇪🇸 In Spain, alquilar is the standard word; in much of Latin America you'd hear rentar instead.

💬 After puedo "can I", the next verb stays in its basic form ending in -r: ¿Dónde puedo aparcar? "Where can I park?".

💬 After quiero "I want", use the verb's basic form directly, no extra word for "to": quiero aprender "I want to learn".

💬 Vamos a plus an action word makes a quick "let's..." suggestion. Swap the action: ¡Vamos a comer! "Let's eat!" or ¡Vamos a nadar! "Let's swim!"