Shipstern
Surf spot · Australia
Is it worth the trip?
45Fair out of 100 for your dates
Best on Wed 4: 3 ft swell at 8 s
Tue 3 · 48 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft9 shollow
- Energy
- 360kJ
- Wind
- SSE 7 kn
- Temp
- 15°C
Wed 4 · 65 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft8 shollow
- Energy
- 129kJ
- Wind
- SW 2 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Thu 5 · 49 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft8 shollow
- Energy
- 108kJ
- Wind
- SSW 4 kn
- Temp
- 17°C
Fri 6 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft10 smushy
- Energy
- 642kJ
- Wind
- W 13 kn
- Temp
- 14°C
Sat 7 · 11 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft10 smushy
- Energy
- 475kJ
- Wind
- SW 16 kn
- Temp
- 10°C
Sun 8 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 7 ft9 shollow
- Energy
- 694kJ
- Wind
- SSW 9 kn
- Temp
- 11°C
Mon 9 · 61 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft8 shollow
- Energy
- 270kJ
- Wind
- NW 3 kn
- Temp
- 15°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Mon 20, too big
- Tue 348, fair
- Wed 465, good
- Thu 549, fair
- Fri 60, too big
- Sat 711, poor
- Sun 80, too big
- Mon 961, good
- Tue 100, too big
- Wed 1160, good
The spot in five facts
- Faces SWtakes swell from the SW
- Offshore: NEwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 3–11 ftof swell
- Water 14 °C4/3 wetsuit and boots
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know rips, currents, rocks or your skill.
| Day | Score for intermediates | Swell | Energy | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 2Nov | 0, too big | 6 ft9 shollow8 ft at break (est.) | 625kJ | wind from the west-south-west, 4 knots | 17°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 48, fair | 5 ft9 shollow7 ft at break (est.) | 360kJ | wind from the south-south-east, 7 knots | 15°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 65, good | 3 ft8 shollow5 ft at break (est.) | 129kJ | wind from the south-west, 2 knots | 18°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 49, fair | 3 ft8 shollow4 ft at break (est.) | 108kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 4 knots | 17°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 0, too big | 6 ft10 smushy8 ft at break (est.) | 642kJ | wind from the west, 13 knots | 14°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 11, poor | 5 ft10 smushy7 ft at break (est.) | 475kJ | wind from the south-west, 16 knots | 10°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 0, too big | 7 ft9 shollow9 ft at break (est.) | 694kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 9 knots | 11°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 61, good | 5 ft8 shollow6 ft at break (est.) | 270kJ | wind from the north-west, 3 knots | 15°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 0, too big | 6 ft10 shollow8 ft at break (est.) | 758kJ | wind from the south-west, 6 knots | 15°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 60, good | 6 ft10 shollow8 ft at break (est.) | 601kJ | wind from the south-east, 5 knots | 14°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
- Mon 2 NovHigh 04:05 +0.2 mLow 08:37 −0.0 mHigh 14:32 +0.5 mLow 21:55 −0.6 m
- Tue 3 NovHigh 04:45 +0.2 mLow 09:49 −0.1 mHigh 15:38 +0.4 mLow 22:43 −0.5 m
- Wed 4 NovHigh 05:23 +0.3 mLow 10:58 −0.1 mHigh 16:45 +0.3 mLow 23:27 −0.4 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
- Mar1of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May1of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun1of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul1of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug1of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep1of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct0of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov1of 7: a trip from Tue 3 Nov
- Dec1of 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
Shipstern on Google Maps · Directions
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.
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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
4 places
- Caves 7.6 km away
- safety cove reef 9.1 km away
- Kelpies Point 9.5 km away
- Eaglehawk Neck 25 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Shipstern
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces SW (203°), so it takes swell from the SW. The wind blows offshore from the NE (23°). It is exposed to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up, because of a steep sea floor. It works in 3–11 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves very steeply: 10 m deep about 100 m out (1 in 9). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would break hollow. The sea is about 12°C in August, its coldest month (4/3 or 5/4, boots and gloves), and 18°C in February, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is White Beach, 9.7 km away (about 20 min by car).
Water about 14°C: 4/3 wetsuit and boots. 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$3,560 each
about US$1,860–US$3,560 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
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return MDW to HBA, estimated from distance and season, changing at DFW and AKL, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$958–US$1,990 |
| Taxi | airport and back, shared | about US$87–US$141 |
| 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$3,560 |
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
about 20 min by car · 7 places to stay
about US$134/nightcountry average
About White Beach its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Port Arthur on Booking.com
about 20 min by car · 15 places to stay
- Beds in Nubeena on Booking.com
about 25 min by car · 6 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 32h 10m
About 32h 10m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → HBA, changing at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) and Auckland International Airport (AKL), then 1h by road
Flights MDW → HBA on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.