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Square Head. Photo: Maurice van Creij, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

Square Head

Surf spot · Australia

Is it worth the trip?

15Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

2 days tie for best

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 12 out of 100

Swell
3 ft6 smushy
Energy
55kJ
Wind
ENE 2 kn
Temp
22°C

Tue 3 · 10 out of 100

Swell
3 ft5 smushy
Energy
31kJ
Wind
SSE 2 kn
Temp
24°C

Wed 4 · 9 out of 100

Swell
2 ft10 scrumbling
Energy
39kJ
Wind
ESE 4 kn
Temp
21°C

Thu 5 · 22 out of 100

Swell
5 ft6 smushy
Energy
201kJ
Wind
SE 9 kn
Temp
20°C

Fri 6 · 22 out of 100

Swell
4 ft6 smushy
Energy
131kJ
Wind
S 5 kn
Temp
21°C

Sat 7 · 6 out of 100

Swell
2 ft7 smushy
Energy
23kJ
Wind
WNW 4 kn
Temp
25°C

Sun 8 · 11 out of 100

Swell
5 ft7 smushy
Energy
211kJ
Wind
SSW 12 kn
Temp
14°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 117, too small
  2. Mon 212, too small
  3. Tue 310, too small
  4. Wed 49, too small
  5. Thu 522, too small
  6. Fri 622, too small
  7. Sat 76, too small
  8. Sun 811, too small
  9. Mon 918, too small
  10. Tue 1025, too small

The spot in six facts

  • Faces SEtakes swell from the SE
  • Offshore: NWwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 2–9 ftof swell
  • Water 20 °C2 mm shorty
  • Best Apr–May3 good days in 7

Full forecast

every day, every number
Forecast and score for expert surfers at Square Head, each day
DayScore for expertsSwellEnergyWindTemp
Sun 1Nov17, too small3 ft7 smushy4 ft at break (est.)100kJwind from the east-south-east, 6 knots20°C
Mon 2Nov12, too small3 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.)55kJwind from the east-north-east, 2 knots22°C
Tue 3Nov10, too small3 ft5 smushy3 ft at break (est.)31kJwind from the south-south-east, 2 knots24°C
Wed 4Nov9, too small2 ft10 scrumbling2 ft at break (est.)39kJwind from the east-south-east, 4 knots21°C
Thu 5Nov22, too small5 ft6 smushy6 ft at break (est.)201kJwind from the south-east, 9 knots20°C
Fri 6Nov22, too small4 ft6 smushy5 ft at break (est.)131kJwind from the south, 5 knots21°C
Sat 7Nov6, too small2 ft7 smushy2 ft at break (est.)23kJwind from the west-north-west, 4 knots, offshore25°C
Sun 8Nov11, too small5 ft7 smushy6 ft at break (est.)211kJwind from the south-south-west, 12 knots14°C
Mon 9Nov18, too small5 ft6 smushy6 ft at break (est.)204kJwind from the south-south-west, 11 knots17°C
Tue 10Nov25, too small4 ft6 smushy4 ft at break (est.)101kJwind from the south, 1 knot20°C
Wed 11Nov39, too small4 ft8 smushy5 ft at break (est.)194kJwind from the north-north-east, 3 knots17°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 01:55 +0.3 mLow 07:16 −0.3 mHigh 13:53 +0.7 mLow 20:55 −0.6 m
  • Mon 2 NovHigh 03:09 +0.3 mLow 08:33 −0.3 mHigh 15:01 +0.7 mLow 22:00 −0.6 m
  • Tue 3 NovHigh 04:18 +0.3 mLow 09:54 −0.3 mHigh 16:10 +0.6 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, its town, photos

Each place wears its best day on these dates, a surf spot for experts: 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 Square Head

View from Burgh Ridge Track of Burning Palms Beach
Near Square Head. Photo: Acalycine, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Royal National Park - Burning Palms Beach
Near Square Head. Photo: Andi Winata T, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

More surf near here

5 places

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Square Head

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

The spot faces SE (129°), so it takes swell from the SE. The wind blows offshore from the NW (309°). 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 53). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 18°C in August, its coldest month (2 mm shorty), and 24°C in February, its warmest (no wetsuit). For intermediate surfers the best months are usually April and May, with about 3 good days in 7. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Stanwell Park, 7.8 km away (about 15 min by car). Within 5 km we also list 2 surf spots.

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$1,820–US$3,480 each

about US$1,820–US$3,480 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$80–US$134
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$1,820–US$3,480

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

Stanwell Park

14 min by car · 10 places to stay

about US$134/nightcountry average

See 10 places to stay in Stanwell Park · Booking.com

About Stanwell Park 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 50m

About 27h 50m door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → SYD, changing at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), then 55 min by road

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