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Main Beach Yamba
Yamba, the nearest town, 1 km away. Photo: Nimbusania talk, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

Pippies

Surf spot · Australia

Is it worth the trip?

22Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Fri 6: 3 ft swell at 6 s

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 13 out of 100

Swell
2 ft7 smushy
Energy
25kJ
Wind
SE 9 kn
Temp
23°C

Tue 3 · 22 out of 100

Swell
2 ft4 smushy
Energy
14kJ
Wind
NW 16 kn
Temp
23°C

Wed 4 · 12 out of 100

Swell
2 ft5 smushy
Energy
18kJ
Wind
SW 3 kn
Temp
22°C

Thu 5 · 17 out of 100

Swell
1 ft7 smushy
Energy
18kJ
Wind
W 5 kn
Temp
26°C

Fri 6 · 42 out of 100

Swell
3 ft6 smushy
Energy
70kJ
Wind
E 6 kn
Temp
22°C

Sat 7 · 15 out of 100

Swell
2 ft8 smushy
Energy
26kJ
Wind
NW 7 kn
Temp
24°C

Sun 8 · 16 out of 100

Swell
4 ft8 smushy
Energy
140kJ
Wind
SSE 19 kn
Temp
20°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 140, too small
  2. Mon 213, too small
  3. Tue 322, too small
  4. Wed 412, too small
  5. Thu 517, too small
  6. Fri 642, poor
  7. Sat 715, too small
  8. Sun 816, poor
  9. Mon 937, poor
  10. Tue 1027, too small

The spot in six facts

  • Faces Etakes swell from the E
  • Offshore: Wwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 2–9 ftof swell
  • Water 22 °C2 mm shorty
  • Best May, Aug–Sep3 good days in 7

Full forecast

every day, every number

Pippies does not suit beginners. This is the forecast for intermediates, so you can see what it does.

Forecast and score for intermediate surfers at Pippies, each day
DayScorefor Inter­mediateSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 1Nov40, too small2 ft10 scrumbling4 ft at break (est.)124kJwind from the west-north-west, 6 knots, offshore24°C
Mon 2Nov13, too small2 ft7 smushy3 ft at break (est.)25kJwind from the south-east, 9 knots23°C
Tue 3Nov22, too small2 ft4 smushy2 ft at break (est.)14kJwind from the north-west, 16 knots, offshore23°C
Wed 4Nov12, too small2 ft5 smushy2 ft at break (est.)18kJwind from the south-west, 3 knots22°C
Thu 5Nov17, too small1 ft7 smushy2 ft at break (est.)18kJwind from the west, 5 knots, offshore26°C
Fri 6Nov42, poor3 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.)70kJwind from the east, 6 knots22°C
Sat 7Nov15, too small2 ft8 smushy2 ft at break (est.)26kJwind from the north-west, 7 knots, offshore24°C
Sun 8Nov16, poor4 ft8 smushy4 ft at break (est.)140kJwind from the south-south-east, 19 knots20°C
Mon 9Nov37, poor4 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.)95kJwind from the south, 9 knots20°C
Tue 10Nov27, too small3 ft7 smushy3 ft at break (est.)60kJwind from the north-north-west, 6 knots24°C
Wed 11Nov39, too small2 ft9 ssoft3 ft at break (est.)83kJwind from the north, 9 knots23°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 01:25 +0.2 mLow 06:55 −0.5 mHigh 13:48 +0.8 mLow 20:51 −0.6 m
  • Mon 2 NovHigh 02:46 +0.2 mLow 08:13 −0.4 mHigh 14:59 +0.8 mLow 21:59 −0.6 m
  • Tue 3 NovHigh 04:03 +0.3 mLow 09:38 −0.4 mHigh 16:08 +0.7 mLow 22:59 −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 and its town

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

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Pippies

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

The spot faces E (104°), so it takes swell from the E. The wind blows offshore from the W (284°). 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 gently: 10 m deep about 550 m out (1 in 55). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 20°C in August, its coldest month (2 mm shorty), and 26°C in February, its warmest (no wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually May, August and September, with about 3 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Yamba, 1.2 km away (about 5 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 7 surf spots and 2 wind sports spots.

Water about 22°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 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn MDW to BNE, estimated from distance and season, changing at LAX, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$891–US$1,850
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$147–US$241
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$1,860–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

Closest

Yamba

2 min by car · 35 places to stay

about US$134/nightcountry average

See 35 places to stay in Yamba · Booking.com

About Yamba 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 30h 25m

About 30h 25m door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → BNE, changing at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), then 4h 15m by road

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