Staying Home Sucks, home
Sydney (AU), Long Reef Beach -- 2019 -- 2616
papa chins. Photo: Dietmar Rabich, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

papa chins

Surf spot · Australia

Is it worth the trip?

30Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Fri 6: 5 ft swell at 6 s

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 21 out of 100

Swell
2 ft7 smushy
Energy
47kJ
Wind
ENE 3 kn
Temp
20°C

Tue 3 · 34 out of 100

Swell
3 ft5 smushy
Energy
45kJ
Wind
NNE 8 kn
Temp
21°C

Wed 4 · 21 out of 100

Swell
2 ft5 smushy
Energy
25kJ
Wind
SW 12 kn
Temp
20°C

Thu 5 · 36 out of 100

Swell
3 ft5 smushy
Energy
30kJ
Wind
WSW 14 kn
Temp
19°C

Fri 6 · 41 out of 100

Swell
5 ft6 smushy
Energy
154kJ
Wind
W 8 kn
Temp
20°C

Sat 7 · 19 out of 100

Swell
2 ft4 smushy
Energy
16kJ
Wind
WNW 4 kn
Temp
22°C

Sun 8 · 21 out of 100

Swell
4 ft8 smushy
Energy
194kJ
Wind
SSW 16 kn
Temp
17°C

Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 127, too small
  2. Mon 221, too small
  3. Tue 334, poor
  4. Wed 421, too small
  5. Thu 536, too small
  6. Fri 641, poor
  7. Sat 719, too small
  8. Sun 821, poor
  9. Mon 933, poor
  10. Tue 1042, poor

The spot in five facts

  • Faces Etakes swell from the E
  • Offshore: Wwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 2–9 ftof swell
  • Water 20 °C2 mm shorty

Full forecast

every day, every number

The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at papa chins, each day
DayScore for intermediatesSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 1Nov27, too small3 ft7 smushy4 ft at break (est.)62kJwind from the east-south-east, 9 knots20°C
Mon 2Nov21, too small2 ft7 smushy3 ft at break (est.)47kJwind from the east-north-east, 3 knots20°C
Tue 3Nov34, poor3 ft5 smushy4 ft at break (est.)45kJwind from the north-north-east, 8 knots21°C
Wed 4Nov21, too small2 ft5 smushy3 ft at break (est.)25kJwind from the south-west, 12 knots20°C
Thu 5Nov36, too small3 ft5 smushy3 ft at break (est.)30kJwind from the west-south-west, 14 knots, offshore19°C
Fri 6Nov41, poor5 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.)154kJwind from the west, 8 knots, offshore20°C
Sat 7Nov19, too small2 ft4 smushy2 ft at break (est.)16kJwind from the west-north-west, 4 knots, offshore22°C
Sun 8Nov21, poor4 ft8 smushy3 ft at break (est.)194kJwind from the south-south-west, 16 knots17°C
Mon 9Nov33, poor6 ft7 smushy5 ft at break (est.)251kJwind from the south-south-west, 12 knots17°C
Tue 10Nov42, poor3 ft7 smushy4 ft at break (est.)97kJwind from the north, 3 knots20°C
Wed 11Nov74, good4 ft8 scrumbling5 ft at break (est.)219kJwind from the north-north-west, 3 knots20°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 01:48 +0.3 mLow 07:13 −0.4 mHigh 13:53 +0.8 mLow 20:56 −0.6 m
  • Mon 2 NovHigh 03:03 +0.3 mLow 08:31 −0.3 mHigh 15:02 +0.7 mLow 22:03 −0.6 m
  • Tue 3 NovHigh 04:15 +0.3 mLow 09:54 −0.3 mHigh 16:12 +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.

Map

the spot, its town, photos

Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for intermediates: 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.

Photos of papa chins

Botany Bay Ark-shell, Long Reef Rock Platform, Long Reef Aquatic Reserve, Collaroy, Sydney, New South Wales imported from iNaturalist photo 97454384
Near papa chins. Photo: (c) Thomas Mesaglio, some rights reserved (CC BY), CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Long Reef platform
Near papa chins. Photo: Poyt448, Peter Woodard, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

More surf near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About papa chins

Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.

The spot faces E (101°), so it takes swell from the E. The wind blows offshore from the W (281°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 2–9 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves moderately: 10 m deep about 200 m out (1 in 21). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 18°C in August, its coldest month (2 mm shorty), and 24°C in February, its warmest (no wetsuit). The town to stay in is Manly, 7.5 km away (about 15 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 18 surf spots, 1 wind sports spot and 2 dive sites.

Water about 20°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$1,790–US$3,420 each

about US$1,790–US$3,420 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, taxi, 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 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn MDW to SYD, estimated from distance and season, changing at LAX, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$925–US$1,920
Taxiairport and back, sharedabout US$47–US$74
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$355–US$596
Food7 days eating outabout US$322–US$596
Board and wetsuit5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$141–US$234
Totalabout US$1,790–US$3,420

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

Closest

Mona Vale

12 min by car · 3 places to stay

about US$134/nightcountry average

See 3 places to stay in Mona Vale · Booking.com

About Mona Vale its beds, food and every spot near it

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 27h 35m

About 27h 35m door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → SYD, changing at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), then 40 min by road

An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.