Flat Rock - Ballina - Left
Surf spot · Australia
Is it worth the trip?
28Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Fri 6: 4 ft swell at 6 s
Mon 2 · 26 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft9 ssoft
- Energy
- 83kJ
- Wind
- SSW 8 kn
- Temp
- 23°C
Tue 3 · 24 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft8 smushy
- Energy
- 42kJ
- Wind
- NW 3 kn
- Temp
- 24°C
Wed 4 · 15 out of 100
- Swell
- 1 ft9 ssoft
- Energy
- 28kJ
- Wind
- WSW 2 kn
- Temp
- 26°C
Thu 5 · 24 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 29kJ
- Wind
- NW 7 kn
- Temp
- 27°C
Fri 6 · 51 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft6 smushy
- Energy
- 110kJ
- Wind
- ESE 6 kn
- Temp
- 22°C
Sat 7 · 17 out of 100
- Swell
- 2 ft8 ssoft
- Energy
- 37kJ
- Wind
- NW 5 kn
- Temp
- 24°C
Sun 8 · 16 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 123kJ
- Wind
- S 23 kn
- Temp
- 21°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 157, fair
- Mon 226, too small
- Tue 324, too small
- Wed 415, too small
- Thu 524, too small
- Fri 651, fair
- Sat 717, too small
- Sun 816, poor
- Mon 927, poor
- Tue 1038, poor
The spot in five facts
- Faces Etakes swell from the E
- Offshore: Wwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 2–8 ftof swell
- Water 23 °C2 mm shorty
Full forecast
every day, every number
Flat Rock - Ballina - Left does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.
| Day | Scorefor Intermediate | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 57, fair | 3 ft10 ssoft4 ft at break (est.) | 223kJ | offshorewind from the west-north-west, 4 knots, offshore | 24°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 26, too small | 2 ft9 ssoft3 ft at break (est.) | 83kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 8 knots | 23°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 24, too small | 2 ft8 smushy2 ft at break (est.) | 42kJ | offshorewind from the north-west, 3 knots, offshore | 24°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 15, too small | 1 ft9 ssoft2 ft at break (est.) | 28kJ | offshorewind from the west-south-west, 2 knots, offshore | 26°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 24, too small | 2 ft7 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 29kJ | offshorewind from the north-west, 7 knots, offshore | 27°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 51, fair | 4 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 110kJ | wind from the east-south-east, 6 knots | 22°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 17, too small | 2 ft8 ssoft3 ft at break (est.) | 37kJ | offshorewind from the north-west, 5 knots, offshore | 24°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 16, poor | 4 ft7 smushy2 ft at break (est.) | 123kJ | wind from the south, 23 knots | 21°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 27, poor | 5 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 152kJ | wind from the south, 15 knots | 20°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 38, poor | 3 ft7 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 105kJ | wind from the south-west, 8 knots | 21°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 51, fair | 3 ft8 ssoft3 ft at break (est.) | 99kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 3 knots | 19°C |
Energy is the swell's power, in kJ per metre of wave. Wind is in knots, the arrow where it blows to; green is offshore. More
Tide
- Sun 1 NovHigh 01:21 +0.2 mLow 06:53 −0.5 mHigh 13:52 +0.8 mLow 20:57 −0.6 m
- Mon 2 NovHigh 02:42 +0.2 mLow 08:12 −0.4 mHigh 15:02 +0.8 mLow 22:04 −0.6 m
- Tue 3 NovHigh 04:01 +0.2 mLow 09:37 −0.4 mHigh 16:11 +0.7 mLow 23:02 −0.6 m
Local clock times; heights about mean sea level. On open coasts the times are usually within a quarter of an hour; in bays, estuaries and on the Gulf of Mexico they can be an hour or more out. Tide: EOT20 global ocean tide model, Hart-Davis et al. 2021, DGFI-TUM (doi:10.17882/79489), CC BY 4.0. Times and heights computed by us. A model, not a tide table: check a local table before you go.
Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.
Best time to go
No month stands out
Good days in a typical week, each month, for intermediate surfers, from 2016 on (history scored the same way).
- Jan1of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb1of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar2of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr2of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May3of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun3of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul3of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug3of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep3of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct2of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov2of 7: a trip from Mon 2 Nov
- Dec2of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Dec
Tap a month to see this spot for a trip then.
Typical, not a forecast.
Map
the spot and its town
Flat Rock - Ballina - Left on Google Maps · Directions
Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for beginners: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.
The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.
One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
More surf near here
5 places
- Flat Rock Reef 0.2 km away
- Backsides 0.4 km away
- Flat rock 0.4 km away
- Sharps Beach 0.5 km away
- Black Head 2.2 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Flat Rock - Ballina - Left
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces E (100°), so it takes swell from the E. The wind blows offshore from the W (280°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–8 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 700 m out (1 in 72). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 21°C in July, its coldest month (2 mm shorty), and 27°C in February, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is Ballina, 5.1 km away (about 10 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 14 surf spots and 1 wind sports spot.
Water about 23°C: 2 mm shorty. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.
The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).
Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,860–US$3,520 each
about US$1,860–US$3,520 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, stay, food, board and wetsuit.
Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.
How we worked it out
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return MDW to BNE, estimated from distance and season, changing at LAX, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$891–US$1,850 |
| Hire car | 6 days, shared | about US$147–US$241 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$355–US$596 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$322–US$596 |
| Board and wetsuit | 5 days, or about US$114 to fly your own | about US$141–US$234 |
| Total | about US$1,860–US$3,520 |
For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: 3 towns
8 min by car · 16 places to stay
about US$134/nightcountry average
About Lennox Head its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Ballina on Booking.com
9 min by car · 29 places to stay
- Beds in Suffolk Park on Booking.com
30 min by car · 42 places to stay
About US$134 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.
Getting there: about 29h 30m
About 29h 30m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → BNE, changing at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), then 3h 15m by road
Flights MDW → BNE on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.