Southside
Surf spot · Australia
Is it worth the trip?
43Poor out of 100 for your dates
Best on Mon 2: 5 ft swell at 10 s, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow
Mon 2 · 68 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft10 scrumbling
- Energy
- 373kJ
- Wind
- N 2 kn
- Temp
- 16°C
Tue 3 · 45 out of 100
- Swell
- 4 ft9 smushy
- Energy
- 275kJ
- Wind
- S 7 kn
- Temp
- 14°C
Wed 4 · 44 out of 100
- Swell
- 3 ft9 scrumbling
- Energy
- 119kJ
- Wind
- WNW 13 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Thu 5 · 42 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft7 smushy
- Energy
- 268kJ
- Wind
- SW 4 kn
- Temp
- 15°C
Fri 6 · 42 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft10 ssoft
- Energy
- 567kJ
- Wind
- WNW 17 kn
- Temp
- 18°C
Sat 7 · 14 out of 100
- Swell
- 5 ft10 smushy
- Energy
- 551kJ
- Wind
- SSW 19 kn
- Temp
- 12°C
Sun 8 · 0 out of 100
- Swell
- 6 ft9 smushy
- Energy
- 586kJ
- Wind
- SSE 10 kn
- Temp
- 12°C
Tap a day for waves, wind and the temperature. Full forecast
Forecast: next 10 days
Full forecast- Sun 161, good
- Mon 268, good
- Tue 345, fair
- Wed 444, too small
- Thu 542, poor
- Fri 642, poor
- Sat 714, poor
- Sun 80, too big
- Mon 957, fair
- Tue 1022, too small
The spot in five facts
- Faces SEtakes swell from the SE
- Offshore: NWwind from the land
- Intermediate +who it suits
- Works 3–12 ftof swell
- Water 15 °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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 1Nov | 61, good | 3 ft7 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 96kJ | wind from the south-west, 3 knots | 16°C |
| Mon 2Nov | 68, good | 5 ft10 scrumbling4 ft at break (est.) | 373kJ | offshorewind from the north, 2 knots, offshore | 16°C |
| Tue 3Nov | 45, fair | 4 ft9 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 275kJ | wind from the south, 7 knots | 14°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 44, too small | 3 ft9 scrumbling2 ft at break (est.) | 119kJ | offshorewind from the west-north-west, 13 knots, offshore | 18°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 42, poor | 5 ft7 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 268kJ | wind from the south-west, 4 knots | 15°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 42, poor | 6 ft10 ssoft3 ft at break (est.) | 567kJ | offshorewind from the west-north-west, 17 knots, offshore | 18°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 14, poor | 5 ft10 smushy4 ft at break (est.) | 551kJ | wind from the south-south-west, 19 knots | 12°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 0, too big | 6 ft9 smushy5 ft at break (est.) | 586kJ | wind from the south-south-east, 10 knots | 12°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 57, fair | 4 ft9 scrumbling4 ft at break (est.) | 216kJ | wind from the east-south-east, 5 knots | 14°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 22, too small | 2 ft8 smushy3 ft at break (est.) | 49kJ | wind from the south-east, 7 knots | 15°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 04:43 +1.3 mLow 10:26 −0.6 mHigh 16:24 +0.8 mLow 22:27 −1.3 m
- Mon 2 NovHigh 05:27 +1.2 mLow 11:09 −0.6 mHigh 17:14 +0.8 mLow 23:14 −1.1 m
- Tue 3 NovHigh 06:13 +1.0 mLow 11:57 −0.6 mHigh 18:12 +0.7 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
- Apr2of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May2of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun2of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul2of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug2of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep1of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct2of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov2of 7: a trip from Mon 2 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
Southside 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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More surf near here
5 places
- Bells Beach 0.8 km away
- Winki Pop 1.4 km away
- Inside Addis 2.4 km away
- Steps 2.7 km away
- Bird Rock 2.8 km away
About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Southside
Facing, offshore wind, exposure, level and swell range are estimated.
The spot faces SE (144°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (324°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 3–12 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves moderately: 10 m deep about 400 m out (1 in 39). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would crumble. The sea is about 13°C in July, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 20°C in February, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Torquay, 6.2 km away (about 15 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 7 surf spots and 4 wind sports spots.
Water about 15°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$1,920–US$3,660 each
about US$1,920–US$3,660 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 MEL, estimated from distance and season, changing at LAX, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$958–US$2,000 |
| 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$1,920–US$3,660 |
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
11 min by car · 37 places to stay
about US$134/nightcountry average
About Torquay its beds, food and every spot near it
- Beds in Anglesea on Booking.com
15 min by car · 27 places to stay
- Beds in Aireys Inlet on Booking.com
31 min by car · 18 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 35m
About 29h 35m door to door from Chicago
Fly MDW → MEL, changing at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), then 1h 50m by road
Flights MDW → MEL on your dates · Skyscanner
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.