Staying Home Sucks, home
Vivonne Bay, Kangaroo Island
Vivonne Bay. Photo: World4srk, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Vivonne Bay

Surf spot · Australia

Is it worth the trip?

43Poor out of 100 for your dates

Stay home

Best on Thu 5: 7 ft swell at 9 s, sheltered (estimated): holds up in a blow

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Tue 3 · 46 out of 100

Swell
5 ft9 ssoft
Energy
448kJ
Wind
WSW 3 kn
Temp
21°C

Wed 4 · 12 out of 100

Swell
7 ft9 smushy
Energy
567kJ
Wind
SW 14 kn
Temp
16°C

Thu 5 · 63 out of 100

Swell
7 ft9 ssoft
Energy
686kJ
Wind
W 6 kn
Temp
18°C

Fri 6 · 34 out of 100

Swell
7 ft10 ssoft
Energy
904kJ
Wind
W 11 kn
Temp
19°C

Sat 7 · 49 out of 100

Swell
8 ft9 smushy
Energy
860kJ
Wind
SE 9 kn
Temp
14°C

Sun 8 · 33 out of 100

Swell
6 ft9 ssoft
Energy
520kJ
Wind
ENE 11 kn
Temp
17°C

Mon 9 · 25 out of 100

Swell
4 ft9 ssoft
Energy
178kJ
Wind
NE 8 kn
Temp
23°C

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

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Mon 236, too small
  2. Tue 346, fair
  3. Wed 412, poor
  4. Thu 563, good
  5. Fri 634, poor
  6. Sat 749, fair
  7. Sun 833, poor
  8. Mon 925, too small
  9. Tue 1025, too small
  10. Wed 1131, too small

The spot in five facts

  • Faces Stakes swell from the S
  • Offshore: Nwind from the land
  • Intermediate +who it suits
  • Works 4–14 ftof swell
  • Water 16 °C3/2 wetsuit

Full forecast

every day, every number

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

Forecast and score for expert surfers at Vivonne Bay, each day
DayScore for expertsSwellEnergyWindTemp
Mon 2Nov36, too small6 ft10 smushy6 ft at break (est.)536kJwind from the south, 7 knots18°C
Tue 3Nov46, fair5 ft9 ssoft5 ft at break (est.)448kJwind from the west-south-west, 3 knots21°C
Wed 4Nov12, poor7 ft9 smushy5 ft at break (est.)567kJwind from the south-west, 14 knots16°C
Thu 5Nov63, good7 ft9 ssoft6 ft at break (est.)686kJwind from the west, 6 knots18°C
Fri 6Nov34, poor7 ft10 ssoft6 ft at break (est.)904kJwind from the west, 11 knots19°C
Sat 7Nov49, fair8 ft9 smushy8 ft at break (est.)860kJwind from the south-east, 9 knots14°C
Sun 8Nov33, poor6 ft9 ssoft7 ft at break (est.)520kJwind from the east-north-east, 11 knots17°C
Mon 9Nov25, too small4 ft9 ssoft5 ft at break (est.)178kJwind from the north-east, 8 knots23°C
Tue 10Nov25, too small4 ft10 ssoft4 ft at break (est.)283kJwind from the east, 7 knots22°C
Wed 11Nov31, too small4 ft11 ssoft4 ft at break (est.)384kJwind from the north-east, 10 knots24°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 04:54 +0.4 mLow 20:37 −0.3 m
  • Tue 3 NovHigh 05:15 +0.2 mLow 20:09 −0.2 m
  • Wed 4 NovHigh 03:48 +0.1 mLow 06:53 +0.1 mHigh 11:53 +0.1 mLow 18:57 −0.1 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 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.

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Vivonne Bay

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

The spot faces S (160°), so it takes swell from the S. The wind blows offshore from the N (340°). It is sheltered to the open swell. It suits intermediate surfers and up. It works in 4–14 ft of swell. The sea floor shelves gently: 10 m deep about 600 m out (1 in 61). On a typical 5 ft, 11 s swell the waves here would spill softly. The sea is about 15°C in August, its coldest month (4/3 wetsuit and boots), and 19°C in January, its warmest (2 mm shorty). The town to stay in is Vivonne Bay, 1.7 km away (about 5 min by car).

Water about 16°C: 3/2 wetsuit. 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$1,950–US$3,700 each

about US$1,950–US$3,700 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 ADL, estimated from distance and season, changing at SFO, full-service airlines, with a hold bagabout US$985–US$2,040
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$1,950–US$3,700

For 2 people sharing a room. Lessons, lift-pass deals and insurance are extra. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: 2 towns

Closest

Vivonne Bay

3 min by car · 12 places to stay

about US$134/nightcountry average

See 12 places to stay in Vivonne Bay · Booking.com

About Vivonne Bay 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 31h 30m

About 31h 30m door to door from Chicago

Fly MDW → ADL, changing at San Francisco International Airport (SFO), then 3h 10m by road

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