It’s one of the world’s most ambitious coastal developments around surfing and surf tourism of all time. Meet the grandiose 198-mile (320-kilometer) long Surf City, El Salvador.

Surf City, also known as Surf City El Salvador, is a strategic tourism development initiative promoted by the Government of El Salvador under President Nayib Bukele’s administration.

The project’s main goal is the modernization and comprehensive promotion of the Salvadoran coastline through improvements in infrastructure, services, and accessibility across various beaches in the country.

The initiative has an impact on a wide coastal strip that includes beaches located in the departments of Ahuachapán, Sonsonate, La Libertad, La Paz, San Miguel, Usulután, and La Unión.

Surf City seeks to position El Salvador as a leading international destination for surfing and coastal tourism, taking advantage of the country’s naturally favorable conditions for water sports while also promoting local economic development through sustainable surfonomics.

And there’s the local gastronomy and volcano appeal, lakes, stunning sunsets, and flower-filled valleys, which obviously can only help.

The controversial yet popular president also wanted to change the negative perception abroad that focuses on violence, gangs, and migration.

Civil war is also a thing of the past, and Bukele’s team wants to highlight it. “Big Wednesday,” the iconic 1978 surf movie by John Milius, was shot here, too.

Interestingly, Bukele adopted an English term, instead of the Spanish version (Ciudad del Surf), and an expression that is quite popular in the United States, as it is part of a California town’s official designation: Huntington Beach Surf City USA.

“Surf City” is also the name of a famous song written by The Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson and “gifted” to his surf music friends, Jan and Dean.

Hence, El Salvador’s Surf City is the perfect marketing stunt to attract the North American surfer neighbors to this Central American nation’s wave-rich destination.

As with every bold plan to revolutionize a large piece of land, there’s also constructive criticism.

Some El Salvadorans believe Bukele’s strategy could lead to the privatization of beaches, water pollution, and populations being forced out of more commercially appealing coastal regions.

Time will tell.

A Wave-Rich Coastline

El Salvador is the smallest nation in Central America and the only one without a Caribbean coastline.

Instead, the almost 200 miles (320 kilometers) of shoreline face directly south, angled toward the South Pole, which means the swells it receives arrive mainly from between 170° and 225°.

The nation’s coastal layout is the product of the Pacific Ring of Fire and the movement of the Cocos tectonic plate beneath the Caribbean plate.

These geological forces have shaped a coastline marked by cliffs, rocky outcrops, and sheltered coves, features that allow southern swells to generate sizeable, well-formed waves.

Along its 311 kilometers of coast stretch the Cordillera del Balsamo and the Cordillera Jucuaran-Intipuca, which define the fault line responsible for generating such ideal wave conditions.

Thanks to the angle at which the southern swells arrive, most of the waves peel to the right, creating the famed point breaks of El Salvador.

Attracting World-Class Surfing Events

Since the launch of the Surf City initiative in 2019, El Salvador has hosted a series of international events that have solidified its reputation as a world-class surf center.

Among the most notable competitions are the ISA World Surfing Games, led by the Argentine Fernando Aguerre, both Olympic qualifiers for the Tokyo and Paris Games, respectively.

Junior tournaments such as the ISA World Junior Surfing Championship and longboard competitions like the ISA World Longboard Surfing Championship have also been held.

Additionally, the country has hosted the Surf City El Salvador Pro, an official stop on the World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour, and included surfing as an official discipline during the 2023 Central American and Caribbean Games.

Regional tournaments like the ALAS Pro Tour, which have been consistently present since 2022, have complemented the annual calendar, bringing together hundreds of surfers from across Latin America.

These competitions have put beaches such as El Sunzal, La Bocana, and Punta Roca among the most recognized on the international circuit.

The Development Stages

So far, Surf City El Salvador has two planned development phases.

Surf City I

Inaugurated in February 2021, this phase focuses on the department of La Libertad and includes strategic infrastructure and urban development works.

Some of the key projects include Camino a Surf City, which involves expanding the highway from Zaragoza to La Libertad and building the La Libertad Bypass, significantly improving coastal connectivity.

Other developments include Sunset Park Amusement Park, the Surf City Gastro-Lab, and the Surf City Walter Thilo Deininger Adventure Park.

Critical infrastructures have also been modernized, such as the new pier at Puerto de La Libertad, the Artisanal Pier, the eco-friendly boardwalk at El Tunco beach, and the Mercado del Mar (Sea Market).

The phase also includes wastewater treatment plants for environmental conservation, as well as ongoing projects like the expansion of the coastal highway, underground wiring, and other urban improvements.

The ultimate goal of the first phase is to lay the foundation for consolidating the western coastline as a sustainable and competitive tourism corridor.

Surf City II

The second part of cryptocurrency enthusiast Nayib Bukele‘s ambitious plan hit the ground running on April 3, 2025.

Unlike the first phase, which focused on the beaches of La Libertad, such as El Tunco and El Zonte, the new stage targets the development of tourism infrastructure in the eastern region of the country, specifically in the departments of Usulután, San Miguel, and La Unión.

The project includes the construction of an eight-mile (13-kilometer) road connecting 11 beaches between Usulután and San Miguel, with an investment of $41 million.

The road features seven bridges, ten bus stops, a bike lane, lighting, and viewpoints, aiming to facilitate access to key destinations like Punta Mango and boost coastal tourism – especially surfing – as a driver of regional economic development and job creation in eastern El Salvador’s coastal communities.

The Best Waves in El Salvador’s Surf City

The Surf City El Salvador project features a series of world-renowned waves and surf breaks.

El Tunco

Considered the surfing capital of El Salvador, El Tunco is located in La Libertad. Its name comes from a large rock formation partially submerged in the sea, whose silhouette once resembled that of a tunco (a colloquial Salvadoran term for a pig).

El Zonte

Also located in La Libertad, El Zonte is a coastal community that has managed to preserve its bohemian and natural character. It stands out for its landscape framed by cliffs and rock formations that extend into the sea. It is one of the most iconic surfing spots in El Salvador.

Punta Roca

Situated near Puerto de La Libertad, Punta Roca is internationally renowned for the quality of its right-hand wave over a rocky bottom. Known among local surfers as La Punta, it has been ranked among the world’s best waves.

Las Flores

Located in San Miguel, Las Flores is known for its picturesque cove that marks the start of a succession of rocky points with right-hand waves. These conditions are ideal for surfing, especially for those seeking long rides along the coast.

El Sunzal

It is one of the classiest surf spots in El Salvador and, according to various sources, is the place where the sport was first practiced in the country. Since the late 1960s, when American surfers began arriving in search of the perfect wave, El Sunzal has been a key point in the region’s surfing development.

Punta Mango

Punta Mango can be reached in a remote area of eastern El Salvador. For years, it was only accessible by sea from Las Flores or El Cuco. In 2025, it was included in the Surf City II circuit. It is loved for its powerful and consistent waves, making it an ideal peak for experienced surfers.

Avoiding Classic Mistakes

The El Salvadoran authorities expressed the wish to avoid the mistakes of other countries where tourism has had negative consequences on the environment.

While tourism can generate significant economic gains, the hope is for this development to go hand in hand with nature conservation.

The purpose is to create a long-term sustainable tourism program.

“Taking advantage of the short distances within our country – one of our best comparative advantages – we are adapting Surf City and connecting the beach circuit to offer a different experience in each specific location, all while linking it to environmental protection,” noted Tourism Minister Morena Valdez.

The idea is to work with local communities to preserve the natural landscape and respect the character of each surfing area.

As President Bukele added, “We don’t need another Miami Beach full of buildings on the sand. What we need are wilder, freer, and healthier natural areas.”

According to Tourism Minister Morena Valdez, 2023 saw a record 3.4 million visitors, representing a significant increase in tourism’s contribution to the national gross domestic product (GDP).

This influx generated over 300,000 jobs thanks to the surge of tourists drawn to the perfect waves.

The project continues to attract major funding for new tourist complexes, much of it coming from Salvadorans abroad who want to invest.

The goal is to use foreign investment to improve infrastructure in ways that benefit all Salvadorans and generate an economic impact that will bring positive changes across the country.

Words by Luís MP | Founder of SurferToday.com